Iowa Code

Iowa Code § 232.150 (2026)

Sealing of records

✓ current as of July 2026

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1. a. In the case of an adjudication of delinquency, the court shall upon its own motion schedule a sealing of records hearing to be held two years after the date of the last official action, or the date the child becomes eighteen years of age, whichever is later. The court shall also schedule a sealing of records hearing upon application of a person who was the subject of a complaint or petition alleging delinquency that did not result in an adjudication. The court, after hearing, shall order the official juvenile court records in the case including those specified in sections 232.147, 232.149, 232.149A, 232.149B, and 915.25, sealed if the court finds all of the following:

(1) The person is eighteen years of age or older and two years have elapsed since the last official action in the person’s case.

(2) The person has not been subsequently convicted of a felony or an aggravated or serious misdemeanor or adjudicated a delinquent child for an act which if committed by an adult would be a felony, an aggravated misdemeanor, or a serious misdemeanor and no proceeding is pending seeking such conviction or adjudication.

(3) The person was not placed on youthful offender status, transferred back to district court after the youthful offender’s eighteenth birthday, and sentenced for the offense which precipitated the youthful offender placement.

(4) The person was not adjudicated delinquent on an offense involving a violation of section 321J.2.

b. If the person was adjudicated delinquent for an offense which if committed by an adult would be an aggravated misdemeanor or a felony, the court shall not order the records in the case sealed unless, upon application of the person or upon the court’s own motion and after hearing, the court finds that paragraph “a”, subparagraphs (1) and (2), apply and that the sealing is in the best interests of the person and the public.

c. If the person is required to pay monetary restitution to a victim due to a delinquent act and the restitution is unpaid, the records in the case may be sealed, but the name of the court, the title of the action, and the court’s file number shall remain unsealed as provided in section 910.10 and the restitution amount shall be a judgment and lien as provided in sections 910.7A, 910.8, 910.10, and 915.28 until the restitution is paid in full.

2. Reasonable notice of the hearing shall be given to the person who is the subject of the records named in the motion, the county attorney, and the agencies having custody of the records named in the application or motion.

3. Notice and copies of a sealing order shall be sent to each agency or person having custody or the records named in the sealing order.

4. On entry of a sealing order:

a. All agencies and persons having custody of records which are named therein, shall send such records to the court issuing the order. Maintenance or destruction of these records shall be prescribed by the state court administrator.

b. All index references to sealed records shall be deleted.

5. The sealed records shall no longer be deemed to exist as a matter of law, and the juvenile court and any other agency or person who received notice and a copy of the sealing order shall reply to an inquiry that no such records exist, except when such reply is made to an inquiry pursuant to subsection 6.

6. Inspection of sealed records and disclosure of their contents thereafter may be\n\nTue Dec 09 22:21:34 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 232 (92, 1) §232.150, JUVENILE JUSTICE 108\n\npermitted only pursuant to an order of the court upon application of the person who is the subject of such records except that the court in its discretion may permit reports to be inspected by or their contents to be disclosed for research purposes to a person conducting bona fide research under whatever conditions the court deems proper. [C79, 81, §232.150; 82 Acts, ch 1209, §18] 97 Acts, ch 126, §36; 2006 Acts, ch 1164, §3; 2014 Acts, ch 1105, §1; 2016 Acts, ch 1002, §14, 15, 17; 2018 Acts, ch 1153, §10; 2019 Acts, ch 59, §70 Referred to in §13B.4A, 216A.136, 229A.2, 232.55, 232.91, 232.147, 232.149, 232.149A, 232.149B, 232.151, 232C.4, 692.2, 692A.101, 692A.121 \n

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 7 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1989–2021 · leading case: State Pub. Def. v. Iowa Dist. Court for Black Hawk Cnty., 633 N.W.2d 280 (Iowa 2001).

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State Pub. Def. v. Iowa Dist. Court for Black Hawk Cnty., 633 N.W.2d 280 (Iowa 2001). · cites it 28× “Iowa Code § 232.150 (emphasis added). The dispute here is whether the state public defender falls within the provisions of subsection 4 as “agencies and persons having custody of records.”

In RE the Det. of Anthony Geltz Anthony Geltz, 840 N.W.2d 273 (Iowa 2013). · cites it 2× “victed” is defined to mean found guilty of, pleads guilty to, or is sentenced or adjudicated delinquent for an act which is an indictable offense in this state or in another jurisdiction including in a federal, military, tribal, or foreign court, including but not limited to a…”

In the Interest of B.A., 737 N.W.2d 665 (Iowa Ct. App. 2007). · cites it 2× “See Iowa Code § 232.150 . Iowa Code section 692A.”

In the Interest of B.L., Minor Child (Iowa Ct. App. 2021). · cites it 6× “Iowa Code § 232.150 (1)(a). Under this process, following his adjudication as delinquent, there is no mechanism for the court to seal B.”

In the Interest of S.M., 449 N.W.2d 343 (Iowa 1989). · cites it 10× “This case concerns the extent to which the driving records of juveniles under the control of the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) can be sealed pursuant to order of a juvenile court under Iowa Code section 232.150 (1987), which provides in part: Upon application of a…”

In Re Ba, 737 N.W.2d 665 (Iowa Ct. App. 2007). · cites it 2× “See Iowa Code § 232.150 . Iowa Code section 692A.”

In Re the Marriage of Maher, 510 N.W.2d 888 (Iowa Ct. App. 1993). · cites it 2× “Records and files of a criminal justice agency concerning a child other than fingerprint and photograph records and files shall not be open to inspection and their contents shall not be disclosed except as provided in this section and section 232.150 unless the juvenile court…”

— Iowa Code § 232.150(1) — 1 case

State Pub. Def. v. Iowa Dist. Court for Black Hawk Cnty., 633 N.W.2d 280 (Iowa 2001). “Iowa Code § 232.150 (emphasis added). The dispute here is whether the state public defender falls within the provisions of subsection 4 as “agencies and persons having custody of records.”

— Iowa Code § 232.150(4) — 1 case

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