{"industry":{"id":"e1a1da3c-52a8-4e99-88ad-d08ef17d7c3f","slug":"hr-technology","label":"HR Technology","description":"ATS, HRIS, payroll, and workforce management"},"topic":{"slug":"candidate-screening-assessment","label":"Candidate Screening & Assessment","description":"Background Checks, Pre-Employment Testing, Reference Checks, Skills Assessment","schemaKind":null},"answer":{"id":"6ba6da83-f241-45a9-b5ec-838bb6ce917c","slug":"what-shows-up-on-an-employment-background-check","question":"What shows up on an employment background check (and what doesn't)?","answerMarkdown":"An employment background check is a consumer report an employer buys from a screening company, and its contents are set by the package that employer ordered rather than by any standard national file: most packages cover criminal court records, employment and education verification, and, when the job calls for it, a credit report, a motor vehicle record, or a drug screen.[1][2][4][14] Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act a screening company may not report bankruptcies older than ten years, or arrest records, civil judgments, tax liens, collections, and other adverse items older than seven, though the statute exempts criminal convictions from that cutoff and lifts the limits entirely for jobs paying $75,000 or more a year.[3] Several things candidates expect are absent: the credit report prepared for employment omits your credit score, date of birth, and income,[5] sealed and expunged records are removed from public court access,[8][9] and 22 states plus the District of Columbia bar employers from asking about pay history.[13] Before any rejection based on the report, the employer must give you a copy of it along with A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.[1][2] None of this is legal advice, and state rules are frequently stricter than the federal floor.","answerText":"An employment background check is a consumer report an employer buys from a screening company, and its contents are set by the package that employer ordered rather than by any standard national file: most packages cover criminal court records, employment and education verification, and, when the job calls for it, a credit report, a motor vehicle record, or a drug screen.[1][2][4][14] Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act a screening company may not report bankruptcies older than ten years, or arrest records, civil judgments, tax liens, collections, and other adverse items older than seven, though the statute exempts criminal convictions from that cutoff and lifts the limits entirely for jobs paying $75,000 or more a year.[3] Several things candidates expect are absent: the credit report prepared for employment omits your credit score, date of birth, and income,[5] sealed and expunged records are removed from public court access,[8][9] and 22 states plus the District of Columbia bar employers from asking about pay history.[13] Before any rejection based on the report, the employer must give you a copy of it along with A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.[1][2] None of this is legal advice, and state rules are frequently stricter than the federal floor.","answerHtml":"<p>An employment background check is a consumer report an employer buys from a screening company, and its contents are set by the package that employer ordered rather than by any standard national file: most packages cover criminal court records, employment and education verification, and, when the job calls for it, a credit report, a motor vehicle record, or a drug screen.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a><a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/when-i-apply-for-a-job-what-do-employers-see-when-they-do-a-credit-check-for-employment-and-a-background-check-en-1823/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[4]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act a screening company may not report bankruptcies older than ten years, or arrest records, civil judgments, tax liens, collections, and other adverse items older than seven, though the statute exempts criminal convictions from that cutoff and lifts the limits entirely for jobs paying $75,000 or more a year.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a> Several things candidates expect are absent: the credit report prepared for employment omits your credit score, date of birth, and income,<a href=\"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[5]</a> sealed and expunged records are removed from public court access,<a href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/05/12/2025-08286/withdrawal-of-guidance\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[8]</a><a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=1786.18\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[9]</a> and 22 states plus the District of Columbia bar employers from asking about pay history.<a href=\"https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[13]</a> Before any rejection based on the report, the employer must give you a copy of it along with A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a><a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a> None of this is legal advice, and state rules are frequently stricter than the federal floor.