Apply to remove a conviction for gay sex offences
Under the disregards and pardons scheme, you can get a historic conviction for gay sex offences removed.
Applies to England and Wales
Anyone with a historical conviction, caution, warning or reprimand for consensual gay sex can apply to the Home Office to have it deleted from the record.
If your application is successful, your records will be updated and the conviction will no longer appear on a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (previously CRB check) or referred to in any future court proceedings.
How to apply
To apply, read the disregards and pardons scheme applicant guidance and complete the application form.
You will need to provide:
- proof of identity (such as a copy of your driving licence)
- proof of address (such as a copy of a bank statement).
- details of your conviction
The full list of accepted ID documents can be found in the application form.
If you do not remember the specific details of your conviction or are not sure whether the offence has since been repealed, provide as much information as possible. We will do our best to look into it for you.
Your application and any attachments you send us will be treated confidentially.
It’s free to apply.
Email disregards@homeoffice.gov.uk if you need a Welsh version of the application form.
How to fill out the form
Read the disregards and pardons scheme applicant guidance on how to apply for a disregard and pardon of convictions for decriminalised sex offences.
Where to send your application form
Email the form to disregards@homeoffice.gov.uk or post it to:
Disregards Caseworking Team
Public Protection Unit
5th Floor Fry Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF
If you send your sensitive and personal data by email, you should carefully check the recipient’s email address to ensure it is: disregards@homeoffice.gov.uk.
Email transmission cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error free as information could be intercepted, corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete, or contain viruses. The Home Office accepts no liability for any misdirection of emails with attachments that may include sensitive and personal data.
What happens next
Read the disregards and pardons scheme: caseworker guidance if you would like to know more about how your case will be assessed.
Privacy notice
Read the disregards and pardons scheme: privacy information notice to find out how the Home Office will process your data for the purposes of administering the disregards and pardons scheme.
Statistics on disregards and pardons
View statistics on disregards and pardons for historical gay sex convictions