Understand Your Record. Know Your Next Step.

At Clean Slate Virginia, we provide guidance for people with Virginia convictions, wherever they live. Contact us today to discover more about how to know if your Virginia conviction has been automatically sealed.

Virginia Record Sealing · A Practical Guide

When looking to seal your record, start by requesting your criminal history record from the Virginia State Police. Meeting the eligibility requirements does not, by itself, confirm that your conviction has been sealed.

Request your VSP criminal record ↗

Was your conviction missed? If so, follow these next steps:

1. Check the eligible offenses
2. Review the seven-year requirements
3. Verify your record’s status
4. Explore a petition if it was missed

October 1, 2026 marked the first-list deadline for automatic conviction sealing. It did not mean every eligible record was sealed that day.

Which Virginia Convictions Qualify For Automatic Sealing?

Virginia Code § 19.2-392.6 provides for automatic sealing of the following convictions when the statutory requirements are met:

The exact statute and whether the offense was a misdemeanor matter. A similar charge name does not necessarily qualify.

Marijuana possession under former § 18.2-250.1 follows a separate automatic-sealing provision, § 19.2-392.6:1. The seven-year rules below apply to the convictions listed in § 19.2-392.6. The first step to determining whether your conviction in Virginia has been sealed is checking whether it is eligible.

Seven Years Must Have Passed—And The Other Criteria Matter.

For automatic conviction sealing under § 19.2-392.6, the law requires:

1. The offense occurred on or after January 1, 1986.
2. At least seven years have passed since the date of conviction.
3. During that period, you have not been convicted of another Virginia offense that must be reported to the Central Criminal Records Exchange, or of a crime in another state, the District of Columbia, the United States, or a U.S. territory, excluding traffic infractions under Title 46.2.
4. On the date of the qualifying conviction, you were not also convicted of an offense that is ineligible for automatic sealing under § 19.2-392.6(A).

Seven years alone is not enough. Your complete conviction history and any other convictions entered on the same date must be reviewed.

When Did The Automatic Process Start?

October 1, 2026 was the deadline for VSP to transmit its first list of eligible convictions. The sealing statutes took effect July 1, 2026. Under § 19.2-392.7, VSP identifies qualifying records at least monthly, and the process includes court sealing orders and updates to agency records.

Think of October 1 as the initial rollout milestone, rather than a guarantee that your particular conviction was sealed on that date. Because of this, it is important to understand how to check if your conviction has been automatically sealed in Virginia.

How Can I Check Whether My Conviction Was Sealed?

To know whether your Virginia conviction has been sealed automatically, request your Virginia criminal history record through the Virginia State Police criminal record check website. Follow VSP’s current instructions for requesting your own record. Its public instructions identify Form SP-167 for individual requests.

Tell VSP that you want to verify the sealing status of a particular conviction. Official state guidance explains that VSP records can include an indicator identifying sealed offenses. If your response does not clearly establish the status, ask VSP for clarification.

Get your Virginia criminal record ↗

Will The State Police Notify Me?

Do not wait for a letter, email, or text. VSP has advised that it cannot individually notify people when their convictions are automatically sealed. Official state guidance confirms that people will not receive notice of automatic sealing.

A VSP record is not the only verification option: official guidance also says the clerk of the court that disposed of the case can confirm sealing. A case disappearing from the online court search is not conclusive, because court retention rules may also explain its absence.

What If My Conviction Was Not Automatically Sealed?

If you have checked and found that your Virginia conviction has not been automatically sealed, contact Clean Slate Virginia. A conviction that was eligible for automatic sealing may still be eligible to be sealed by petition under Virginia Code § 19.2-392.12:1, titled “Sealing of charges and convictions related to automatic sealing; petition.”

The Legislature Provided a Way to Address Missed Records.

Virginia’s automatic process depends on the information in the Central Criminal Records Exchange. Official guidance recognizes that an eligible case may be missed if fingerprints were never taken or a clerical or transmission error kept the offense out of that system.

By creating § 19.2-392.12:1, the General Assembly provided a petition route for eligible offenses that the automated process did not seal. That structure addresses the possibility that a conviction meant to qualify for automatic sealing could be missed. Being overlooked by the system does not, by itself, end your opportunity to have an eligible conviction sealed.

This petition is filed in the circuit court of the city or county where the case was disposed of. The court must find that the statutory requirements are met, including the applicable seven-year period and conviction-history requirements. Same-day dispositions can also affect eligibility.

The statute also covers certain additional offenses and deferred dismissals. It does not require a separate showing of manifest injustice, and petitions granted under this section do not count toward the lifetime limit of two petitions under § 19.2-392.12.

If your conviction was never eligible for automatic sealing, a different petition route under § 19.2-392.12 may be available, depending on the offense and your history.

Your Record Deserves A Closer Look. Let Clean Slate Virginia Help Seal Your Criminal Conviction

If you believe your Virginia conviction should have been automatically sealed, contact our team at Clean Slate Virginia. We can review your record, determine which statute applies, and help you pursue an eligible petition. Schedule your consultation today to learn more about how to know if your Virginia conviction has been automatically sealed.

Common Questions

Do I need to file a petition for automatic sealing?

The government initiates the automatic process. If an eligible conviction was missed, § 19.2-392.12:1 provides a separate petition process.

Does seven years mean my conviction is definitely sealed?

No. The offense, offense date, conviction history, and same-day convictions matter. Verify the status rather than assuming the waiting period completed the process.

Can Clean Slate Virginia help if I live outside Virginia?

Contact the firm about your Virginia conviction. The petition venue is generally tied to the Virginia city or county where the case was disposed of.

Official Sources

• 19.2-392.6 — Eligible convictions and criteria
• 19.2-392.7 — Automatic sealing process
• 19.2-392.12:1 — Petition process
• Virginia State Police — Criminal history record requests
• Virginia State Crime Commission — Sealing FAQs
• Crime Commission — 2026 implementation update

General information; individual eligibility requires review. 

Clean Slate Virginia is a private law firm, unaffiliated with any government agency.