</p>\n","summary":"An employment background check contains whatever the employer ordered rather than a standard national file: usually criminal court records, employment and education verification, and sometimes a credit report, a driving record, or a drug screen. Federal law caps most adverse items at seven years, lifts that cap for jobs paying $75,000 or more, and never applied it to convictions. Credit scores, sealed records, medical and genetic information, and salary history in 22 states stay out.","publishedAt":"2026-07-20T16:33:12.965","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","editorialStatus":"APPROVED","lastReviewedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","nextReviewDueAt":"2026-10-20T00:00:00","templateVersion":"v2","aliases":["What do employers see on a background check?","What comes up on an employment background check?","How far back does a background check go?","Does a background check show my credit score?","Do expunged records show up on a background check?","Do arrests show up on an employment background check?","What does a pre-employment background check include?","Can employers see salary history on a background check?","What can't employers see on a background check?","FCRA seven-year rule for employment background checks","Does a background check show drug test results?","What is on an employment screening report?"],"confidenceScore":91,"confidenceLabel":"High","canonicalUrl":null},"contributor":{"id":"ec39deab-44fe-48d8-9029-fefe993ab85a","slug":"answer-stack","displayName":"AnswerStack","websiteUrl":null},"contributorOrganizationProfile":{"entityId":"ec39deab-44fe-48d8-9029-fefe993ab85a","legalName":null,"description":null,"websiteUrl":null,"imageUrl":null,"slogan":null,"subtitle":null,"facts":[],"coiNote":null,"foundingDate":null,"numberOfEmployeesText":null,"contactPoint":null,"address":null,"headquartersText":null,"organizationType":null},"contributorPerson":{"slug":"answerstack-editorial-team","displayName":"AnswerStack Editorial Team"},"sections":[{"id":"38527191-51be-4fd5-b5f1-75a380ef9729","sectionKey":"what_it_covers","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"What does an employment background check actually cover?","introMarkdown":"An employment background check is a consumer report that an employer buys from a third party screening company, and what it contains depends on the package that employer ordered.[1][2] There is no single national file that gets pulled on everyone. A typical pre-hire package searches criminal court records in the counties and states tied to your address history, verifies the employers and dates on your resume, confirms a degree or a professional license, and runs a Social Security number trace to find the names and addresses associated with your number.[2][14] Employers hiring for roles that involve money, driving, or safety often add a credit report, a motor vehicle record, or a drug and alcohol screen on top of that.[4][14]\n\n### The law that governs the process\n\nThe Fair Credit Reporting Act applies any time an employer uses a company in the business of compiling background information, which covers essentially every commercial screening vendor.[1][2] Before ordering the report, the employer must tell you in writing, in a standalone document that is not part of the job application, that it may use a consumer report for employment decisions, and it must get your written permission.[1] The employer also has to certify to the screening company that it followed those steps and will not misuse the information under federal or state equal opportunity law.[1]\n\n### What happens if something in the report costs you the job\n\nBefore rejecting you, the employer has to give you a copy of the report it relied on plus a copy of A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which exists so you can read the file and flag errors while the decision is still open.[1][14] After the decision, you get a second notice naming the screening company, stating that the company did not make the decision and cannot explain it, and describing your right to dispute the accuracy of the information and to request a free copy of your report within 60 days.[1] Those two notices are the practical reason to read the report line by line instead of assuming the employer already checked it.\n\n### Where the boundaries come from\n\nMore than one body of law shapes the contents. The FCRA sets reporting time limits and procedural duties for the screening company,[3] while federal antidiscrimination law enforced by the EEOC governs how an employer may use what it learns.[2] State and local statutes sit on top of both and are often stricter, deciding whether a credit report, an arrest record, or a salary history question is permitted at all.[9][10][13] None of this is legal advice.","introHtml":"<p>An employment background check is a consumer report that an employer buys from a third party screening company, and what it contains depends on the package that employer ordered.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a><a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a> There is no single national file that gets pulled on everyone. A typical pre-hire package searches criminal court records in the counties and states tied to your address history, verifies the employers and dates on your resume, confirms a degree or a professional license, and runs a Social Security number trace to find the names and addresses associated with your number.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> Employers hiring for roles that involve money, driving, or safety often add a credit report, a motor vehicle record, or a drug and alcohol screen on top of that.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/when-i-apply-for-a-job-what-do-employers-see-when-they-do-a-credit-check-for-employment-and-a-background-check-en-1823/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[4]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a></p>\n<h3>The law that governs the process</h3>\n<p>The Fair Credit Reporting Act applies any time an employer uses a company in the business of compiling background information, which covers essentially every commercial screening vendor.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a><a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a> Before ordering the report, the employer must tell you in writing, in a standalone document that is not part of the job application, that it may use a consumer report for employment decisions, and it must get your written permission.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a> The employer also has to certify to the screening company that it followed those steps and will not misuse the information under federal or state equal opportunity law.