You can seek a petition for nondisclosure if you have successfully completed deferred adjudication for most Class B misdemeanors, Class A misdemeanors, and felony offense.
The non-disclosure statute was amended in September 2017 to allow for some individuals with DWI convictions to non-disclose the offense if they meet certain criteria. The changes apply retroactively to all DWI cases in Texas, not just convictions entered on or after the effective date.
Once the order of nondisclosure is granted by the court that handled your criminal case, all Texas governmental agencies with records of your criminal proceedings will be required to seal the records from public view. The Texas Department of public safety will provide a copy of the order of nondisclosure to all private entities and commercial background check companies that have purchased access to the Texas DPS criminal database. Certain government agencies and entities will still have access to the information that has been sealed under the order of nondisclosure. These agencies include, but are not limited to law enforcement agencies, state licensing boards, school districts, etc. Although these agencies will have access to the sealed information, they are not authorized to legally release the information contained in your order of nondisclosure to the general public or to non-exempted employers who are performing a background check on you.
