For most private employers, landlords and members of the public, a sealed or expunged Florida record does not appear on a background check. That protection is not universal, however. Florida law gives a defined group of government agencies, licensing bodies and screening programs access to sealed records. Many of those same entities are informed when a record has been expunged. Anyone preparing for a fingerprint-based screening for employment or a professional license should understand which category the screening falls into before answering application questions.
Who Can See Sealed Criminal Records in Florida?
Both forms of relief remove a criminal history record from public access, but they operate differently. A sealed record remains in the state system and is withheld from the public, while the entities named in section 943.059 of the Florida Statutes retain full access to it. An expunged record is removed from public view and from most agency access. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) may release it only under a court order, even to the person it concerns.
Eligibility also differs. Expungement is generally available where charges were dismissed, dropped or never filed. A record in which adjudication was withheld is usually eligible for sealing first and may become eligible for expungement after it has been sealed for 10 years. An adjudication of guilt for any criminal offense as an adult, in any jurisdiction, makes a record ineligible for both forms of relief.
Who Can Still See a Sealed Record
A person whose record has been sealed may lawfully deny or decline to acknowledge the arrest in most circumstances. The statute lists specific exceptions. The entities connected to those exceptions receive the sealed arrest event along with a notice that the record has been sealed. They include:
- Criminal justice agencies considering a candidate for employment
- The Florida Bar, for applicants seeking admission
- The Department of Children and Families, the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Health, the Department of Elderly Affairs and the Department of Juvenile Justice, for positions involving direct contact with children, the elderly or people with disabilities
- The Department of Education, school districts, charter and private schools and child care licensing authorities
- The Division of Insurance Agent and Agency Services, for insurance licensing
- The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, for concealed weapon license eligibility
- Licensed firearm dealers conducting a purchase background check
- Courts considering the appointment of a guardian
- Qualified entities screening through the Care Provider Background Screening Clearinghouse
Healthcare, education and child care employers arranging florida background check services for these positions receive results through the same regulated channels. In those settings, a sealed record is not hidden from the reviewing agency. Applicants in those positions are generally required to acknowledge it.
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What Happens When a Record Is Expunged
Expungement offers a stronger level of protection. Most entities that would see a sealed record are told only that a record has been expunged under Chapter 943, along with the person’s basic demographic information, without details of the arrest, charges or outcome.
According to FDLE, firearm purchase checks and concealed weapon license reviews do not receive even that notice. Outside these narrow channels, the arrest itself can be disclosed again only if a court orders its release.
Why Fingerprint-Based Screening Matters
Name-based searches run by commercial screening companies generally draw on public records, so a properly sealed or expunged Florida record should not appear in them. Fingerprint-based checks work differently, because they are processed through FDLE and the FBI and are often submitted on behalf of the agencies listed above. A nurse, teacher or caregiver completing a level 2 background check through the Clearinghouse should therefore expect a sealed record to be visible to the reviewing agency.
Accurate capture remains important regardless of record status. Prints taken through professional fingerprinting services are routed using the ORI number supplied by the requesting agency, which determines who receives the results and which access rules apply to them.
Where Old Records Can Still Surface
A court order binds government agencies, but it cannot remove every copy of the information. FDLE notes that mugshot websites and private data companies are not subject to sealing or expungement orders. The agency also has no authority to require them to delete content. Some of those companies operate as consumer reporting agencies under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which gives individuals the right to dispute inaccurate or outdated entries directly with the company.
Automatic sealing, which applies to certain qualifying outcomes such as a not guilty verdict, is completed by FDLE once the clerk transmits the disposition electronically. This process does not seal the record at the local level, so court files and arresting agency records may remain accessible unless a separate court-ordered sealing or expungement is obtained. When a cleared record still appears on a screening report, the steps for handling a background check denial apply, beginning with a written dispute to the screening company that produced the report.
Points to Confirm Before Applying for Relief
Court-ordered sealing and expungement begin with an application to FDLE for a Certificate of Eligibility, which FDLE currently reports takes more than 12 weeks to process. The certificate does not seal or expunge anything on its own. It allows the person to petition the court in the county where the arrest occurred. The judge then has sole discretion over whether to grant relief.
Relief under these statutes is generally available only once and covers a single arrest record, unless the court finds that several arrests are directly related and addresses them in one proceeding. Because the eligibility rules are detailed, an attorney familiar with Florida record relief can advise on individual circumstances.
Before starting, many people review their own criminal history to see exactly what the state holds. FDLE offers a free personal review process. The steps for requesting an fdle background check show how a personal record check is completed. FDLE also recommends keeping copies of the arrest report, the disposition and the court order before relief is granted, since expunged records cannot later be released without a court order.
Final Thoughts
Notary Plus More provides Livescan fingerprinting and Level 2 background check support from its Boca Raton office, routing each submission with the correct ORI so results reach the requesting agency without avoidable delays. The team does not provide legal advice on sealing or expungement, but it can assist applicants with the fingerprinting and screening steps once they know which agency will review their record.
