What Do Fbi Background Checks Consist Of

Earlier bringing aboard a new employee, particularly someone in a position where they're handling finances, y'all may want to bear a background check that includes a federal criminal background check. This check searches the federal courtroom organisation to expect for convictions and pending cases tied to federal crimes.

A federal background cheque provides important information about a candidate's criminal history that tin be used when making a hiring determination. Mayhap most importantly, a federal background check, also called a federal criminal groundwork check, may assistance protect your workers and customers, along with your business' reputation, and tin help you comply with federal laws and regulations.

GoodHire's background check platform makes it easy to order reports and review results.

What Is A Federal Groundwork Bank check?

Federal groundwork checks, or federal criminal background checks, search beyond 94 federal Usa commune and appellate courts to uncover convictions and pending cases of federal crimes. For instance, identity theft, tax evasion, counterfeiting, and kidnapping are all federal crimes. And then are crimes against federal employees like TSA agents and wood rangers, crimes involving banks, and those committed on federal land similar national parks.

A federal criminal groundwork check is ofttimes used by companies in financial industries, as well as for executives and CPAs, to surface incidents involving fraud and embezzlement or identity theft. Note that this search is different from an FBI Groundwork Check or Federal Employment Groundwork Check (more than on that later).

What'due south The Difference Between Federal & Nationwide Background Checks?

These ii groundwork checks audio similar, but are actually quite different. Federal criminal background checks search for violations of federal law, including embezzlement, illegal firearms sales, and crimes against federal employees like TSA agents and postal workers. By contrast, a Nationwide or National Criminal Background Check searches nationally beyond multiple state databases—such as Administrative Offices of the Courts and Departments of Corrections—for whatsoever convictions at the land or county level where records have been digitized.

When it comes to employment background screenings, a National Criminal Background search is often the starting signal of a criminal records search; if the search returns results of a local criminal confidence, you may wish to pull detailed records from that jurisdiction through a county-level search.

Task Requirements

Among the sectors that might do good from—or crave—a federal criminal background check on prospective candidates include police enforcement, education, finance and banking, healthcare, and jobs in the federal authorities and defense manufacture.

Jobs for which federal background checks may be required include:

Banking executives
CEOs and other C-Suite executives
CPAs and other high-level positions in bookkeeping and finance
Police enforcement officers
Healthcare administrators and professionals
Service providers caring for children, elderly people or disabled people

What do these jobs and industries have in common? People in these positions handle sensitive information, deal with high-value assets, or work with vulnerable people.

Crimes Revealed

A federal criminal background cheque uncovers criminal records that are non available at the state or county level. It may reveal that the candidate has committed federal crimes such every bit:

Taxation evasion: Illegally attempting to avoid paying taxes
Identity theft: Using some other person's personal identifying information (e.yard. name, Social Security number, etc.) without their permission to commit fraud or other crimes
Counterfeiting: Creating faux currency with the intent to pass it off as real
Kidnapping: Confining and/or transporting a person against their will
Embezzlement: Withholding something of value from its rightful possessor without their consent with the intent to appropriate it
Interstate trafficking: Unlawfully importing goods, often controlled substances, across country lines

Examples of federal crimes in a background check

What Does A Federal Employment Background Bank check Consist Of?

Every person hired for a chore with the federal government must submit to a federal employment background check. These checks typically comprehend criminal histories and credit histories. However, the elements of a federal employment background check vary amidst federal agencies and may be more extensive, depending on the position. For instance, a background check at an agency that deals with national security might be more in-depth than a background bank check at an agency that handles environmental matters.

A more in-depth federal employment background check may also include:

Searching the FBI'due south fingerprint database
Checking a candidate's residential address history
Interviewing spouses, relatives, friends, roommates, coworkers or acquaintances
Examining a candidate's social media profiles

A federal employment background cheque isn't necessarily the same as a traditional pre-employment background check in the private sector. A traditional groundwork check oft includes reviewing a candidate's criminal history, verifying their employment and instruction, contacting references, and ordering a drug test. A traditional background check may too include a review of a candidate's federal criminal records, depending on the industry and position.