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a></p>\n<h3>What happens if something in the report costs you the job</h3>\n<p>Before rejecting you, the employer has to give you a copy of the report it relied on plus a copy of A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which exists so you can read the file and flag errors while the decision is still open.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> After the decision, you get a second notice naming the screening company, stating that the company did not make the decision and cannot explain it, and describing your right to dispute the accuracy of the information and to request a free copy of your report within 60 days.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a> Those two notices are the practical reason to read the report line by line instead of assuming the employer already checked it.</p>\n<h3>Where the boundaries come from</h3>\n<p>More than one body of law shapes the contents. The FCRA sets reporting time limits and procedural duties for the screening company,<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a> while federal antidiscrimination law enforced by the EEOC governs how an employer may use what it learns.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a> State and local statutes sit on top of both and are often stricter, deciding whether a credit report, an arrest record, or a salary history question is permitted at all.<a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=1786.18\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[9]</a><a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=LAB&amp;sectionNum=1024.5\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"10\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[10]</a><a href=\"https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[13]</a> None of this is legal advice.</p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":10},{"id":"9dba0496-f2e3-4d78-a62c-7f2dfab456a3","sectionKey":"at_a_glance","sectionType":"table_section","heading":"What usually appears, and what usually does not","introMarkdown":"Use this as the quick scan. Each row is explained in the sections that follow, because the caveats are where most of the confusion lives.","introHtml":"<p>Use this as the quick scan. Each row is explained in the sections that follow, because the caveats are where most of the confusion lives.</p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{"rows":[{"cells":["Criminal convictions from county and state courts","Usually yes","No federal time limit on convictions, but several states cap them at seven years [3][9]"]},{"cells":["Arrests that did not lead to a conviction","Sometimes","Cut off at seven years federally; California bars them once it is known no conviction resulted [3][9]"]},{"cells":["Employment dates and job titles","Usually yes","Confirmed with the employer or a payroll database, not read off your resume [14]"]},{"cells":["Degrees and professional licenses","Usually yes","Confirmed with the school or the issuing board [14]"]},{"cells":["Credit report","Only if ordered","Modified version with no credit score; restricted to listed job types in California and limited in about ten states [5][10]"]},{"cells":["Motor vehicle record","Only for driving roles","Pulled from the state licensing agency, separate from the credit file [14]"]},{"cells":["Drug and alcohol screen results","Only if ordered","A separate collection and lab process with its own consent form [14]"]},{"cells":["Salary history","No, across much of the country","22 states plus the District of Columbia and 24 localities ban the question [13]"]},{"cells":["Medical and genetic information","No","Medical questions and exams are barred until after a conditional offer; genetic information is off limits under GINA [2]"]},{"cells":["Sealed or expunged records","Generally no","Removed from public court access, so a records search should not surface them [8][9]"]}],"columns":["Item","On the report?","Main limit or caveat"]},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":20},{"id":"265b8e8b-4596-40d8-8ab4-5aa250a0b7c4","sectionKey":"criminal_records","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"What criminal record information shows up?","introMarkdown":"Criminal history on an employment report comes out of court records, and the search is only as complete as the jurisdictions the employer paid to check.[2][14] Most packages pair a search of the county and state courts tied to your address history with a scan of a commercial multistate database, then confirm any database hit at the courthouse before reporting it, because that database is only an aggregation of records individual states and counties chose to publish.\n\n### Convictions and arrests are treated differently\n\nA conviction carries no federal reporting deadline. The FCRA's catchall for stale adverse information expressly excludes records of criminal convictions, so a conviction from twenty years ago can still be reported under federal law.[3] Records of arrest sit under the seven year bar instead, and the EEOC has long held that the fact of an arrest does not establish that criminal conduct occurred, which makes an exclusion based on an arrest alone hard to defend as job related and consistent with business necessity.[3][6] An employer may still act on the conduct underlying an arrest when that conduct makes someone unfit for the specific position.[6]\n\n### Where state law is stricter\n\nCalifornia's Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act bars reporting any arrest, indictment, misdemeanor complaint, or conviction that is more than seven years old measured from the date of disposition, release, or parole, and it carries no $75,000 salary exception at all.[9] The same statute requires a screening agency to verify any public record item for accuracy within the 30 days before the report goes out, and it forbids continued reporting once the agency learns that a full pardon was granted or that an arrest produced no conviction.[9] Several other states apply their own seven year caps, which is why the same candidate can generate two different reports depending on where the job sits.