Jobs for Felons in Nebraska

Nebraska state agencies, counties, cities and other local governments cannot ask about your criminal record, out loud, in writing or on the application, until they have decided you meet the minimum qualifications for the job. The rule does not cover law enforcement, jobs where a law requires a background check or rules out people with certain records, and schools may ask about sexual or physical abuse.

As far as we can find, Nebraska has no ban-the-box law for private employers. The state law is written for public employers only, so a private business can ask about your record on the application.

Under federal law, a background check company can report a conviction no matter how old it is. Arrests that did not lead to a conviction generally drop off after seven years (the limit does not apply to jobs paying $75,000 a year or more). We found no Nebraska law that shortens that for convictions.

Nebraska does not expunge adult convictions, but you can ask the court that sentenced you to “set aside” a conviction. You can apply if you got probation, a fine only, or community service and completed it, or if you were sentenced to no more than one year of imprisonment and finished the sentence.

For the one-year path, you cannot apply with charges pending, while you are required to register as a sex offender, or for a motor vehicle offense (including DUI).

A set-aside nullifies the conviction and removes the civil disabilities that came with it. It does not erase or seal the record. The conviction can still be used in some situations, including some child care and teaching licenses and a later sentencing. Plan how you will explain it.

Records that never became convictions (no charges filed, a completed diversion, a dismissed case, an acquittal) come off the public record after set periods. Once a record is sealed under this law, no application for a job, license or school can ask you about it. If one does, you may answer as if the offense never happened.

You can file a preliminary application with a Nebraska licensing board at any time, even before training, to find out whether your record disqualifies you. A record disqualifies you only if it directly and specifically relates to the job, you would pose a direct and substantial risk to public safety because you have not been rehabilitated, and (since 2025) the conviction is on the “potentially disqualifying” list. The fee is capped at $100 and is waived if your income is at or below 300% of the federal poverty level.

Boards cannot consider, and you do not have to disclose, an arrest with no conviction, a diversion or deferred adjudication, a sealed, set-aside or pardoned conviction, a juvenile adjudication, most nonviolent misdemeanors, or most convictions where your incarceration ended more than 3 years ago. That 3-year rule does not cover convictions on the “potentially disqualifying” list.

Federal EEOC guidance from 2012 warns employers that blanket “no felons” policies can violate Title VII, but since April 2025 a federal executive order has told agencies to deprioritize this kind of case. For private jobs in Nebraska, your leverage is a set-aside and picking the right employer.