{
  "slug": "expungement-cost-calculator",
  "title": "Expungement Cost Calculator",
  "heading": "Criminal Record Expungement Cost Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/expungement-cost-calculator",
  "summary": "Total court filing fees, background check retrieval, and attorney costs to expunge a record.",
  "description": "Expunging or sealing a criminal record involves a court filing fee that varies by state and county (commonly $100-$450), a certified copy of your criminal history from the state repository or FBI ($10-$50), and often a fee to have fingerprints taken again for the petition ($20-$60). Straightforward single-charge expungements handled by an attorney typically cost $750-$2,000 in legal fees, while records with multiple charges, a hearing requirement, or prosecutorial objection can run $2,000-$5,000+. Some states waive filing fees for indigent petitioners, and a growing number of states now offer 'clean slate' automatic expungement for certain lower-level offenses after a waiting period at no cost at all, so it's worth checking your state's automatic relief eligibility before paying anything. This calculator totals the realistic cost of a petition-based expungement across filing, records, and attorney fees.",
  "formula": "Total = court filing fee + records/fingerprint fees + attorney fee (0 if self-filing or automatic).",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=expungement-cost-calculator",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "filingFee",
      "label": "Court filing fee",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 250,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "recordsFee",
      "label": "Certified records / fingerprint fee",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 40,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "complexity",
      "label": "Case complexity",
      "kind": "select",
      "hint": null,
      "default": "single",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "single",
          "label": "Single charge, no objection"
        },
        {
          "value": "multiple",
          "label": "Multiple charges"
        },
        {
          "value": "contested",
          "label": "Contested / hearing required"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "attorneyFee",
      "label": "Attorney fee (0 if self-filing)",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 1200,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "total",
      "label": "Estimated total cost",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "attorney",
      "label": "Attorney fee (complexity-adjusted)",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "courtCosts",
      "label": "Court + records costs",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Court filing fee: 250 $",
      "Certified records / fingerprint fee: 40 $",
      "Case complexity: Single charge, no objection",
      "Attorney fee (0 if self-filing): 1200 $"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Estimated total cost: $1,490",
      "Attorney fee (complexity-adjusted): $1,200",
      "Court + records costs: $290"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter court filing fee ($).",
      "Enter certified records / fingerprint fee ($).",
      "Enter case complexity.",
      "Enter attorney fee (0 if self-filing) ($).",
      "Read your estimated total cost on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "filingFee": 150,
        "recordsFee": 25,
        "complexity": "single",
        "attorneyFee": 700
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "filingFee": 250,
        "recordsFee": 40,
        "complexity": "single",
        "attorneyFee": 1200
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "filingFee": 400,
        "recordsFee": 65,
        "complexity": "single",
        "attorneyFee": 1900
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "What's the difference between expungement and sealing?",
      "a": "Expungement generally destroys or removes the record from public access entirely, treating the case as if it never happened for most purposes, while sealing hides it from general public view but keeps it accessible to certain agencies like law enforcement or licensing boards. States use these terms differently, so check your state's specific legal effect rather than assuming based on the word used."
    },
    {
      "q": "Does everyone qualify for expungement?",
      "a": "No. Eligibility depends on the offense type, how much time has passed since sentence completion, whether you have subsequent convictions, and state-specific exclusions (violent felonies and certain sex offenses are commonly permanently excluded in most states). Check eligibility before paying any attorney retainer."
    },
    {
      "q": "Are there free or low-cost options?",
      "a": "Many public defender offices, legal aid clinics, and university law clinics run expungement clinics, sometimes for free or a nominal fee, especially around 'clean slate' events. Some states also have moved to automatic expungement for certain low-level offenses with no petition or fee required at all after a set waiting period."
    },
    {
      "q": "Does expungement fix background checks immediately?",
      "a": "Not always instantly. Private background check companies that scraped the record before expungement may still show it until you request removal directly from each company, so budget time for follow-up requests even after the court order is granted."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/traffic-ticket-insurance-impact",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/attorney-hourly-vs-flat-fee",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/court-filing-service-cost"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Expungement Cost Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/expungement-cost-calculator)"
}