Federal vs. FBI

A federal background check is different from an FBI background bank check. Federal criminal groundwork checks involve searching federal criminal courts for convictions and awaiting cases and are ofttimes used past organizations when hiring for executive-level roles, and positions where the person is treatment highly sensitive data. FBI background checks, on the other hand, go fifty-fifty deeper and oftentimes are limited to certain kinds of jobs in the federal government or at companies that contract with the federal authorities. This in-depth check digs upwards all interactions an private might take had with law enforcement, such as all felony and misdemeanor criminal convictions, arrests, traffic violations and fifty-fifty parking tickets.

Unlike a federal criminal background check, an FBI check relies on fingerprints supplied by the job candidate. Those prints then are run through the FBI's Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification Organisation (IAFIS), a storehouse of fingerprints nerveless by law enforcement agencies, immigration agencies and previous employment screenings. The IAFIS database connects a person's information to fingerprints collected every bit function of both criminal and not-criminal circumstances.

In addition, the fingerprints are run through the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database. This database contains a wealth of information about criminal histories and wanted criminals. The prints also are checked against databases of sexual activity offenders and terrorists.

GoodHire's background check platform makes it easy to order reports and review results.

How To Run A Federal Background Check

Running a federal groundwork bank check requires y'all to set up an online business relationship with the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system, an online public access database run by the federal regime. You'll make full out a short form and select a user proper noun. A credit card is not required to sign up, but you will need ane to buy admission to sure information.

One time you're set up, the PACER tool lets you search all federal courts for criminal cases. In addition to the fourth dimension you'll spend sifting through records, you'll pay a small fee for each certificate you access (upwardly to $3 per document).

To save time, yous might consider letting a third-party, accredited screening provider like GoodHire handle your federal criminal background checks as role of a more comprehensive pre-employment screening package.

Either manner, checking your candidates' federal criminal history can give you peace of mind and help you lot brand informed decisions during the hiring process.

How To Stay Compliant

If you apply a screening provider to deport pre-employment background checks, you lot must comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Kickoff, the candidate must be notified that yous intend to run a background bank check. This is known every bit a background check disclosure.

Then, the candidate must requite their permission for the groundwork check to exist conducted. This acknowledgment should be provided in a self-contained certificate.

A job candidate must be told in writing that any information uncovered in a background check can be used in decisions concerning employment eligibility and hiring. The same is true if information revealed in a background cheque is used to screen a current employee (for example, for a promotion, or for annual re-screening). This information must be provided in a written certificate.
If a background cheque leads to a decision against hiring, retaining, or promoting a candidate, you must follow the FCRA's adverse action steps. GoodHire helps streamline the adverse action process through an automated workflow that guides you through the steps.

GoodHire's guide on everything you need to know about background check compliance.

How To Get A Federal Background Check On Yourself

If you're a task candidate, you may be wondering what might show up in a federal criminal background bank check on yourself. If then, it's pretty simple to notice out. Just sign up for a PACER business relationship, every bit described earlier in this commodity, and behave a search on yourself. If you've been convicted of a federal criminal offence, or your case is pending, your record will be available in this database.

You lot tin also rent a private investigator to dig into your federal criminal background or utilize a third-party service to see what shows upwardly.

To find out what else might show upward, you tin run a personal background cheque on yourself with GoodHire. Running a personal groundwork check lets you lot encounter what employers see, and if you spot any inaccuracies, you can dispute the records, as well as add context about criminal records on your report.

While GoodHire does not offering federal criminal tape searches as part of our Personal Background Check options, a personal background check from GoodHire can uncover information nearly criminal records at the state and county level, too as sex offender registry condition, Domestic Sentry List condition, and employment and education verification.

Order

Save yourself the time and compliance worries of a more comprehensive background screening by having GoodHire conduct federal criminal background checks for your candidates. Nigh chiefly, employment screening and background checks can requite you peace of heed about the hiring decisions that you make. GoodHire offers hundreds of groundwork screening options, including Nationwide criminal groundwork checks, Country criminal background checks, and Canton criminal background checks, and nosotros help you maintain compliance wherever you're hiring.

GoodHire's background check platform makes it easy to order reports and review results.

Disclaimer

The resources provided hither are for educational purposes just and do not constitute legal communication. Nosotros suggest y'all to consult your own counsel if you accept legal questions related to your specific practices and compliance with applicable laws.

Most the Author

Every bit GoodHire'due south managing editor, Sara Korolevich produces educational resources for employers on a variety of employment screening topics, including compliance and screening best practices, and writes about GoodHire's company and production news. Sara's experience stems from 20+ years working every bit a B2C and B2B PR and communications professional.