Do felonies go away at 18?

No. A juvenile adjudication for a serious offense does not disappear at 18. In California, § 707(b) offenses committed at 14 or older are left out of § 786 sealing unless the finding was dismissed or reduced as § 786(d) describes, and face extra conditions under § 781. A case decided in adult court creates an adult record.

Does a sealed juvenile record show up on a background check?

Whether a background check reaches a sealed record depends on the state's law. In California, the statutes allow access to sealed records only in the specific situations they list, and once records are sealed the person may reply as if the arrest and proceedings did not occur when asked.

Can a juvenile record affect college admissions or financial aid?

College admissions and financial aid are among the consequences that can follow a juvenile case. These effects depend on the facts and on rules this page does not fully cover. In California, § 786 provides that after dismissal and sealing, a person may answer inquiries from educational institutions as if the arrest and proceedings did not occur.

What is the difference between sealing and expungement for a juvenile record?

Sealing is a court order closing a record. Expungement is a term some states use, and states use these words inconsistently, so the real effect depends on that state's statute. In California, once a court orders records sealed under § 781, the proceedings are deemed never to have occurred, and the statutes provide for destruction of sealed records on set dates, with exceptions.

Does California automatically seal juvenile records?

Not on its own at 18. A court order is required. Under § 786, the court must dismiss the petition and seal records when a person satisfactorily completes informal supervision under § 654.2 or probation, or when a petition is dismissed or not sustained. Sustained § 707(b) offenses committed at 14 or older are left out unless the finding was dismissed or reduced as § 786(d) describes. Other cases may use a § 781 petition.

Can a juvenile record affect immigration status?

Immigration consequences of a juvenile case are governed by immigration law, which this page does not cover. Whether a juvenile record matters depends on the offense, how the case ended and federal immigration law. This page does not state immigration outcomes.

Does a Juvenile Record Go Away at 18? How Sealing Works

No. Turning 18 does not, by itself, make a juvenile record go away. The record stays in court, probation and police files until a court order seals it. Whether that can happen, and when, depends on the state, the offense and how the juvenile case ended.

This page explains what a juvenile record is, what sealing and expungement mean, what commonly differs from state to state, and how California handles it.

The Short Answer: Juvenile Records Do Not Disappear Automatically at 18

A juvenile record is not erased on a young person's 18th birthday. The files a case created stay where they are: with the juvenile court, the probation department and the police agency that made the arrest.

It helps to separate two ideas. A record existing is one thing. A record being open to others is another. Turning 18 changes neither on its own. The record stays in place until a court orders otherwise.

A court order can change that. Sealing is a court order that closes the record. States use different words for these steps, such as sealing and expungement, and define them differently, so the exact effect depends on the state's law.

The rules on what happens to a juvenile record, and when, differ from state to state. No single rule fits the whole country.

How Juvenile Records Differ from Adult Criminal Records

Juvenile court uses its own words, and they matter. A case usually starts with a petition, the formal paper that asks the court to find that a minor committed an offense. It is not a criminal complaint. The court's finding is an adjudication, not a conviction. When the court agrees with the petition, the petition is "sustained." The court's decision about what happens next, such as probation, is the disposition, not a sentence.

Who may see a juvenile case file depends on state law. Limits on who may see a file do not mean the record is gone: it still sits in court and probation files after the case ends.

Consequences can also follow a juvenile case, including school discipline, financial aid, job and immigration effects. These depend on the facts and on rules, including federal immigration law, that fall outside the scope of this page.

What 'Sealing' and 'Expungement' Actually Mean

Sealing is a court order closing a record. Expungement is a term some states use, and states do not use these words in the same way, so the practical effect turns on the words of that state's statute, not on the label.

In California, the sections discussed below use sealing. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 781, once the court has ordered the records sealed, "the proceedings in the case shall be deemed never to have occurred." Under § 786, the court specifies a date by which the sealed records shall be destroyed. Under § 781(d), unless the court determines for good cause that the juvenile court record shall be retained, sealed juvenile court records are ordered destroyed five years after sealing if the person was alleged or adjudged to be a person described by § 601, or when the person reaches 38 years of age if described by § 602, except that if the person was found to be described in § 602 because of an offense listed in § 707(b) committed at 14 or older, the record shall not be destroyed.

Neither step happens just because a person turns 18. In California, a court order is what seals a record: on a petition under § 781, or when the court dismisses a petition and seals the records under § 786.

What a person may say when asked about a sealed case, and who can still reach a sealed record, depends on the state's law; California's rules are discussed below. More detail on each step appears in this site's guide to juvenile record sealing.

How State Laws Vary: What Commonly Differs Across the United States

Juvenile law differs from state to state, including the ages a juvenile court covers and when and how a record can be sealed.

A sealing rule can turn on points like these, shown here with California's sections:

The offense. In California, §§ 786(d) and 781(a)(1)(D) treat an offense listed in § 707(b) committed at 14 or older differently from other offenses.
How the case ended. Finishing probation or juvenile diversion, a program that handles a case without a formal finding, can matter. In California, § 786 turns on satisfactory completion of an informal program of supervision, probation or another term of probation, or on a petition being dismissed or not sustained.
Time. In California, a § 781 petition may be made five years or more after juvenile court jurisdiction ends, or at any time after the person reaches 18.
Later record. In California, a § 781 order requires a court finding that, since jurisdiction ended, the person has not been convicted of a felony or of any misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.

