Every expungement request has to be first submitted to a judge who makes a special request to the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) to search their records and confirm that a person qualifies for expungement and has never had an expungement before. The time it takes to expunge or seal a criminal record depends on how quickly the SBI returns this review to the judge, but the typical time frame is three to six months. Backlogs of expungement applicants can delay the process.