FORM & INSTRUCTIONS - Application to Destroy Expunged Marihuana Conviction Record

To learn more about the marihuana/cannabis expungement law, go to: Cannabis (Marahuana) and Expungement under New York State Law.

You can apply for destruction of your expunged marihuana/cannabis conviction record only if you were convicted of violating the following sections of the Penal Law:

PL 221.05 Unlawful Possession of Marihuana in the Second Degree
PL 221.10 Unlawful Possession of Marihuana in the First Degree
PL 221.15 Criminal Possession of Marihuana in the Fourth Degree
PL 221.20 Criminal Possession of Marihuana in the Third Degree
PL 221.35 Criminal Sale of Marihuana in the Fifth Degree
PL 221.40 Criminal Possession of Marihuana in the Fourth Degree
PL 222.10 Restrictions on Cannabis Use
PL 222.15 Personal Cultivation and Home Possession of Cannabis
PL 222.25 Unlawful Possession of Cannabis
PL 222.45 Unlawful Sale of Cannabis
PL 240.36 Loitering in the First Degree, but only if the court can determine that concentrated cannabis (hashish) was the only controlled substance involved
PL 220.03 Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree, but only if the court can determine that concentrated cannabis (hashish) was the only controlled substance involved
PL 220.06 Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Fifth Degree, but only if the court can determine that concentrated cannabis (hashish) was the only controlled substance involved

NOTE: If you were adjudicated a Youthful Offender for any of the above charges, you are not eligible for expungement and destruction because a Youthful Offender adjudication is not a conviction. Records for Youthful Offender adjudications are kept confidential under a different section of the law. To learn more about Youthful Offender adjudications, go to the Youthful Offenders page in Self Help.

Under the new law, convictions for the eligible offenses listed above must be expunged automatically. The court, arrest, prosecution and criminal history records related to these convictions must be sealed and kept confidential from everyone except: 1) a law enforcement agency to which you are applying for a job as a police or peace officer, or 2) a pistol permit licensing officer/bureau to which you are applying for a pistol permit. If you are satisfied with the confidentiality that expungement already provides, you do not have to apply for destruction.
NOTE: Under the law, the Courts have until March 31, 2023 to complete the automatic expungement of eligible convictions. In the meantime, violations of sections 221.05, 221.10, 221.15, 221.20, 221.35, and 221.40 of the Penal Law have been suppressed. Suppression means these convictions DO NOT show in criminal background check searches.
If you decide to apply for destruction, the arrest, prosecution and criminal history records related to your expunged marihuana/cannabis conviction will be destroyed. Once your record is destroyed, the Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) will no longer be able to verify that your conviction was vacated, your case was dismissed, and your arrest record was expunged. The ONLY remaining record would be the sealed court record. Please consider this consequence carefully. You may wish to consult with an attorney before applying for destruction.
If your case includes a conviction for another felony or misdemeanor charge in addition to an eligible marihuana/cannabis charge listed above, only the eligible marihuana/cannabis charge is expunged. The other conviction charges will not be expunged, and the records related to those convictions are not eligible for destruction.
You can get an Application to Destroy Expunged Marihuana Conviction Record form online or in person at the courthouse. Click the following link for the fillable application form: Application to Destroy Expunged Marihuana Conviction Record.
You MUST complete all the required information in the application form. If you cannot find or remember the following three pieces of case information, you can check the “Unknown” box(es), and the court will search its records for this information when you submit your application:
6.a Docket/Case Number (All cases will have a docket or case number.)
6.b Criminal Justice Tracking Number (CJTN) (You will have a CJTN only if you were fingerprinted for the arrest.)
6.c New York State Identification (NYSID) Number(You will have a NYSID only if you were fingerprinted for the arrest.)

NOTE: If the court searches its records and does not find your case information based upon the other information you provided, your application cannot be processed. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that you look for your case paperwork or contact your attorney to get this information and enter it in your application if possible.

Submit your application to the same court where you were convicted. Your application cannot be processed if you send it to a different court. Either you or your attorney may submit the application. There is NO APPLICATION FEE.
NOTE: If you have eligible marihuana/cannabis convictions in more than one court, you must submit a separate application to each court to request destruction of your expunged marihuana/cannabis conviction records.
You can submit your application to the court in one of the following three ways:
1. Electronically via the court’s Electronic Document Delivery System [learn more]
2. Regular first-class mail
3. In person at the courthouse
Because the court has already expunged your case, the court cannot process your application or give you any case information unless you provide proof that you were the defendant in the case as follows:
1. If you submit your application in person, you must show a valid government-issued photo ID.
2. If your attorney submits your application for you, your application must be notarized.
3. If you submit your application electronically through EDDS or by regular mail, your application must be notarized
After the court receives and reviews your application, the court will send you an Acknowledgement of Application to Destroy Expunged Marihuana Conviction Record form telling you if your application is successfully processed or not.
1. If your application is successfully processed, the court will send your application to the other agencies involved in your case. These other agencies will destroy their records related to your eligible marihuana//cannabis convictions when they receive your application from the court
  1. If you were fingerprinted in the case, the court will send your application to DCJS.
  2. DCJS will send you a letter confirming that they processed your application and that your eligible marihuana/cannabis conviction record was destroyed.
  3. If more than 1 month has passed since you received your Acknowledgement of Application to Destroy Expunged Marihuana Conviction Record form from the court telling you your application was successfully processed, and you have still not received a confirmation letter from DCJS, you can email DCJS regarding your destruction request at [email protected].
  4. The court also sends your application to the prosecutor and law enforcement agencies involved in your case, but the court cannot confirm if they have actually processed your application to destroy your eligible marihuana/cannabis arrest and prosecution records. If you want to confirm that these agencies have destroyed their records, you must contact each agency directly.
2. If your application is not processed, the form will show the reasons why the court could not process your application.
  1. You can resubmit your application to the court by correcting certain problems such as:
  2. You didn’t complete all the required information in the application form; or
  3. You submitted the application to the wrong court; or
  4. You didn’t provide proper proof that you were the defendant in the case; or
  5. Your eligible marihuana/cannabis conviction was not yet expunged, but it has now been expunged.
    
    NOTE: The law gives the court until March 31, 2023 to complete automatic expungement of all eligible marihuana/cannabis convictions.
  6. You cannot resubmit your application to the court for certain problems such as:
  7. You were not convicted of a charge that is eligible for expungement or destruction; or
  8. You were already adjudicated a Youthful Offender for the charge, and therefore, you are not eligible for expungement or destruction, or
  9. You were convicted of a marihuana/cannabis charge that is eligible for expungement, but your case has other conviction charges that are not eligible for expungement; or
    
    NOTE: Your eligible marihuana/cannabis conviction charge will be expunged and suppressed (it will no longer appear in criminal background check searches performed by the Court or DCJS), but the other ineligible conviction charges will not be expunged or suppressed, and therefore, your conviction records are ineligible for destruction.
3. An Application to Destroy Expunged Marihuana Conviction Record was already submitted and successfully processed by the court for the conviction.