If your Bexar County deferred adjudication completed successfully — or your case ended in a dismissal that doesn't qualify for expunction — your Order of Nondisclosure petition goes to the same Bexar County district court that handled the original case, filed through the Bexar County District Clerk at the Bexar County Justice Center, 300 Dolorosa Street. Texas Government Code §411.0725 routes nondisclosure to the convicting court.

The Bexar County Criminal District Attorney's Civil Litigation Division reviews most nondisclosure petitions on the papers. In our experience, Bexar judges only set best-interest hearings on §411.0725 petitions about 30% of the time when the DA does not oppose — lower than Dallas or Harris. That makes Bexar one of the smoother Texas counties for an uncontested misdemeanor nondisclosure, particularly for first-time deferreds with clean post-completion records.

Sealing under Texas law removes the record from public access while keeping it visible to law enforcement, the FBI, and the roughly 30 categories of agencies listed in Gov't Code §411.0765. For a Bexar professional-license applicant, that distinction matters: the Texas Medical Board, Texas Board of Nursing, TEA, and DFPS still see the record. For a private-sector job, apartment, or credit application, the record disappears once distribution completes (typically 30–45 days post-grant in Bexar — among the faster Texas counties).

This guide covers the Bexar County non-disclosure process as it stands in 2026. For the statewide statutory framework, see our Texas non-disclosure pillar guide; for Bexar expunction (when the case qualifies), see our Bexar County expunction guide.

Sealing vs. Expunging in Bexar County

Same rule in Bexar County as everywhere else in Texas: if you are eligible for expunction, file that instead. Expunction destroys the record; non-disclosure just seals it. Use the table below to confirm which one applies:

If you completed Class A/B or felony deferred adjudication in Bexar County, you are most likely looking at non-disclosure — not expunction. If you had a Bexar County dismissal, acquittal, or no-bill, see our Bexar County expunction guide instead.

What Makes Bexar County Different for Non-Disclosure

Five Bexar-specific factors to know before filing.

• Civil Litigation Division reviews on the papers. The Bexar Criminal District Attorney's Civil Litigation Division handles most §411.0725 nondisclosure petitions through document review, not contested hearings. Best-interest hearings are set in roughly 30% of pro-se cases — lower than the state average. Clean petitions with clear best-interest recitations move quickly.
• Distribution to DPS averages 30–45 days. Bexar's post-grant clerk distribution to DPS is among the faster Texas counties — comparable to Tarrant. Compare to Harris (45–60 days) or Hidalgo (60+ days). Plan for the record to clear DPS within 6 weeks of the signed order.
• JBSA federal jurisdiction. Arrests on Joint Base San Antonio (Lackland, Randolph, Fort Sam Houston) by JBSA Security Forces or Air Force OSI are federal cases. Texas nondisclosure under Gov't Code Chapter 411 does not apply. If part of the case was referred to Bexar County state court, that referred portion may be eligible — pull the file to confirm.
• Bexar's family-violence finding standard is strict. Bexar judges enter the affirmative finding of family violence under CCP art. 42.013 routinely on assault-FV deferreds. Pull the judgment and check for "court finds family violence" or "affirmative finding under Article 42.013" before filing — that finding permanently disqualifies the case under §411.074(b). Some pro-se filers don't realize the finding is on the judgment until the DA's objection arrives.
• Automatic §411.072 nondisclosure is processed by the District Clerk. Bexar's automatic §411.072 nondisclosure on first-time misdemeanor deferreds is generated by the District Clerk's office at the time of dismissal — typically issuing 60–90 days post-completion. If your deferred completed and the §411.072 order doesn't appear in DPS within 90 days, file a Motion to Compel Distribution rather than a fresh petition.
• San Antonio suburb Class C deferreds need their own filings. Schertz Municipal Court, Live Oak Municipal Court, Universal City Municipal Court, Converse Municipal Court, and the other Bexar-suburb MCs handle Class C deferred adjudications separately. A §411.0728 nondisclosure for those Class C cases is filed in the originating municipal court — not Bexar County District Court.

Filing in Bexar County — Quick Reference

The Gov. Code Chapter 411 Pathways

Texas non-disclosure lives in Chapter 411, Subchapter E-1 of the Government Code. Unlike expunction, which has a single primary statute, non-disclosure is spread across multiple sections. The correct section depends on your fact pattern. In Bexar County, the five most commonly invoked sections are:

Citing the wrong section is a technical denial on its face, even in Bexar County where the clerks see these petitions daily.

