If you are facing a Missouri charge and someone has mentioned SIS or SES, you are being asked to understand one of the most consequential distinctions in state criminal practice. The two look similar on the day you stand in court. They are very different five years later.
Both are forms of probation. Both can keep you out of prison. The difference is what happens to the conviction itself, and that difference follows you into every job application, housing form, and background check for the rest of your life.
The first one
What does SIS probation mean in Missouri?
SIS stands for Suspended Imposition of Sentence. The court accepts a plea or a finding of guilt but does not impose a sentence at all. Instead, you are placed on probation. This is the disposition authorized by section 557.011.2(3), RSMo — the court may “suspend the imposition of sentence, with or without placing the person on probation.”
If you complete probation
No sentence is ever imposed, and no conviction is entered. The case is closed without a conviction on your public record. For most everyday purposes, you can say you were not convicted.
If probation is revoked
The court has not yet imposed a sentence, so it sentences you then, within the full range available for the offense. That is the trade. The upside is larger, and so is the uncertainty if things go wrong.
The second one
What is SES, and how is it different?
SES stands for Suspended Execution of Sentence. Here the court does impose a sentence, then suspends carrying it out and places you on probation instead. That is the next subdivision of the same statute, section 557.011.2(4), RSMo — “pronounce sentence and suspend its execution, placing the person on probation.”
The conviction is entered
Because a sentence was imposed, there is a conviction on your record from the outset, and completing probation successfully does not remove it.
You know the number
If probation is revoked, the sentence already imposed is the sentence you serve. There is no new sentencing hearing and no risk of a longer term than the one already set.
Side by side
What are the key differences between SIS and SES?
| SIS — suspended imposition | SES — suspended execution | |
|---|---|---|
| Is a conviction entered? | No. No sentence is imposed, so completing probation means no conviction. | Yes, from the day sentence is pronounced. Completing probation does not remove it. |
| The sentence itself | Left unimposed. | Fixed in advance and then suspended. |
| If probation is revoked | The court sentences you at that point, anywhere within the full range for the offense. | The sentence already imposed is executed. No new sentencing hearing, and no risk of a longer term. |
| On a background check | Generally closed to public view once probation ends (§ 610.105.1). | A conviction shows. |
| Availability | Limited. Not offered in every case, and a prior SIS makes a second far less likely. | More widely available. |
Neither one is an expungement. They are different mechanisms with different effects, and the question of whether a case can later be expunged is separate again.
The question everyone asks
How long does an SIS stay on your record?
This is where people are most often misled, usually by someone trying to reassure them.
What goes away
Once probation is successfully completed, the record of an SIS case is generally closed to the public. This is statutory: under section 610.105.1, RSMo, where imposition of sentence is suspended, the official records pertaining to the case become closed records when the case is finally terminated. An ordinary employer or landlord running a background check should not see a conviction, because there was not one.
What does not
The record still exists. Section 610.120.1, RSMo is explicit that closed records “shall not be destroyed” — they are made inaccessible to the general public, but remain available to criminal justice agencies, to law enforcement for licensing and employment screening, and for several other listed purposes. It can also count against you if you are ever charged again. Closed is not the same as erased.
If a specific job, professional license, immigration matter, or firearm question depends on the answer, do not rely on a general rule. Ask before you take the plea, not after.
The honest answer
Is SIS always better than SES?
Usually, but not always, and treating it as automatic is how people end up with a worse outcome than they needed.
Why SIS is usually preferred
Avoiding a conviction is worth a great deal, and for most people the effect on employment and housing outweighs everything else on the table.
When SES may be the better deal
If the negotiated sentence attached to an SES is significantly shorter than the exposure you would face on revocation of an SIS, and the risk of revocation is real, certainty can be worth more than the label. That is a judgment call, and it depends on the case and the person.
The choice is rarely purely yours. What is offered depends on the charge, your history, the prosecutor, and the court. What your lawyer can do is make the case for the better option and make sure you understand what you are actually agreeing to.
Answers
SIS and SES questions we hear
What is the difference between SIS and SES probation in Missouri?
With an SIS the court does not impose a sentence, so completing probation means no conviction is entered. With an SES a sentence is imposed and then suspended, so a conviction exists from the start and remains after probation ends.
Is an SIS a conviction?
Not if probation is completed successfully, because no sentence is ever imposed. If probation is revoked, the court sentences you at that point and a conviction follows.
How long does an SIS stay on your record?
The record itself does not disappear. After successful completion it is generally closed to public view, so an ordinary background check should not show a conviction, but courts, prosecutors, and some licensing and law enforcement agencies retain access to it.
Can I get an SIS more than once?
It is not something to count on. SIS is limited, and a prior one makes a second far less likely. If you have had one before, say so early, because it changes what is realistically available.
Can I tell an employer I have not been convicted?
After a successfully completed SIS, generally yes for ordinary employment. Some applications, particularly for professional licenses, law enforcement, and certain government roles, ask broader questions that reach closed records. Read the question carefully and get advice if it is not clear.
What happens if my probation is revoked?
On an SES, the sentence already imposed is executed. On an SIS, the court sentences you at that point, anywhere within the range for the offense. That is the risk that comes with the benefit.
Hold a professional license, or plan to? Read how a criminal charge affects a professional license in Missouri.
Facing a charge in Cole, Boone, or Callaway County? See our Missouri criminal defense page, or call 573-638-8529. How serious is the charge? See Missouri felony classes and sentencing ranges.
Where you actually are
Which of these describes you?
Most people reading this are not researching a definition. They are somewhere specific, and the next step is different for each.
You have been offered an SIS or an SES
The choice is made at the plea, and it is close to irreversible afterwards. What is on the table depends on the charge, your history, and the prosecutor. See Missouri criminal defense, or for a first alcohol case, first-offense DWI in Missouri.
You are accused of violating probation
This is where the difference between SIS and SES stops being academic. Revocation proceedings run under section 559.036, RSMo. On an SIS your exposure is the whole range; on an SES it is the number already set. See the 120-day program and shock probation.
A background check or license application came back wrong
Closed does not mean invisible to everyone. Licensing boards, law enforcement, and certain government employers reach closed records under section 610.120, RSMo. See how a criminal charge affects a professional license.
You want the record gone, not just closed
That is expungement, a separate process under section 610.140, RSMo with its own waiting periods and lifetime limits. A completed SIS does not expunge anything on its own. See Missouri expungement.
Talk to us
The time to ask is before the plea.
Whether an SIS is available, and whether it is the right choice, depends on facts that are worth talking through before you agree to anything.
Attorney advertising. The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements. This article is general information about Missouri law, not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. How SIS and SES apply in any particular case depends on the charge, the court, and your history.
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