How Far Back To Background Checks Go

How Far Back Does a Background Check Get? (2022 update)

How far back practice background checks go? Surprisingly to some, nothing in federal law restricts how far dorsum an employer can look. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) besides does not cover criminal records. The length of the "lookback menses" is a mutual business organisation amid employers and job seekers regarding pre-employment vetting. The true respond varies depending on the blazon of background cheque and the location of the parties in question.

Some types of investigations accept more than extended lookback periods than others. Local ban-the-box laws can also bear on businesses and candidates. Read on to learn about the many types of checks and how far back they may go.

Types of Checks and Their Lookback Period

The type of records in question is the primary variable impacting lookback periods. Because state laws tin can vary substantially, employers should always consult with an attorney or review relevant local legislation before beginning any vetting. Background information providers, including backgroundchecks.com, likewise strive to continue track of these laws and their changes and may exist able to assist employers in designing compliant policies for specific locales.

Here is an overview of common length restrictions regarding the different kinds of groundwork checks:

Pre-employment background checks

Vii years is the almost mutual lookback period for employment-related criminal checks across jurisdictions. Some states allow employers to expect back an entire decade, while others don't have whatsoever time limitations. All the same, these laws tin can have subtle variations. For example, the lookback period may modify based on whether an individual has just been convicted and sentenced or has already completed their jail term.

Level 2 check

The term "Level 2 check" does not take a unanimous definition. Some report providers use terms such as "Level one" and "Level two" to delineate between tiers of investigation service packages.

Florida separates investigations into Level 1 and Level 2 categories, though it is the merely land to do so equally a matter of constabulary. In Florida, a Level 1 investigation is a less in-depth check. These reports can include a Florida-only name-based criminal search, an employment history verification screening, additional local county criminal searches, or sex activity offender registry checks.

A Level 2 assessment is more in-depth, incorporating fingerprint-based searches of Florida Department of Constabulary Enforcement records and national FBI databases, along with more localized crime record searches with canton courthouses or law enforcement agencies.

So how far back does a background bank check go in Florida at Level ii? Florida has no laws that limit how far back an employer can look into a candidate'due south by regarding criminal convictions. However, the state does bide by national laws, including the FCRA. The FCRA'due south "vii-yr rule" mandates that arrests not exist reported for more than seven years on whatever groundwork check. Florida follows these rules even for Level 2 background checks.

Credit check

Employment-related credit history checks tin also typically go back seven years, though state laws sometimes allow a ten-yr lookback period. Decade-long lookbacks are about often associated with jobs with very loftier salaries or a slate of high-level task responsibilities involving the management or treatment of finances.

In recent years, at that place has been pushback about the relevance of credit history to almost jobs. That pushback has led to a vigorous legislative movement that has resulted in the banning or brake of the use of pre-employment credit history checks in several states and localities.

As of 2022, xi states (California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, Washington) and the District of Columbia accept laws restricting employment-related credit bank check use. Several major jurisdictions—including Chicago, New York City, and Philadelphia—have passed similar laws.

Employers in these areas should review all compliance requirements before using credit history screenings equally part of their employment process.

Driving record check

The lookback period for driving record checks varies more dramatically than most other investigations. Depending on the state, driving records can expect back ten years or as little as iii years.

Misdemeanors and small infractions

The severity of a criminal offence can impact the lookback menstruation in some jurisdictions. In some states, employers can admission felony convictions for an indefinite period. Other states restrict this information to the seven-twelvemonth or 10-twelvemonth lookback periods. Reporting times for misdemeanors may vary based on state and local laws.

Verification checks

Verification checks (including educational credentials, employment history, and professional person licenses) are not restricted past lookback periods.How far does a background check go when it'due south meant to help an employer verify a degree? Functionally, these checks tin span a candidate's unabridged lifetime.

Rules & restrictions

So far, we've explored the general rules that apply to groundwork screening lookback periods. However, for true compliance, employers need to be aware of specific rules and regulations that may employ to them.

Typically, these regulations autumn into two categories: FCRA requirements, which utilize to all employers nationwide, and country regulations, which vary significantly from ane part of the state to the next.

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regulations

The FCRA limits the adverse information that a reporting company or credit bureau tin can report to an employer. Under the FCRA, background screening companies cannot include bankruptcy cases if the reports are older than ten years. Despite these decade-long lookback periods, the FCRA's most well-known length limitation on checks is the seven-yr lookback rule.

The seven-year look dorsum dominion

Per the FCRA, groundwork checks are prohibited from including many items of adverse information if they are older than vii years. These items include paid tax liens, accounts in collections, civil suits or related judgments, and particularly arrest records. Therefore, the well-nigh common lookback menstruum across the land is seven years. Considering the FCRA is a federal law, all employers must follow this rule.

Criminal history and the FCRA

While it does cover arrests, the FCRA does non accept any rules restricting how long criminal convictions can appear on a background check. Based on the FCRA alone, misdemeanors and felonies tin can be reported on criminal background checks as long as they remain on an individual'south record.

Land regulations

While the FCRA does non limit how far into the past employers tin can expect into their candidates' criminal histories, this law is non the but relevant regulation.

Many states take their own laws about how long adverse information tin announced on reports. These laws frequently prohibit criminal check companies from reporting any criminal information (including convictions) that are more than seven years old at the time of the cheque.

Keep in mind that these states currently accept laws restricting the lookback periods for criminal checks:

State	LOOKBACK RESTRICTIONS
California	Criminal convictions tin only be reported for vii years
Hawaii	Felony convictions can simply be reported for vii years; misdemeanor convictions tin can merely be reported for five years
Kansas	Employers cannot consider any criminal history more than vii years old unless the annual salary of the task in question volition be $20,000 or over
Maryland	Employers cannot consider whatsoever criminal history more than than seven years sometime unless the annual salary of the job in question volition be $20,000 or over
Massachusetts	Criminal convictions can just be reported for seven years
Montana	Criminal convictions can only be reported for seven years
New Hampshire	Employers cannot consider any criminal history more than seven years old unless the annual salary of the task in question will exist $20,000 or over
New United mexican states	Criminal convictions can but be reported for 7 years
New York	Employers cannot consider whatever criminal history more than seven years old unless the annual salary of the job in question will be $75,000 or over
Texas	Employers cannot consider any criminal history more than than seven years old unless the annual salary of the job in question will be $twenty,000 or over
Washington	Employers cannot consider whatsoever criminal history more seven years sometime unless the annual salary of the task in question will exist $twenty,000 or over

Even if employers tin can look back every bit far as they want into a candidate's criminal history, older convictions may non always counterbalance as heavily as more recent crimes. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission encourages employers to consider the length of time since a confidence as part of their procedures.

Employers should also be aware that their state's history restrictions may non be limited to time. For example, many states have laws prohibiting employers from because non-conviction arrests. An arrest without a conviction is non an indicator of guilt and should non exist used as a disqualifying gene.

Ten states (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New York, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin) ban employers from considering any arrest records. Five others (Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, Washington, and Texas) restrict employers from using arrest records for employment decisions in certain situations, such equally if the candidate was arrested but is a outset-time offender (Georgia).

Read our white paper about employment criminal checks and abort recordsfor a more detailed overview of these laws and to sympathize legislative restrictions on how far background checks get.

Michael Klazema

About Michael Klazema The author

Michael Klazema is Chief Marketing Technologist at EY-VODW.com and has over two decades of feel in digital consulting, online product direction, and applied science innovation. He is the atomic number 82 author and editor for Dallas-based backgroundchecks.com with a focus on human being resources and employment screening developments.