Cost of Expungement in Delaware: Filing Fees, SBI Fees, and Fee Waivers

The Three Fees

Delaware expungement involves three base fees, depending on which pathway your case follows:

1. IdentoGO fingerprinting and certified criminal history: $72

This is required for a manual expungement or pardon application. You book a fingerprinting appointment through IdentoGO using Service Code 27S23V, and the SBI delivers your certified criminal history report via secure email. If you're fingerprinting out of state, add $39.95 for remote processing.

2. SBI mandatory processing fee: $75

Paid only if your case qualifies for mandatory expungement. You submit a money order payable to the Delaware State Police when you return your signed application packet. This fee covers the SBI's administrative processing — no court involvement.

3. Superior Court filing fee: $75

Paid only for discretionary expungement petitions filed in Superior Court. Payable to the "State of Delaware." Family Court charges no filing fee for expungement petitions.

Total Cost by Pathway

After a manual pathway results in an expungement order, you'll likely want a verification check — another $72 IdentoGO run about 70 days after the order is signed to confirm everything is sealed.

If You Can't Afford It

Delaware provides fee waiver options for court filing fees, though the SBI's $72 fingerprinting fee and $75 administrative fee cannot be waived.

Superior Court fee waiver: File Form CIV_CIV_07_A (Application and Affidavit to Proceed In Forma Pauperis) alongside your expungement petition. You'll need to detail all household income, liquid assets, property values, monthly debts, and dependents. The application must be signed under penalty of perjury in front of a notary or court clerk. A judicial officer evaluates your request against state poverty guidelines.

Family Court: Since there's no filing fee for expungement, you won't need a fee waiver for the petition itself.

What a fee waiver doesn't cover: IFP orders only waive court-assessed filing fees. They cannot waive the IdentoGO fingerprinting fee or the SBI's $75 mandatory processing fee. Those are paid to separate agencies.

How This Compares to Hiring a Lawyer

Delaware expungement attorneys typically charge flat fees ranging from $1,100 to over $4,000 for basic filings. If your case qualifies for mandatory expungement — meaning the SBI handles it administratively — you genuinely don't need an attorney. The process is paperwork-driven, and the SBI cannot deny a qualifying application.

For discretionary cases where the AG might object, the decision to hire a lawyer depends on the complexity. Simple discretionary petitions with a clear factual record are manageable as self-filings. Cases involving excluded offenses, multiple convictions, or the need for a Governor's Pardon are where legal representation becomes worth the investment.

Free Help That Exists

The state-funded APEX program through the Delaware Department of Labor provides one-on-one navigation support for expungement and pardons at no cost, though enrollment requires being at least three years arrest-free with no open cases.

The ACLU of Delaware runs periodic free expungement clinics, and the Office of Defense Services (ODS) has an expungement assistance line at (302) 577-5142 for formal screening and legal support.

For a complete cost breakdown and filing checklist — including document assembly and the verification process — our Delaware Expungement & Record Sealing Guide walks through each pathway.

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