Can I say "no" to "have you ever been arrested" after sealing?

Florida law generally permits a person whose record has been sealed or expunged to lawfully deny the arrest and the charges.

The exceptions are specific, and answering wrongly in one of them carries real consequences. They include applications for employment with criminal justice agencies, certain licensing and employment contexts involving vulnerable populations, applications to the Florida Bar, and situations where you are a defendant in a criminal prosecution.

Practical guidance. Do not rely on a general understanding. Before answering a question on a specific application, confirm whether that application falls within an exception — the categories are defined by statute and they are not intuitive.

A wrong answer in an exception category can be treated as a false statement, which is frequently a worse problem than the underlying record would have been.

Federal applications and security clearances follow federal requirements, which may reach material Florida law would allow you to deny.