Statutory Disqualifiers Under 411.074 — Check Your Bexar County Judgment First

Before you spend a filing fee, confirm your Bexar County offense is not on the permanently excluded list under Gov. Code 411.074(b):

• Offenses requiring sex offender registration (Chapter 62 CCP)
• Aggravated kidnapping
• Murder and capital murder
• Trafficking of persons and continuous trafficking
• Injury to a child, elderly, or disabled individual
• Abandoning or endangering a child
• Violations of protective orders and bond conditions in family-violence cases
• Stalking
• Any offense with a family-violence finding under Family Code 71.004
• DWI with BAC ≥ 0.15 (automatic non-disclosure barred; petition-based may still be available in limited circumstances)

Where to File in Bexar County

Non-disclosure petitions go to the court of original jurisdiction — the same Bexar County court that handled your deferred. Not a new court, not a different division. Getting this wrong is a clean denial.

The clerk does not reassign non-disclosure petitions filed in the wrong court. You will get a rejection and have to refile in the correct court. Wasted filing fee unless Bexar County refunds on a clerk error — which it sometimes does, but not always.

Bexar County Filing Fees

Same reality check as expunction: Bexar County charges a civil filing fee for non-disclosure petitions. Rather than list a specific dollar amount that will be stale by the time you read this, confirm the current fee from the source:

Indigency waivers under TRCP 145 are accepted in Bexar County but reviewed carefully. Expect to submit a full Statement of Inability to Afford Payment with supporting documentation.

The 12-Step Bexar County Non-Disclosure Walkthrough

Step 1 — Pull the Bexar County deferred adjudication order

Request a certified copy from the Bexar County District Clerk (for Class A/B and felony) or from the municipal/JP court (for Class C). Read it carefully for a family violence affirmative finding.

Step 2 — Confirm the offense is not excluded under 411.074

If the offense itself or any finding on the judgment disqualifies you, stop — non-disclosure is not available.

Step 3 — Identify the correct Gov. Code section

Work through 411.072, 411.0725, 411.0726, or 411.0729 depending on offense level and timing. Most Bexar County deferred completers land on 411.0725.

Step 4 — Calculate the waiting period from discharge

No waiting period for most Class A/B deferreds. 2 years for family or sexual contact misdemeanor deferreds. 5 years for felony deferreds. 2 years after sentence completion for 411.0729 first-offense misdemeanor convictions.

Step 5 — Pull a current DPS criminal history

Any intervening conviction or deferred (other than a minor traffic offense) during or after community supervision is a disqualifier. Do not assume — pull the current record.

Step 6 — Draft the Petition for Order of Non-Disclosure

Cite the correct section. Plead completion of community supervision, waiting period satisfied, no intervening convictions, and a best-interest-of-justice paragraph that is not boilerplate. Bexar County judges read it.

Step 7 — Draft the Proposed Order of Non-Disclosure

Mirror the petition. Include the clerk's obligation to forward the order to DPS within 15 business days.

Step 8 — E-file through eFileTexas

Select the court of original jurisdiction. Upload petition, proposed order, and civil case information sheet. Pay the filing fee.

Step 9 — Serve the Bexar County Criminal DA

Certified mail to 100 Dolorosa St., San Antonio, TX 78205 Keep the green card.

Step 10 — Prepare the best-interest-of-justice hearing packet

This is where most pro-se Bexar County non-disclosures are won or lost. See the detailed hearing section below.

Step 11 — Attend the hearing at the Bexar County Courthouse

Bring exhibits, declarations, and your narrative. Arrive 30 minutes early for the Bexar County Courthouse security.

Step 12 — Confirm DPS sealing and dispute any stale vendor reports

Clerk forwards the signed order to DPS within 15 business days. DPS updates within 45–90 days. Background-check vendors refresh within 90–180 days. If the record keeps appearing, dispute under FCRA with a certified copy of the order.

The Best-Interest Hearing at Bexar County Courthouse

In Bexar County, petition-based non-disclosures under 411.0725 almost always get set for a best-interest-of-justice hearing — even when the Bexar County DA does not object. This is different from expunction, where uncontested petitions are usually granted on the papers.

A Bexar County best-interest hearing typically runs 15–30 minutes in front of the same judge that handled the original deferred. You are asking the court to find that sealing is in the best interest of justice. The court is not required to grant it; you are carrying the burden.

