How long a DUI stays on your record in Georgia
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Two records, two answers. On the driving record: permanent on the driving record. On the criminal record: permanent — a DUI conviction cannot be restricted.
The five-year and ten-year windows in Georgia decide how hard a later offence is punished. They do not make the earlier one disappear: the conviction remains on both the criminal and the driving record with no statutory path to removal.
| Question | Answer in Georgia |
|---|---|
| On the driving record | Permanent on the driving record |
| On the criminal record | Permanent — a DUI conviction cannot be restricted |
| Expungement or sealing | Not available for a conviction |
| Counts against a later offence | The Department of Driver Services uses a five-year window for licence consequences: a second conviction inside five years brings an eighteen-month suspension, a third inside five years brings habitual violator status. |
| Source | Official Code of Georgia § 35-3-37 · Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Criminal History Record Restrictions · checked 2026-09-06 |
Can it be cleared in Georgia?
Georgia replaced expungement with record restriction in 2013. Restriction is available for misdemeanor convictions in general, but the statute excludes serious traffic offences under Article 15 of Chapter 6 of Title 40, and DUI sits squarely inside that article. A restricted record is hidden from the public, not from the courts.
Of the 15 states in this layer, 8 close the door on a conviction entirely, while Kansas will expunge one after a waiting period. So the blanket advice you find online — that a DUI can never be cleared, or that it always can after seven years — is wrong in both directions depending on where you were convicted.
The part of the Georgia rule that catches people
The arrest and the conviction are different records. If the charge was dismissed, nolle prossed, reduced to a non-DUI offence or ended in acquittal, the arrest can be restricted. If the DUI was reduced to reckless driving, the arrest can be restricted but the reckless driving conviction stays — reckless driving is in the same excluded article.
Why the answer is always two answers
The driving record is kept by the licensing agency to decide licences, insurance surcharges and how hard to punish a second offence. The criminal record is kept by the courts and the state police to answer background checks. They are created at different moments, governed by different statutes, and cleared — where they can be cleared at all — by different procedures.
That is why someone can be told truthfully that their conviction was “dismissed” and still fail a driving-job screening years later. If the job involves a vehicle, the record that matters is the one at the DMV.
What else is still running in Georgia
The record outlasts every other obligation, which is why it is worth checking last rather than first. The programme, the filing and the device all end on their own clocks.
Georgia DUI law in full → · Class requirements in Georgia → · Insurance filing rules in Georgia → · How records work everywhere →
Record questions in Georgia
How long does a DUI stay on your record in Georgia?
On the driving record, permanent on the driving record. On the criminal record, permanent — a DUI conviction cannot be restricted. Those are two separate archives kept by two different agencies, and the answer people are usually given conflates them.
Can a DUI be expunged in Georgia?
Not available for a conviction. Georgia replaced expungement with record restriction in 2013. Restriction is available for misdemeanor convictions in general, but the statute excludes serious traffic offences under Article 15 of Chapter 6 of Title 40, and DUI sits squarely inside that article. A restricted record is hidden from the public, not from the courts.
How long does a prior DUI count against you in Georgia?
The Department of Driver Services uses a five-year window for licence consequences: a second conviction inside five years brings an eighteen-month suspension, a third inside five years brings habitual violator status. That window is a separate question from how long the record is visible — a conviction can stop counting for sentencing while remaining perfectly visible to an employer.
Will a DUI show up on a background check in Georgia?
It depends which check. A criminal-history search looks at the court record; an employer who pulls a motor vehicle record sees the driving record instead, and those clear on different schedules. In Georgia the driving record holds it permanent on the driving record, which is why driving jobs keep asking about it long after the case is closed.
Does clearing the court record clear the driving record in Georgia?
No, and that assumption is the single most common mistake in this area. The two are held by different agencies under different statutes; an order aimed at one does not bind the other unless the statute says so explicitly. In Georgia: the arrest and the conviction are different records. If the charge was dismissed, nolle prossed, reduced to a non-DUI offence or ended in acquittal, the arrest can be restricted. If the DUI was reduced to reckless driving, the arrest can be restricted but the reckless driving conviction stays — reckless driving is in the same excluded article.
Attorney advertising. InterlockDeviceNearMe is not a law firm, does not practice law, and does not give legal advice. Nothing here creates an attorney-client relationship. Requesting a consultation connects you with an independent attorney or a legal referral service, who decide separately whether to take your case. Case outcomes depend on facts we do not know, and no result is ever promised. Deadlines in DUI cases are short and vary by state — speak to a licensed attorney in your state before relying on anything you read here.