Oklahoma Expungement Laws: 22 O.S. § 18, Clean Slate & How to File (2026)

Oklahoma gives courts and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) authority to seal criminal records under 22 O.S. §§ 18 and 19, and the 2022 Clean Slate Act (HB 3316) added a path to automatic expungement for hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans.

Information last verified on May 29, 2026. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed attorney.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Oklahoma state expungement law only. For a comparison across all jurisdictions, see Expungement Laws by State.

Who Qualifies Under 22 O.S. § 18

Oklahoma's primary expungement statute, 22 O.S. § 18(A), lists 16 categories of eligibility. The categories cover a wide range of outcomes, from acquittals and dismissals to certain convictions. Key categories include:

Acquittal or reversed conviction. A person who was acquitted at trial, or whose conviction was reversed on appeal with a dismissal instruction, may petition immediately with no waiting period (22 O.S. § 18(A)(1) and (2)).

No charges filed. A person who was arrested but never charged qualifies once the statute of limitations has expired or the prosecutor formally declines to file (22 O.S. § 18(A)(5)).

All charges dismissed without deferral. A person with no felony conviction history whose charges were all dismissed (not as part of a deferred judgment) may petition once the refiling window has closed (22 O.S. § 18(A)(7)).

Misdemeanor deferred judgment. A person whose misdemeanor was dismissed after successful completion of a deferred judgment must wait at least one year before petitioning (22 O.S. § 18(A)(8)).

Nonviolent felony deferred judgment. A person whose nonviolent felony was dismissed after a deferred judgment must wait at least five years. Offenses listed in 57 O.S. § 571 are excluded (22 O.S. § 18(A)(9)).

Minor-fine misdemeanor conviction. A person convicted of a misdemeanor with a fine under $501 and no imprisonment may petition immediately once the fine is paid (22 O.S. § 18(A)(10)).

Misdemeanor conviction with imprisonment or larger fine. A person convicted of a misdemeanor with imprisonment, a suspended sentence, or a fine over $500 must wait five years after sentence completion (22 O.S. § 18(A)(11)).

Single nonviolent felony conviction. A person with one nonviolent felony conviction (no other felony, no misdemeanor in the prior seven years, no pending charges) must wait five years after sentence completion. Offenses under 57 O.S. § 571 are excluded (22 O.S. § 18(A)(12)).

Two or fewer felony convictions. A person with no more than two nonviolent felony convictions (excluding 21 O.S. § 13.1 offenses and sex-registration offenses) must wait 10 years after sentence completion (22 O.S. § 18(A)(13)).

Two or fewer felony charges dismissed after a deferred judgment. Senate Bill 2030 added this category in 2026. A person charged with not more than two felony offenses whose charges were dismissed following successful completion of a deferred judgment or delayed sentence qualifies if none of the offenses were listed in 21 O.S. § 13.1 or would require sex-offender registration, no felony or misdemeanor charges are pending, and at least 10 years have passed since the charges were dismissed (22 O.S. § 18(A)(14)).

Reclassified felony. A person whose nonviolent felony was later reclassified as a misdemeanor may petition 30 days after sentence completion, provided restitution and any required treatment are complete (22 O.S. § 18(A)(16)).

Offenses that require registration under the Sex Offenders Registration Act and offenses listed in 57 O.S. § 571 (violent crimes) are excluded from the conviction-based categories. Fingerprint cards are not destroyed upon expungement; only the record is sealed.

Oklahoma Clean Slate Act: Automatic Expungement Under HB 3316

Oklahoma enacted HB 3316 in 2022, creating the Clean Slate Act with an effective date of November 1, 2022. The law authorizes OSBI to automatically seal eligible records without requiring the individual to file a court petition.

Which records qualify. Senate Bill 2030 (approved by the Governor on May 11, 2026, with an emergency clause and a stated effective date of July 1, 2026) struck the "clean slate eligible arrest record" list that used to sit in § 18(C) and replaced it with a new "clean slate eligible record" definition, now codified at 22 O.S. § 18b. The new definition reaches records arising on or after January 1, 1980. Records qualify without a court petition if they fall into an unconditional category (acquittals, reversed convictions dismissed on appeal, DNA-established innocence, a full gubernatorial pardon, a minor's full pardon, or an identity-theft victim's record) or a conditional category limited to an Oklahoma "single-source" arrest record, meaning it contains no out-of-state or federal arrest and no sex-offender-registry or NCIC wanted/warrant entry: charges the prosecuting agency affirmatively declined to file, certain dismissed misdemeanor or felony charges, a qualifying drug-possession felony conviction (63 O.S. § 2-402(A)(1)) after five years, or a general misdemeanor conviction after five years.

