Does a criminal record clear after 7 years?

Today I’m gonna answer a question I get a lot, and that question is, does my criminal record automatically clear after seven years?

So there’s this common conception that a criminal charge will only stay on your record for seven years.

Now, unfortunately, that’s a complete myth.

In Texas, any crime that’s charged, even if it was dismissed or a person was found not guilty by a judge or a jury, the record of that record of the charge is going stay on that person’s
criminal record forever.

And I’m gonna repeat, even if it was dismissed, there’s going to be a record of that arrest on that person’s criminal record.

So when they’re applying for jobs, for housing, for credit cards, that’s
gonna be on there.

Now the good thing is that even though it’s on there, it can be removed.

Texas has a procedure called expunction, and one called nondisclosure.

And those are basically destroying a criminal record or sealing a criminal record.

We won’t get into the details of how each one works in this video, but the point is, those can actually remove the charge or seal it so that no one else can see it, and in some cases, maybe the FBI will be able to see it, law enforcement may be able to see it, but most people like private
parties, employers, lenders, they won’t be able to see it.

So while the charge doesn’t get automatically removed ever, there is a way to remove it yourself.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Austin expungement lawyer Eric Ramos and his team. We’ll take a look at your case, and tell you what your options are.

Thanks.