How Long Does a DUI Stay on Your Record in Arizona?

The criminal record: permanent by default

A DUI conviction stays on your Arizona criminal history indefinitely — there is no automatic expiration, and background checks will surface it decades later. What exists are affirmative remedies: a set-aside, and for eligible cases the newer record-sealing process. Both are covered properly in our guide to getting a DUI set aside or sealed in Arizona — the point here is that neither happens on its own. Until you act, the record stands.

The 7-year window that changes future charges

For charging purposes, prior DUIs count for 84 months — seven years. A second DUI within that window carries sharply higher mandatory penalties, and a third becomes felony aggravated DUI. Outside seven years, a new DUI is charged as a first offense — though the old conviction still exists and judges still see it.

The MVD and your insurance: different clocks again

The conviction adds eight points to your MVD driving record and the suspension, interlock, and SR-22 requirements run their statutory courses — months to a few years. Insurers look back several years at renewal and price accordingly; the premium surcharge typically fades within three to five years of a clean record. Employment and professional licensing checks, by contrast, read the permanent criminal record — which is why the set-aside and sealing remedies are usually worth pursuing once eligibility arrives.

The cheapest way to keep a DUI off your record is still the first one: defending the charge before it becomes a conviction. What that looks like is on our DUI defense page.