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State legislators approved a bill that will create more expunction opportunities for residents who have certain types of criminal offenses.

About The Act

Maryland’s Expungement Reform Act of 2025 specifies that residents may file petitions to have certain records expunged 3 to 5 years following the satisfactory completion of a sentence, including probation. When a request is submitted, the State’s Attorney may file an objection. If that happens, the court will hold a hearing to determine whether it will be accepted or rejected.

Should the court determine that the records may be expunged, it will order the expunction and inform law enforcement agencies. While making these decisions, the court will consider:

• If the person was successful with the terms of their probation, parole or mandatory supervision.
• Whether the individual paid restitution that was ordered by the court.
• If monies were not paid, the court will look into why and determine if the person was unable to do so.

In some cases, individuals may have their records expunged even if they violated their parole or probation. This is only available to people who have minor traffic offenses and violations involving alcohol or cannabis.

The Act is scheduled to go into effect on October 1, 2025.

Examples Of Eligible Records

Maryland residents will be permitted to have various types of records expunged, such as:

• Misdemeanor violations of the Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis Article.
• Offenses listed in the Business Occupations and Professions Article.
• Traffic offenses.

More Serious Offenses

The Expungement Reform Act also covers more serious offenses and notes that the time a person must wait to petition for expunction will be longer. Examples include:

• 7 years for violations of the Criminal Law Article or common law battery.
• 15 years for domestic crimes.
• 7 years for felonies.
• 10 years for felony violations of the Criminal Law Article.

When Records Are Expunged

Once a criminal record is expunged, it can no longer be considered by employers or other entities that make decisions about consumers. The individual who held the record may act as if it never occurred.

To avoid inadvertently reviewing expunged records, hiring managers may opt to work with a Consumer Reporting Agency (CRA) that is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA). To earn certification, CRAs must go through an intensive third-party audit and demonstrate that they follow reasonable procedures to only provide current, reportable records in the background checks they produce.

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