Spent convictions: when your criminal record steps back
SaveA spent conviction is one that has passed its rehabilitation period and no longer needs to be disclosed in most situations. Once spent, it will not appear on a standard Disclosure and Barring Service check. HS Criminal Law explains when rehabilitation periods end, what you still need to declare and how the filtering process shapes what employers and organisations see.
The rehabilitation period
Every conviction carries a rehabilitation period that starts on the date of conviction, not the date of sentence or release. The length depends on the sentence you received. A fine or community order becomes spent after twelve months. A prison sentence of up to six months becomes spent after two years, and a sentence between six months and thirty months becomes spent after four years.
Custodial sentences over four years never become spent. These remain on your record permanently and must always be disclosed when asked. The clock runs from conviction, so time in custody counts towards the rehabilitation period. A conditional discharge becomes spent immediately after the period of the order ends.
Youth convictions have shorter rehabilitation periods than adult convictions. A custodial sentence of up to six months given to someone under eighteen becomes spent after eighteen months rather than two years. The principle remains the same: less serious disposals and younger age at conviction lead to earlier rehabilitation.
Disclosure obligations
Once a conviction is spent, you do not have to mention it when applying for most jobs, insurance or housing. An employer cannot refuse you work because you did not declare a spent conviction. The protection applies to application forms, interviews and any question about your criminal history.
Certain roles require an enhanced DBS check, and spent convictions may still appear if they meet the criteria for disclosure. Positions involving work with children, vulnerable adults or sensitive areas such as the police, judiciary or financial services fall into this category. The role determines the level of check, and the check level determines what is visible.
When a job application states that spent convictions must be disclosed, or when the role is exempt from rehabilitation protections, you must declare everything. The exemption is stated clearly on the form or in the job advertisement. Regulated activity positions always require full disclosure.
Filtering and what remains visible
Filtering is the process that removes certain old and minor convictions from DBS certificates automatically. A conviction is filtered if it meets two conditions: it is the only conviction on your record, and it did not result in a custodial sentence. Adult convictions for less serious offences are filtered after eleven years; youth convictions after five and a half years.
Some offences are never filtered, even when they meet the age and disposal criteria. These include violent offences, sexual offences and safeguarding-related matters. A second conviction on your record prevents filtering of the first, because filtering applies only to single convictions. Multiple cautions or convictions mean that all of them remain visible on enhanced checks.
| Conviction type | Rehabilitation period | Filtering period (if eligible) |
|---|---|---|
| Fine or community order | Twelve months | Eleven years (adult) or five and a half years (youth) |
| Prison sentence up to six months | Two years | Eleven years (adult) or five and a half years (youth) |
| Prison sentence six to thirty months | Four years | Not filtered |
| Prison sentence over four years | Never spent | Never filtered |
Standard and enhanced checks
A standard DBS check shows only unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings. Spent convictions do not appear. Most employment roles that require a criminal record check use this level, and once your conviction is spent it will not be visible to that employer.
An enhanced check goes further. It shows spent convictions that have not been filtered, plus any relevant information held by local police forces. The police may include intelligence, allegations or other material if it is reasonably believed to be relevant to the role. This additional information is not automatic; a senior officer must approve its inclusion.
The organisation requesting the check must be legally entitled to ask for it. You will receive a copy of the certificate at the same time as the employer, so you will know what has been disclosed. If information appears that you believe is incorrect or should have been filtered, you can challenge it through the DBS disputes process.
Practical steps to take now
- Calculate your rehabilitation period from the date of conviction and mark the date it becomes spent in a safe place.
- Request a basic DBS check on yourself once you believe your conviction is spent, to confirm what will be visible to future employers.
- Read every job application carefully for statements that the role is exempt from rehabilitation protections or requires an enhanced check.
- Keep a copy of your sentencing remarks or a written record of the disposal you received, so you can answer questions accurately if disclosure is required.
Court orders and ongoing obligations
A conviction becoming spent does not remove other obligations. If you were given a restraining order alongside your sentence, that order remains in force for its full term regardless of whether the underlying conviction is spent. Breaching it is a separate offence. Notification requirements under the Sexual Offences Act also continue independently of rehabilitation periods.
Licence conditions following release from custody must be followed until the licence expires. A spent conviction does not end supervision or recall liability. The rehabilitation period and the licence period run on different timetables, and both must be respected.
Insurance and financial services
Insurers may ask about unspent convictions when you apply for a policy. Once your conviction is spent, you are not required to disclose it unless the insurer uses wording that specifically requests spent convictions. That wording is rare and must be clear. Most motor, home and travel insurance applications ask only about unspent convictions.
Mortgage and financial service applications follow similar rules. Standard applications do not require disclosure of spent convictions. If you are applying for a role in financial services that requires regulatory approval, spent convictions may still need to be declared because the role itself is exempt from rehabilitation protections.
Travel and visa applications
Some countries require disclosure of all criminal convictions when applying for a visa, regardless of whether they are spent under UK law. The rehabilitation rules that apply here do not bind immigration authorities in other jurisdictions. The United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all have their own disclosure requirements.
When completing a visa application, read the question carefully. If it asks about arrests, charges or convictions without any time limit, you must answer truthfully. Failing to disclose can result in refusal of entry, deportation or a ban from future travel to that country. Each country makes its own decision about whether to grant entry based on the information you provide.
Obtaining your own record
You can apply for a basic DBS check to see what appears on your standard criminal record. The certificate shows unspent convictions only. This is the same information that an employer conducting a basic check would receive. A subject access request to the police will give you a fuller picture, including spent convictions and any intelligence held locally.
If your conviction should have been filtered and still appears, or if incorrect information is shown, you can apply to have it removed. The DBS disputes process handles challenges to the accuracy or relevance of disclosed information. Police intelligence included on an enhanced certificate can also be disputed if you believe it is inaccurate, irrelevant or ought not to have been disclosed.
Breach of rehabilitation protections
If an employer refuses you work solely because you did not disclose a spent conviction, and the role was not exempt from rehabilitation protections, that may be unlawful. You can raise a grievance or bring a claim, though the burden of proving that the refusal was based on the spent conviction can be difficult. Evidence such as emails, notes from interviews or the wording of the rejection may help.
Where an employer asks about spent convictions for a role that does not require it, challenge the question before answering. Ask whether the role is exempt and request clarification in writing. If the role is not exempt and the employer insists on an answer, you are entitled to refuse and to point out that the question itself may breach the rehabilitation framework.
#Spent conviction #Rehabilitation period #Disclosure #DBS check
Download PDF: Spent conviction checklist: what to do and when PDF, 29 KB
Further reading
Frequently asked questions
How long before a conviction becomes spent?
It depends on the sentence you received. A fine or community order becomes spent after twelve months, a prison sentence up to six months after two years, and a sentence between six and thirty months after four years. Custodial sentences over four years never become spent.
Do I have to tell an employer about a spent conviction?
Not unless the role is exempt from rehabilitation protections or requires an enhanced DBS check. Most jobs do not require disclosure of spent convictions, and refusing you work for not declaring one is unlawful in those cases.
What is the difference between a conviction being spent and being filtered?
A spent conviction no longer needs to be disclosed in most situations. Filtering goes further and removes certain old, minor convictions from DBS certificates altogether, but only if you have a single conviction and it was not for a custodial sentence or a serious offence.