Getting a job after prison or with a criminal record: spent convictions explained

8 minute read · 2026-10-08

Having a criminal record does not bar you from work. In England and Wales, under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, most convictions become spent after a set period. Once spent, for most jobs you do not have to disclose it, and an employer may not lawfully refuse you work because of it. The trick is knowing exactly where you stand, because declaring more than you need to costs people jobs every day.

When does a conviction become spent?

The periods were shortened on 28 October 2023 by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. For adults, the period runs from the end of the whole sentence, including any time on licence:

If you were under 18 when convicted, the periods after the end of a custodial sentence are roughly halved. A custodial sentence of more than four years for certain serious sexual, violent or terrorist offences never becomes spent. Fines, discharges and cautions have their own, shorter rules. The Ministry of Justice guidance has the full tables, and the charity Nacro runs a free criminal record support service that will work out your dates with you.

Scotland has its own rules under the Management of Offenders (Scotland) Act 2019, and Northern Ireland has its own Rehabilitation of Offenders Order with different periods. Check the system for where you were convicted.

What each check shows

• Basic DBS check (Disclosure Scotland basic disclosure, or AccessNI basic check in NI): shows only unspent convictions and conditional cautions. This is what most ordinary jobs use, if they check at all.
• Standard and enhanced DBS checks: only for roles on the list in the Exceptions Order, such as work with children or vulnerable adults, healthcare, and some legal, financial and security roles. These can show spent convictions too, unless they are filtered.

Filtering removes some old records from standard and enhanced checks. An adult conviction can be filtered once 11 years have passed (five and a half years if you were under 18), as long as it did not lead to a custodial sentence and is not on the list of specified offences. Youth cautions, warnings and reprimands are no longer disclosed automatically. Read the DBS filtering guide before you fill in any form for a role that needs a higher check.

When you must tell an employer

• If asked, you must disclose unspent convictions. Lying about an unspent conviction can get you dismissed later, and in some roles is an offence.
• For an ordinary job, you do not have to mention spent convictions, even if the form asks "have you ever been convicted?".
• For roles under the Exceptions Order, answer the question as asked, but only about what would not be filtered.
• If nobody asks, in most jobs you do not have to volunteer it.

How to talk about an unspent conviction

Many employers will consider people with convictions, and some actively recruit them. What they want to know is whether you are a risk in this particular job. A short written disclosure statement, handed over at the right moment (usually after interview or with the offer), tends to land better than a tick box with no explanation. Keep it to a few lines:

1. What happened, in plain words and without minimising it.
2. What has changed: time since, courses, work in custody, sobriety, family, support.
3. Why it does not affect this job, and what you bring to it.

Practise saying it out loud until it comes out calmly. Interviewers notice whether you own it, not whether it is polished.

Explaining the gap on your CV

You do not have to write "prison" on a CV. Many people use the time honestly: qualifications gained, work done (kitchens, laundries, workshops, orderly roles), peer mentoring. If you were working or training inside, those are real skills and real certificates. Our guide on explaining a CV gap in one honest line shows the wording. If the conviction is unspent and the form asks, the disclosure statement does the explaining; the CV can stay about your skills.

Where to look

• Sectors that often hire people with convictions include warehousing, construction, hospitality, waste and recycling, and manufacturing. Some roles (security with an SIA licence, care, driving for some contracts) have their own checks, so read the advert.
• Prison and probation employment advisers, and the Jobcentre, can connect you with employers who have signed up to hire people leaving custody.
• Open days let you meet a manager in person, which usually helps more than an online form.

What to do next

1. Write down each conviction, sentence and end date, and work out whether it is spent.
2. If unsure, contact Nacro's free support service or Citizens Advice.
3. Draft a five line disclosure statement for anything unspent.
4. Apply for jobs that only need a basic check first, while you build recent references.

This is general information, not legal advice. For your own situation, ACAS (0300 123 1100) is free.

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