For a nurse, a teacher, a future lawyer or doctor, a real estate agent, or anyone working toward a securities license, the criminal case is only half the problem. The other half is the licensing board, and the rules there are different from the rules in court.
Two things surprise people most. A suspended imposition of sentence does not make the problem go away for most licensing boards. And an expungement does not hide the offense from a Missouri licensing application.
The first surprise
Does an SIS count against a professional license in Missouri?
Often, yes. Many Missouri licensing statutes let the board act on a guilty plea or finding of guilt “whether or not sentence is imposed.”
An SIS avoids a conviction in court, but it still begins with a plea or finding of guilt. That language appears in the statutes for nurses (RSMo 335.066), physicians (RSMo 334.100), real estate licensees (RSMo 339.100), and teachers (RSMo 168.071). For those boards, the plea itself can be the problem, even if no conviction is ever entered.
Which offenses matter depends on the board. Common categories include felonies, offenses involving fraud, dishonesty, or violence, offenses involving “moral turpitude,” and offenses related to the duties of the profession.
The second surprise
Do I have to disclose an expunged offense on a license application?
For a Missouri professional license, generally yes.
Missouri licenses
Missouri’s expungement statute, RSMo 610.140, lets most people answer “no” to an ordinary employer. But it requires disclosure of an expunged offense when the information is needed to complete an application for a state license to practice a profession. An expunged offense cannot be an automatic disqualification, but the board may consider it.
Bar admission
The Missouri Board of Law Examiners requires applicants to disclose arrests and charges even if they were dismissed, resolved by SIS, or handled through diversion. Records that were actually expunged or sealed need not be disclosed, but the applicant has to confirm the order exists. Nondisclosure is treated more seriously than the underlying offense.
By profession
How does a criminal charge affect specific licenses?
- Nursing. The State Board of Nursing may refuse or discipline a license for offenses related to nursing or involving fraud, dishonesty, violence, or moral turpitude, whether or not sentence is imposed.
- Teaching. The State Board of Education may refuse or discipline a certificate for a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude, whether or not sentence is imposed.
- Medicine. The Board of Registration for the Healing Arts has similar authority, and professional school applications commonly ask about criminal history.
- Real estate. The Missouri Real Estate Commission may act on offenses related to the profession or involving fraud, dishonesty, or violence, whether or not sentence is imposed.
- Law. Bar applicants must disclose nearly every arrest and charge, as described above.
- Securities and investing. FINRA’s Form U4 asks whether you have ever been charged with any felony, not only convicted. Any felony conviction, including a guilty plea, is a statutory disqualification for ten years.
For securities licenses, the charge alone is reportable. The disclosure obligation can begin before the case is resolved.
Missouri’s Fresh Start Act
Can a licensing board deny me because of a conviction?
For many Missouri licenses, only if the conviction directly relates to the job or was violent or sexual in nature. But several major professions are excluded from that protection.
Who the rule does not cover
RSMo 324.012 excludes, among others, teachers, physicians, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, accountants, and real estate licensees from its main limits. Those boards follow their own statutes.
The pre-determination petition
The same statute lets any person with a criminal record petition a licensing authority at any time for a determination of whether the record will disqualify them. That can be worth doing before investing in a degree or an exam.
Students
What should a student worry about after a criminal charge?
- The career, not just the case. A plea that looks minor today can come up on a nursing, teaching, bar, medical, real estate, or securities application years later.
- Federal financial aid. Under the FAFSA Simplification Act, a drug conviction no longer affects federal student aid eligibility, and the FAFSA no longer asks about it. Scholarships and other programs can have their own rules.
- International students. A criminal charge can carry immigration consequences. Get immigration advice before any plea.
- The university process. A university conduct case can run at the same time as the criminal case, and what is said in one can matter in the other.
The practical point
When should licensing be part of the defense?
From the start, and certainly before any plea.
The way a case is resolved can matter as much to a licensing board as whether it is resolved. The specific offense pleaded to, whether it involves dishonesty or violence, whether a plea is entered at all, and what the record will show later are all things to weigh with the license in mind. Once a plea is entered, many of those options are gone.
Honesty on the application matters too. Every board treats a failure to disclose more seriously than the offense itself.
Answers
Licensing questions we hear
Does an SIS have to be reported to a licensing board in Missouri?
It depends on the board and the question asked, but many Missouri licensing statutes allow the board to act on a guilty plea or finding of guilt whether or not sentence is imposed, which includes an SIS.
Do I have to disclose an expungement on a Missouri professional license application?
Generally yes. RSMo 610.140 requires disclosure of an expunged offense when needed to complete an application for a state professional license, although the expunged offense cannot be an automatic disqualification.
Will a criminal charge affect a securities license?
Yes. FINRA’s Form U4 asks whether you have ever been charged with a felony, and any felony conviction or guilty plea is a statutory disqualification for ten years.
Do I have to disclose a dismissed charge on the Missouri bar application?
Generally yes. The Board of Law Examiners requires disclosure of arrests and charges even if they were dismissed or resolved by SIS or diversion. Records that were actually expunged or sealed are the exception.
Can I find out in advance whether my record will disqualify me?
Yes. Under RSMo 324.012, a person with a criminal record may petition a Missouri licensing authority at any time for a determination of whether the record will disqualify them.
Facing a federal fraud investigation? Read what not to do first.
See also SIS vs. SES and expungement in Missouri, or call 573-638-8529.
Talk to us
Protect the license before the plea.
If your career depends on a license, the way your case is resolved matters as much as the result. Talk to us before you decide.
Attorney advertising. The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements. This article is general information, not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Licensing rules differ by board and change over time. We do not provide immigration advice.
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