Criminal Expungement Client Resources

Under Minnesota law, Criminal Expungement is the sealing of a criminal record, so that the criminal record is not publicly available. Expungement of a criminal record can remove barriers for people seeking to better their lives, such as in seeking employment or housing.  

The Criminal Expungement Program provides telephone advice on expungements, assistance with filling out expungement forms at walk in clinics, and links to expungement resources on our webpage. For individuals who qualify, clients may be matched with a workshop attorney who will assist with preparation and filing of expungement petitions or with a pro bono attorney for full representation.

VLN has walk in clinics for criminal expungement. If you would like to attend one of our criminal expungement clinics:

  • You must be off probation.
  • You must not owe any fines or restitution to the court.
  • You must be looking to expunge Minnesota records. VLN cannot assist with the expungement of federal or out-of-state records.
  • To get more extensive assistance, a copy of your BCA records is needed.  

How to get your records: 

Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) Records: This record is not needed to attend a seminar. If you are referred for further service, you will need to get a copy of your BCA record. You can obtain your BCA records in one of two ways. 

1

Mail a written and notarized request to the BCA that includes:

  • your name and date of birth 
  • any other names you use or have used 
  • a personal check or money order for $8.00 made payable to “BCA” 
  • a self-addressed stamped envelope 
2

 You can go to the BCA office and request a copy of your record. The BCA will take your fingerprints and ask you to pay $8.00.

The BCA is located at 1430 Maryland Ave. E., St. Paul, MN 55106 

Additional Resources 

Prosecution initiated expungement. If approved for this program, there is no need to file a petition.  

https://www.ag.state.mn.us/Office/Expungement.asp

Minnesota Judicial Branch Website Expungement Page: 

https://www.mncourts.gov/Help-Topics/Criminal-Expungement.aspx