A case transferred to adult court that ends in an adult conviction is a different matter. In California, § 781(f) provides that § 781 does not permit the sealing of a person's juvenile court records for an offense where the person is convicted of that offense in a criminal court under § 707.1.

California as a Worked Example: Sealing Under Welfare and Institutions Code §§ 781 and 786

This is California's rule. Other states have different rules.

California has two main sealing paths: one that happens when a case closes, and one a person can ask for later.

Sealing when the case closes: § 786

The first path, under Welf. & Inst. Code § 786, applies when a case closes. If a person satisfactorily completes an informal program of supervision under § 654.2, probation under § 725, or a term of probation for any offense, "the court shall order the petition dismissed" and order sealed the records held by the juvenile court, law enforcement, probation and the Department of Justice. Put simply, in a case that § 786 covers, finishing supervision or probation is what triggers dismissal and sealing, and the statute says the court shall order it.

Completion counts as satisfactory if the person has no new wardship finding or conviction for a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude during supervision and has not failed to substantially comply with reasonable orders within their capacity. Unpaid restitution does not, by itself, count as failure.

Section 786 also requires sealing when a petition is dismissed or not sustained after the adjudication hearing. That means a case that ended without the court agreeing with the petition is also sealed.

Section 786 does not apply if the petition was sustained for an offense listed in Welf. & Inst. Code § 707(b), committed at 14 or older, unless that finding was dismissed or reduced to a misdemeanor or a lesser offense not on that list. Section 707(b) is the list California uses for serious offenses; it also governs transfer to adult court for some minors. For a reader, the key question is whether the offense in the case appears on that list; if it does and the offense was committed at 14 or older, § 786 does not apply unless the finding was dismissed or reduced as described above.

Sealing by petition: § 781

The second path, Welf. & Inst. Code § 781, is a petition. The person or the county probation officer may ask the court to seal records five years or more after juvenile court jurisdiction ends (or, if no petition was filed, five years after the police or probation contact), or at any time after the person turns 18. The court must find no felony or moral-turpitude misdemeanor conviction since then and that rehabilitation has been attained. In everyday terms, a person whose record was not sealed when the case closed may petition the court once they are 18, subject to the conditions below, and the court looks at how they have done since.

For a § 707(b) offense committed at 14 or older, a § 781 petition is allowed only if the person turned 18 and completed any probation for that offense, or, for someone committed to California's former Division of Juvenile Facilities, which no longer operates, turned 21 and completed probation after release. So a serious-offense record can be considered for sealing only after these added conditions are met. A record relating to a § 707(b) offense committed at 14 or older for which the person is required to register under Penal Code § 290.008 shall not be sealed under § 781. Where the court dismissed that offense or reduced it to a misdemeanor, the person may petition to have the record sealed in the same manner as other records.

What sealing means afterward

Once a record is sealed under § 781, "the proceedings in the case shall be deemed never to have occurred." Section 786 says the person "may reply accordingly" to inquiries by employers and educational institutions. Both sections allow limited access to sealed records in listed situations. For a young adult, this means the statutes let the person reply accordingly to an inquiry about the sealed events, while certain agencies keep the narrow access the statutes describe. For more on how the state's system works, see this site's overview of California juvenile laws.

When a Juvenile Record Can Still Follow Someone Into Adulthood

Several situations keep a juvenile case relevant past 18, even where sealing is available.

Transfer to adult court. In California, under Welf. & Inst. Code § 707(a), a prosecutor may ask to move a case to adult court for a minor 16 or older accused of a § 707(b) offense or another felony, or, for a § 707(b) offense committed at 14 or 15, for a person who was not apprehended before the end of juvenile court jurisdiction. Before ordering transfer, the court must find by clear and convincing evidence that the minor is not amenable to rehabilitation in juvenile court. A conviction in adult court creates an adult record; see § 781(f), discussed above.

Serious-offense limits. In California, a § 707(b) record (for an offense committed at 14 or older) sealed under § 781 can still be opened in limited later proceedings, including charging decisions or sentencing for a later felony.

Sex-offense registration. In California, § 781 provides that if a ward is subject to the registration requirements of Penal Code § 290, the order sealing the records also relieves the person of the registration requirement; but a record relating to a § 707(b) offense committed at 14 or older for which the person is required to register under Penal Code § 290.008 shall not be sealed. The full scope of registration rules is beyond this page.

Firearms. In California, § 786 provides that where a record contains a sustained petition rendering the person ineligible to own or possess a firearm until 30 years of age under Penal Code § 29820, the date the sealed records shall be destroyed is the date the person turns 33.

School, college, financial aid, job and immigration consequences, discussed briefly above, can also follow a juvenile case into adulthood.

How a Sealing Request Is Made

Eligibility depends on the state's statute, the offense, the disposition and how much time has passed. No one can tell whether a record qualifies without knowing which state's law applies.

In California, a § 781 petition is made to the court. The court notifies the district attorney and the county probation officer if they are not the petitioner, and the district attorney, the probation officer or any other person having relevant evidence may testify at the hearing on the petition. Under § 781(h), each court and probation department must ensure that information about eligibility and the procedures to request sealing is provided to a person for whom a petition has been filed on or after January 1, 2015, or who is brought before a probation officer under § 626, and the Judicial Council is to provide a form to petition for sealing.

If You'd Like to Talk Through a Juvenile Record

This page covers the general rules and California's statutes, not the law of every state.

To talk with an attorney about a record like this, contact Juvenile Justice Defense Group to request a consultation about a child's juvenile case.

Does a Juvenile Record Go Away at 18?