When a person is charged with a crime or convicted of a crime, the information stays on the person’s criminal record and may be accessed by the court or other federal, state, municipal, or county agencies—or by private persons or entities conducting a background check.

Under limited circumstances a person with a criminal record of arrest or conviction may be able to have the criminal record expunged—meaning the record will be permanently destroyed or deleted so it is no longer accessible by the court or other federal, state, municipal, or county agencies—or by private persons or entities conducting a background check.

Such an expungement or expunction of a criminal record is different from having a record sealed—which means the record still exists, but access to it is limited. A person whose only criminal record has been expunged may truthfully answer “no” when asked on an employment, licensing, or other application whether the person has ever been convicted of a crime.

Under both state and federal law, in most cases it is not possible to have a person’s criminal conviction expunged. For example, under federal law only a person who is guilty of a minor drug offense under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. §844) may have their record expunged. See 18 U.S.C. §3607(c).

Under state laws a person who has been convicted of a crime, pleaded guilty, or pleaded no contest (nolo contendere) is often ineligible to have their criminal record expunged. When a person is eligible to have a criminal record expunged, it is often dependent upon the person successfully completing a probation or deferred adjudication program. And in some states juveniles may be eligible to have a criminal record expunged if the criminal offense was committed before they turned 17 years of age, for example.

Expungement or expunction laws vary from state to state and are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In New Hampshire (NH), expungement of a criminal record, also known as annulment, is a legal process that allows individuals to have certain criminal records permanently destroyed or deleted. This means that the records are no longer accessible by courts, federal, state, municipal, or county agencies, or by private entities conducting background checks. NH law allows for the expungement of certain criminal records under specific conditions, such as the passage of a certain amount of time since the completion of the sentence, and depending on the nature of the crime. Some offenses, particularly violent crimes and sexual offenses, may not be eligible for expungement. Unlike expungement, sealing a record means it still exists but is not publicly accessible. NH statutes provide the framework for expungement, and individuals seeking to have their records expunged may need to petition the court and demonstrate that they meet the eligibility criteria. It's important to note that federal law has more limited options for expungement, typically restricted to minor drug offenses as outlined in 18 U.S.C. §3607(c). Individuals in NH should consult with an attorney to understand their specific situation and the possibility of expunging their criminal records.