Implementation timeline. The original HB 3316 set a target of three years after the effective date, which pointed to November 1, 2025. That deadline was not met due to the scope of work required to build a new computerized criminal history (CCH) system. OSBI received appropriations in fiscal years 2024 and 2025 to fund the system.

In May 2026, Governor Kevin Stitt signed Senate Bill 2030, which sets revised deadlines:

• November 1, 2026: OSBI must establish and maintain a publicly accessible online portal for submitting expedited expungement requests.
• November 1, 2027: OSBI must begin implementing the automatic process that identifies and submits eligible records for sealing without any request.
• Before November 1, 2029: All electronic records eligible through the automated process must be identified and expunged.

Until the automatic system is active, individuals who qualify may still file a petition under § 18 and § 19. OSBI can be reached at cleanslate@osbi.ok.gov or 405-879-2641 for status updates.

Section 991c Deferred Sentence Expungement vs. Section 18

Oklahoma provides two distinct expungement paths for people who completed a deferred sentence:

Section 991c allows the court to update the disposition on a deferred-sentence case to read "pled not guilty, case dismissed." This seals the plea itself and removes the conviction from the court record. However, a § 991c order does not remove the underlying arrest record from OSBI's files.

Section 18 is required to seal the arrest record. A person who received a § 991c order and wants the full arrest record sealed must also file a separate petition under § 18(A)(8) (misdemeanor deferred) or § 18(A)(9) (nonviolent felony deferred), subject to the applicable waiting period.

Many Oklahomans need both steps to achieve a complete seal. Consulting an Oklahoma-licensed attorney before filing helps confirm which path applies and whether any waiting periods have been satisfied.

How to File a Petition Under 22 O.S. § 19

Any person who qualifies under § 18 may file a petition in the district court of the county where the arrest record is held. The same county handles both the court record and the arrest record if both occurred there. If arrests occurred in multiple counties, a separate petition is required for each county, although multiple offenses within one county can be combined in a single petition (22 O.S. § 19).

Step 1: Gather required information. The petition must include full legal name, Social Security number, date of birth, charges filed, arrest date, and case disposition. For domestic-related charges, include a police narrative identifying the victim relationship to avoid processing delays.

Step 2: File in district court. Court record expungement carries no filing fee. After the petition is filed, the court sets a hearing date and provides 30 days of notice to the prosecuting agency, the arresting agency, OSBI, and any other interested party. The State may object to the petition even if the petitioner technically qualifies.

Step 3: Serve OSBI. Once the court grants the order, send a certified copy to OSBI. The arrest record expungement requires a $150 processing fee payable by cashier's check or money order (personal checks are not accepted). Local law enforcement agencies may charge additional fees.

Step 4: Allow processing time. Court records and arrest records each take approximately one month to seal after OSBI receives the certified order. OSBI does not send a completion notice.

Reimbursement of filing fees and court costs is narrower than many people assume. If the expungement is granted under § 18(A)(3), the category for factual innocence established by DNA evidence, the court must order reimbursement of all filing fees and court costs the petitioner incurred. A full gubernatorial pardon under § 18(A)(4) does not carry that refund. What § 18(A)(3) and § 18(A)(4) share is a separate procedural right: a petitioner in either category may request that the hearing be set within 30 days after the petition is filed, and the court must grant that request and give the agencies at least 10 days of notice.

What Expungement Does and Does Not Do

An Oklahoma expungement under § 18 seals the record, making it unavailable to the public and, for fully sealed records, unavailable to law enforcement as well. Partially sealed records remain accessible to law enforcement agencies.

Records expunged under conviction-based categories (§ 18(A)(8) through (14)) remain admissible in any subsequent criminal prosecution to prove the existence of a prior conviction or deferred judgment without a court order. Records sealed automatically under § 18b are admissible on the same terms. This means prosecutors can still use the sealed record against a person charged with a new crime.

FBI records are also expunged if the underlying state arrest record is expunged. Fingerprint cards held by OSBI are not destroyed.

Under Oklahoma law, a person whose record has been expunged may lawfully deny the existence of the arrest or conviction in most circumstances, including on job applications, unless a specific law requires disclosure (for example, applications for certain professional licenses or law enforcement positions).

Disclaimer: This article describes Oklahoma expungement law as of May 29, 2026, based on 22 O.S. §§ 18, 18b, and 19, HB 3316 (2022), and SB 2030 (2026). Laws change. Consult a licensed Oklahoma attorney for advice about your specific situation.

Related Articles

• Expungement Laws by State
• DUI Expungement by State: Which States Allow It?
• How to Check If Your Record Has Been Expunged

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RecordingLaw.com provides general legal information, not legal advice. Laws change frequently. Verify current statutes at oscn.net or oklahoma.gov before making legal decisions.

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