What Bexar County judges want to see:

• Employment evidence. W-2s, pay stubs, a letter from an employer — anything that shows you are productively employed since discharge.
• Specific prejudice from the unsealed record. A declined job offer, a denied apartment, a licensing denial. Bring the declination letter if you have it.
• Rehabilitation. Certificates from community-supervision programs, education records, counseling completions.
• Community involvement. Church attendance, volunteer work, letters from supervisors or religious leaders.
• A coherent narrative. "I am not the person I was then. Here is what I have done since. Here is what sealing this record will unlock for my family."

The eFileTexas Nightmare — Watch This Before You Start

Bexar County non-disclosure petitions go through eFileTexas. Same portal as expunction, same rejection traps, same filing-code quirks. Spend 10 minutes on this walkthrough before your first filing.

Bexar County non-disclosure-specific traps on the portal:

• Filing type. Bexar County handles non-disclosure petitions in a couple of different ways — some courts reopen the original criminal case, others treat it as a new civil matter. If you pick the wrong mode on eFileTexas, the clerk rejects.
• Sealed filing flag. Some Bexar County courts require the non-disclosure petition itself to be filed under seal so the petition is not public record tied to the original criminal case. You have to flag this manually on the portal.
• Correct court queue. Non-disclosure goes to the court of original jurisdiction. The portal does not warn you if you pick the wrong court.
• Filing code specificity. "Petition for Order of Non-Disclosure" — not "Motion to Seal," not "Petition." Wrong code routes to wrong queue and delays review.

What Bexar County "Sealed" Actually Means — and Doesn't

After a Bexar County judge signs a non-disclosure order:

• Within 15 business days — the Bexar County clerk forwards the order to DPS.
• Within 45–90 days — DPS updates its criminal-history system and notifies other Texas criminal justice agencies.
• Within 90–180 days — private background-check vendors that subscribe to DPS data pick up the sealing and stop reporting the record.

What Bexar County non-disclosure does not do:

• Does not erase the record — it remains at the Bexar County District Clerk, DPS, and the arresting agency, flagged as non-disclosed.
• Does not bind San Antonio PD, Bexar County Sheriff, the DA, or the courts. Law enforcement retains full access.
• Does not bind certain licensing boards listed in Gov. Code 411.0765 — the State Board for Educator Certification, Texas Medical Board, Texas Board of Nursing, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, and others. These boards can still see the record.
• Does not erase federal records. FBI, ICE, and other federal agencies keep copies.
• Does not require private vendors to purge. They must stop disclosing but can retain the record in their database.

San Antonio is one of the heaviest background-check markets in the country. Even after Bexar County non-disclosure, you should expect to dispute at least one or two vendor reports that keep showing the record. Keep a certified copy of the signed order on hand for FCRA disputes.

10 Bexar County Non-Disclosure Mistakes That Kill DIY Petitions

1. Filing on a Bexar County deferred with a family-violence finding. Automatic disqualifier under 411.074. Read the judgment before filing.
2. Wrong Gov. Code section. Confusing 411.0726 (automatic) with 411.0725 (petition) or 411.0729 (post-conviction).
3. Filing in the wrong Bexar County court. Non-disclosure goes to the court of original jurisdiction — not a new court.
4. Assuming automatic non-disclosure happened without confirming with DPS. Even when 411.0726 applies, the automatic process fails often enough that a petition or motion to compel is sometimes still needed.
5. Outdated Bexar County DA service address. The current Bexar County DA service address is Paul Elizondo Tower, 4th Floor, 101 W. Nueva, San Antonio, TX 78205 (Bexar County Courthouse). Old templates may point to a stale address — verify before mailing or your service will be returned.
6. Walking into the best-interest hearing unprepared. No exhibits, no narrative, no witnesses — common Bexar County pro-se result.
7. Boilerplate best-interest paragraph in the petition. Bexar County judges read these. Generic language triggers denials.
8. Concatenated petition and proposed order. Bexar County requires separate PDFs.
9. Not flagging sealed filing. Some Bexar County courts require the petition itself filed under seal. Pro-se filers miss the checkbox.
10. Skipping vendor follow-up. The order seals the record in Texas criminal justice databases — but San Antonio background-check vendors need affirmative disputes. Not doing this undoes the value of the sealing.

DIY vs. Attorney vs. Expunction360 in Bexar County

For Bexar County non-disclosure, honest answer: contested best-interest cases often benefit from a full-service attorney who can appear at the hearing. For uncontested petitions with clean facts and clear eligibility, our flat-fee model is the best value in San Antonio. We will tell you which category you fall in on the intake call.

Bexar County Non-Disclosure FAQ