A fingerprint background check compares your fingerprints with the arrest prints held by your state's criminal records bureau and, for most jobs that need one, the FBI, and reports any match with the charge and outcome. Because it matches prints instead of names, it rarely confuses you with someone else, and it finds arrests even when a person used a different name.
Fingerprinting is not the background check itself. It is the way your identity goes into the search. The rest of a hiring screen, such as job history, education and references, is a separate part. Here is what happens to your prints, what can come back, and where to go.
Quick answers
What it searches
State criminal history files and, when the law allows, the FBI's national fingerprint file.
Who needs one
Jobs where a law requires it: schools, child care, healthcare, elder care, finance, security guards, airports, many licenses and federal jobs.
How prints are taken
Electronically on a glass scanner (often called Live Scan) or with ink on a standard card.
Typical time
Often one to three business days when nothing matches. Longer when a technician must review a match.
Who gets results
The agency or employer named on the request, not you, in most job cases.
Who pays
Often the employer. Some employers ask you to pay and reimburse it, so ask.
What is a fingerprint background check?
The usual hiring screen works from identity details. A screening firm enters what you gave it, such as legal name and birth date, into court indexes. A fingerprint search instead sends an image of your prints to a government records bureau, which looks for matching arrest prints.
| Fingerprint based | Name based | |
|---|---|---|
| Run by | State bureau and FBI, at the request of an authorized agency | A background screening company |
| Matches on | Fingerprints | Name, date of birth, address history |
| Strength | Finds arrests under any name, very few mistaken matches | Shows recent court details and cases filed without prints |
| Weakness | Outcomes are sometimes missing | Can miss aliases or match the wrong person |
| Used for | Jobs and licenses where a law requires it | Most private sector jobs |
Many care and school employers run both. For the full menu of search types, see types of background checks.
What shows up on a fingerprint background check
A match brings back your state or FBI arrest file, which police call a rap sheet. It usually lists:
- Each arrest where your prints were taken, with the date and arresting agency
- The charges at arrest
- The court outcome, if the court reported it: conviction, dismissal, acquittal, diversion
- Sentences, probation or custody records in some states
- Prints taken for earlier jobs, licenses or military service in some files
It does not show traffic tickets, credit, civil lawsuits, employment history or medical information. Whether a sealed or expunged case appears depends on the state and on the type of employer. Some agencies that screen for schools or law enforcement can still see sealed records. Read expunged records on a background check if that applies to you.
The biggest weakness of fingerprint files is the missing ending. An arrest can sit in the file for years with no outcome because the court never reported it. If you know that is your situation, bring a certified court disposition to your HR contact early.
How long does a fingerprint background check take?
Speed depends on whether anything matches. The California Department of Justice, for example, says on its fingerprint and background check page that prints with no database match are usually processed electronically within 48 to 72 hours, while a match needs a technician's review and can take an unpredictable amount of time.
| Situation | Typical time |
|---|---|
| Electronic prints, no record | One to three business days |
| Electronic prints, a record that needs review | One to several weeks |
| Ink card sent by mail | Several weeks, sometimes more |
| Prints rejected as unreadable | Starts over after a reprint |
Unreadable prints are common for people with worn fingertips, such as bricklayers, nurses who wash hands all day and older adults. If you are rejected twice, many states allow a name based check instead. Ask the agency. For the rest of the hiring screen, see how long a background check takes.
Where to get fingerprinted for a background check
Go where the employer or the state tells you. Results only reach the right place if your prints carry the correct agency code.
- For a job or license: the state's approved fingerprint vendor, a police or sheriff's office, or a site the employer lists. In Florida, for example, the FDLE background checks page keeps a list of approved livescan service providers.
- For your own FBI record: a post office that takes prints for the FBI, once you have opened an online request on the FBI's request site, or one of the private channelers the FBI has approved.
- For an ink card: many police stations still roll ink prints on the standard FBI card. Call first, as hours are limited.
Wash your hands with plain soap, skip lotion, and drink water that morning. Dry or oily skin is the main reason prints get rejected.
Fingerprint background check for employment: who uses it
A private employer cannot just decide to run your prints through the FBI. Access has to come from a law. In practice that means fingerprinting for jobs such as:
| Field | Why prints are used |
|---|---|
| Schools and child care | State laws require state and FBI checks for staff and many volunteers |
| Hospitals, nursing homes, home care | State care screening laws, such as Florida's Level 2 screening |
| Banks and securities firms | Federal banking and securities rules |
| Airports with secure area badges | Federal aviation security rules |
| Federal jobs and contractors | Federal investigation standards |
| Licensed trades | State licensing boards (nurses, teachers, real estate, security guards and more) |
Healthcare and care jobs have extra list checks too, covered in background checks for healthcare workers.
Fingerprinting vs the background check itself
No. Fingerprinting is how you enter the search. The background check is everything the employer reviews. A school might fingerprint you for the criminal part, then call references and verify your degree separately. A hospital might add a drug test and a license check. When HR says "your fingerprints cleared," that covers only the criminal file, not the whole screen.
Do ask: "Is the fingerprint check the only part of my screening, or are references and education checked separately?"
Do not assume: a cleared fingerprint result means your start date is set.
Retained prints and ongoing checks
Some states keep your prints on file after hiring. If you are arrested later, the state and sometimes the FBI notify your employer. This is often called rap back. Florida law, for example, requires prints in its care provider clearinghouse to be retained and checked against new arrests. You are usually told about this on the fingerprint form, so read it before you sign.
This page describes how fingerprint checks usually work and is not legal advice. Each state runs its own system, so read your state bureau's instructions, and for a dispute about your own record, a legal aid program or a lawyer who handles record clearing can help.
Questions people ask
What does a fingerprint background check look for?
It looks for arrest records that carry your fingerprints in the state file and, when allowed, the FBI file. Each match comes back with the charge and the outcome if it was reported. It is not a search of your job history or credit.
Can a fingerprint background check find an arrest under another name?
Yes. That is its main strength. Prints match no matter what name was given at booking.
Does a fingerprint check show misdemeanors?
It shows misdemeanor arrests if prints were taken and sent to the state. Many low level citations are handled without prints, so they may not appear. See misdemeanors on a background check.
What is a level 2 fingerprint background check?
In Florida and a few other states, Level 2 is the screening tier for care and school jobs that runs your prints against both Florida and FBI files. Our level 2 background check guide explains it.
How often do my fingerprints need to be redone?
That varies with the license and the state. Some licenses require new prints at each renewal, while states with retained prints only need them once unless there is a long break in service.
Can I see my own fingerprint background check results?
For job checks, results usually go to the employer or agency. When those results cost you the job, you can generally ask for a copy. You can also request your own state record or FBI record directly for review.