How Long Does a DUI Stay on Your Record in Arizona? ARS 13-911

How Long Does a DUI Stay on Your Record in Arizona?

Permanently, unless a court seals it. Arizona does not expunge or age off criminal convictions. A DUI conviction under A.R.S. § 28-1381 or A.R.S. § 28-1382 stays in the court file, in the Department of Public Safety’s criminal history repository under A.R.S. § 41-1750, and in every commercial database that copies them, with no expiration. The only way it comes off a public record is a sealing order under A.R.S. § 13-911, which for a misdemeanor DUI becomes available three years after the sentence is completed and for a felony aggravated DUI after five.

That single answer hides four different clocks, because “your record” is not one thing. The criminal record, the MVD driving record, the sentencing lookback, and what an employer’s screener can report each run on a different schedule.

How Long Does a DUI Stay on Your Driving Record?

ADOT issues two motor vehicle records, per ADOT’s motor vehicle records page: an uncertified record covering three years and a certified record covering five. A DUI conviction, the associated suspension or revocation, and the interlock requirement appear within those windows and then drop off the printout. That is the record insurers and employers of commercial drivers pull, which is why the insurance effect of a DUI is finite. It is not the record the court uses: for enhancement purposes, MVD and the courts look back 84 months under A.R.S. § 28-1381(K), regardless of what the three- or five-year printout shows, and a sealed DUI can still be used to enhance a later one under A.R.S. § 13-911(B)(5).

The 84-Month Rule

For the sentence on a later DUI, the relevant question is not whether the old conviction is “on your record” but whether it falls inside seven years measured from the date of the earlier offense to the date of the new one (A.R.S. § 28-1381(M); A.R.S. § 28-1382(F)). A second DUI in the window carries a minimum of 90 days in jail, 120 for extreme, 180 for super extreme; a third is aggravated DUI under A.R.S. § 28-1383 with four months in prison. Our guides to second-DUI jail time and third-DUI jail time cover the numbers. After 84 months the old DUI no longer enhances, but it still exists on the record, which is where sealing comes in.

How and When a DUI Can Be Sealed

Under A.R.S. § 13-911(E), a person convicted of a Class 1 misdemeanor DUI may petition to seal the records of arrest, conviction, and sentence after completing all non-monetary terms of the sentence and waiting three years from discharge; a Class 4 felony aggravated DUI requires five years; a Class 2 or 3 felony (a DUI-related manslaughter or aggravated assault, for example) ten. All fines and restitution must be paid. The petition is filed in the court of conviction, the prosecutor and any victim receive notice, and the court grants it if sealing is in the best interests of the petitioner and public safety. A dismissed DUI or an arrest with no charges can be sealed without a sentence-based waiting period. Once sealed, the person may state they were never arrested for or convicted of the offense, subject to the statute’s exceptions, which for DUI records include fingerprint clearance card applications and jobs involving operating a vehicle, boat, or airplane. Our record-sealing guide covers the petition step by step.

What a Set-Aside Does and Does Not Do

A set-aside under A.R.S. § 13-905 is available on discharge with no waiting period, restores civil rights, and directs that the judgment be vacated, but the conviction stays on the court and DPS records with a set-aside notation and continues to appear on background checks. It is worth obtaining as a first step and as a signal to employers; it is not a way to make a DUI disappear. See does a set-aside show on a background check.

How Tamou Law Group Handles Old DUI Records

We start by identifying which clock the client actually cares about: insurance and employment (the MVD record), a new charge (the 84-month lookback and whether the prior can be attacked), or a clean background check (sealing eligibility and timing). On sealing, we confirm the discharge date and monetary obligations, prepare the 13-911 petition, respond to any prosecutor or victim objection, and follow through so DPS and the court reflect the order. Members of the National College for DUI Defense, in every Maricopa County court.

Related guides: sealing an Arizona criminal record, set-asides and background checks, the Arizona MVD point system, and our Arizona DUI charges hub. Call 623-321-4699, 24/7.