Illinois cannabis expungement, explained: the three ways old records get cleared

This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and facts differ; for your situation, talk to a lawyer licensed in Illinois.

When Illinois legalized adult-use cannabis in 2019, it also changed how old cannabis records are cleared. Those rules aren't in the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. They're in subsection (i) of the Criminal Identification Act, 20 ILCS 2630/5.2, which covers "Minor Cannabis Offenses." Illinois Legal Aid Online groups the routes into three categories. Here is what the statute says about each.

1. Arrests with no conviction: automatic

The Illinois State Police and every law enforcement agency in the state must automatically expunge arrest records, charges, supervision orders and qualified-probation orders for a Minor Cannabis Offense committed before June 25, 2019. That applies when at least a year has passed and no charges were filed, or when charges were dismissed or vacated, or the person was acquitted.

The law set deadlines by the age of the record. Records from 2013 to mid-2019 were due by January 1, 2021. Records from 2000 through 2012 were due by January 1, 2023. Older records were due by January 1, 2025. Illinois Legal Aid Online notes that this applies only to police records. If a court case was started, even one that was dismissed, the court records are not automatically expunged and a separate expungement case must be filed.

2. Minor convictions: pardons that authorize expungement

For convictions, the statute directed the State Police to find every Minor Cannabis Offense conviction without a sentence enhancement and not tied to a violent-crime conviction, and to send those records to the Prisoner Review Board. The board makes a confidential recommendation to the governor on whether to grant a pardon authorizing expungement. Once a pardon authorizing expungement is granted, the board, through the Attorney General, files a petition in the county of conviction. The statute says no objection to that petition may be filed, and the court must order the records expunged within 90 days of the filing. Illinois Legal Aid Online describes this group differently, as people who "may qualify for automatic expungement, but the process is different."

3. Other convictions: a motion to vacate and expunge

Any individual with a misdemeanor or Class 4 felony conviction under section 4 or 5 of the Cannabis Control Act may file a motion to vacate and expunge it, after completing any non-financial sentence or condition. A State's Attorney may file such motions too, including for several people at once. The court must consider law enforcement's reasons for keeping the record, the person's age now and at the time of the offense, the time since the conviction, and the specific adverse consequences if the motion is denied. The State's Attorney has 60 days from filing to object to an individual's motion. Civil legal aid agencies may file multi-person motions, which may be prepared and signed electronically. Separately, the statute lets a person whose pre-June 25, 2019 Minor Cannabis Offense case is still pending, with no sentence yet, petition the court to dismiss the charges and expunge the records.

A definition to watch

The statute page we read defines a Minor Cannabis Offense as a violation of section 4 or 5 of the Cannabis Control Act involving "not more than 60 grams" of a substance containing cannabis, with no penalty enhancement and no associated violent-crime disposition. That page lists P.A. 104-463, effective June 12, 2026, among its sources, but we have not confirmed which act set the 60-gram figure. Illinois Legal Aid Online's FAQ, which says it was last revised August 3, 2026, still says 30 grams or less, before June 25, 2019. Until counsel or the public act text settles it, don't assume which figure applies to a particular record.

Civil citations

Separately, section 5.2(a)(2.5) requires the law enforcement agency that issued the citation, and the circuit clerk, to automatically expunge, on or before January 1 and July 1 each year, records of a civil law violation of section 4(a) of the Cannabis Control Act or section 3.5(c) of the Drug Paraphernalia Control Act, once there is a final satisfactory disposition.

Sources

• 20 ILCS 2630/5.2, Criminal Identification Act
• Illinois Legal Aid Online, cannabis use and expungement FAQ

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