• Tell employers that you have not been convicted of a crime
• Become eligible for student loans
• Become eligible for housing assistance
• Become eligible for more types of professional licenses and certificates
• Tell friends and family that you have not been convicted of a crime
• To stop fearing or being embarrassed when someone does a background check on you.

Art. 55.01. RIGHT TO EXPUNCTION.
(a) A person who has been placed under a custodial or noncustodial arrest for commission of either a felony or misdemeanor is entitled to have all records and files relating to the arrest expunged if:

(1) the person is tried for the offense for which the person was arrested and is:
(A) acquitted by the trial court, except as provided by
Subsection (c) of this section; or
(B) convicted and subsequently pardoned; or

(2) each of the following conditions exist:
(A) an indictment or information charging the person with commission of a felony has not been presented against the person for an offense arising out of the transaction for which the person was arrested or, if an indictment or information charging the person with commission of a felony was presented, the indictment or information has been dismissed or quashed, and: (i) the limitations period expired before the date on which a petition for expunction was filed under Article 55.02; or
(ii) the court finds that the indictment or information was dismissed or quashed because the presentment had been made because of mistake, false information, or other similar reason indicating absence of probable cause at the time of the dismissal to believe the person committed the offense or because it was void;
(B) the person has been released and the charge, if any, has not resulted in a final conviction and is no longer pending and there was no court ordered community supervision under Article 42.12 for any offense other than a Class C misdemeanor; and
(C) the person has not been convicted of a felony in the five years preceding the date of the arrest.
(a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a)(2)(C), a person’s
conviction of a felony in the five years preceding the date of the
arrest does not affect the person’s entitlement to expunction for
purposes of an ex parte petition filed on behalf of the person by
the director of the Department of Public Safety under Section 2(e),
Article 55.02.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c) of this section, a
district court may expunge all records and files relating to the
arrest of a person who has been arrested for commission of a felony
or misdemeanor under the procedure established under Article 55.02
of this code if the person is:
(1) tried for the offense for which the person was arrested;
(2) convicted of the offense; and
(3) acquitted by the court of criminal appeals.
(c) A court may not order the expunction of records and
files relating to an arrest for an offense for which a person is
subsequently acquitted, whether by the trial court or the court of
criminal appeals, if the offense for which the person was acquitted
arose out of a criminal episode, as defined by Section 3.01, Penal
Code, and the person was convicted of or remains subject to
prosecution for at least one other offense occurring during the
criminal episode.
(d) A person is entitled to have any information that
identifies the person, including the person’s name, address, date
of birth, driver’s license number, and social security number,
contained in records and files relating to the arrest of another
person expunged if:
(1) the information identifying the person asserting the
entitlement to expunction was falsely given by the person arrested
as the arrested person’s identifying information without the
consent of the person asserting the entitlement; and
(2) the only reason for the information identifying the
person asserting the entitlement being contained in the arrest
records and files of the person arrested is that the information was
falsely given by the person arrested as the arrested person’s
identifying information.

If you were arrested in Texas, you are likely eligible to have your record expunged if you meet the following criteria:

Class C Misdemeanors

• Successfully completed deferred adjudication AND
• Not convicted of felony in the five years preceding the date of arrest

Felony or Misdemeanors

• Acquitted in trial OR
• Convicted and subsequently pardoned OR
• The charges were dismissed, the statue of limitations has expired
  (unless the dismissal was due to the fact that there was mistake,
  false information or no probable cause), and not convicted of a
  felony in the five years preceding the date of arrest