The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (ROA) sets the rules for:
When convictions and cautions become spent
When people are treated as rehabilitated in law
Under the ROA:
Most convictions and cautions become spent after a set rehabilitation period
Convictions with custodial sentences over four years, and all public protection sentences, never become spent
If a person has one of these excluded convictions, any earlier unspent convictions at that time also never become spent
Once a conviction is spent:
It no longer appears on a Basic DBS check
The individual normally does not have to disclose it, except for roles covered by the Exceptions Order 1975
For those exempted roles, employers can request:
Standard or Enhanced DBS checks
These may still reveal spent convictions and cautions, subject to filtering rules.