\n\n### When the employer is allowed to ask\n\nBan the box and fair chance rules control timing rather than content. 37 states, the District of Columbia, and more than 150 cities and counties have adopted a fair chance policy, and 15 states extend the conviction-question ban to private employers, which in practice moves the criminal history inquiry off the application and later into the process.[11] At the federal level, the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 prohibits federal agencies and contractors acting on their behalf from requesting criminal history before a conditional offer, with exceptions for positions requiring eligibility for access to classified information and for sensitive national security or federal law enforcement duties.[12] The Office of Personnel Management rules implementing it sit at 5 CFR Part 920.[12]","introHtml":"<p>Criminal history on an employment report comes out of court records, and the search is only as complete as the jurisdictions the employer paid to check.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> Most packages pair a search of the county and state courts tied to your address history with a scan of a commercial multistate database, then confirm any database hit at the courthouse before reporting it, because that database is only an aggregation of records individual states and counties chose to publish.</p>\n<h3>Convictions and arrests are treated differently</h3>\n<p>A conviction carries no federal reporting deadline. The FCRA&#39;s catchall for stale adverse information expressly excludes records of criminal convictions, so a conviction from twenty years ago can still be reported under federal law.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a> Records of arrest sit under the seven year bar instead, and the EEOC has long held that the fact of an arrest does not establish that criminal conduct occurred, which makes an exclusion based on an arrest alone hard to defend as job related and consistent with business necessity.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a><a href=\"https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[6]</a> An employer may still act on the conduct underlying an arrest when that conduct makes someone unfit for the specific position.<a href=\"https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[6]</a></p>\n<h3>Where state law is stricter</h3>\n<p>California&#39;s Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act bars reporting any arrest, indictment, misdemeanor complaint, or conviction that is more than seven years old measured from the date of disposition, release, or parole, and it carries no $75,000 salary exception at all.<a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=1786.18\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[9]</a> The same statute requires a screening agency to verify any public record item for accuracy within the 30 days before the report goes out, and it forbids continued reporting once the agency learns that a full pardon was granted or that an arrest produced no conviction.<a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=1786.18\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[9]</a> Several other states apply their own seven year caps, which is why the same candidate can generate two different reports depending on where the job sits.</p>\n<h3>When the employer is allowed to ask</h3>\n<p>Ban the box and fair chance rules control timing rather than content. 37 states, the District of Columbia, and more than 150 cities and counties have adopted a fair chance policy, and 15 states extend the conviction-question ban to private employers, which in practice moves the criminal history inquiry off the application and later into the process.<a href=\"https://www.nelp.org/insights-research/ban-the-box-fair-chance-hiring-state-and-local-guide/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"11\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[11]</a> At the federal level, the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 prohibits federal agencies and contractors acting on their behalf from requesting criminal history before a conditional offer, with exceptions for positions requiring eligibility for access to classified information and for sensitive national security or federal law enforcement duties.<a href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/about/careers-at-treasury/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act-fact-sheet\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"12\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[12]</a> The Office of Personnel Management rules implementing it sit at 5 CFR Part 920.<a href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/about/careers-at-treasury/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act-fact-sheet\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"12\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[12]</a></p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":30},{"id":"ac0c7ab2-87c2-408a-ad47-41e00be08acb","sectionKey":"verifications","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"What does a background check confirm about your work and education history?","introMarkdown":"Verification checks go to the source rather than reading what you wrote on the resume.[2][14] An employment verification contacts each former employer or a payroll database to confirm job titles and start and end dates. Many large employers answer with dates and title only as a matter of policy, which is why a verification often comes back thinner than candidates expect and why a discrepancy in a title is more likely to stall an offer than a weak reference. Education verification goes to the registrar or a clearinghouse for the degree, the field, and the completion date. Professional license verification goes to the issuing board and returns current status along with any public discipline.[14]\n\n### What a verification does not settle\n\nA verification confirms that you held the role, not how well you performed in it. Conversations about performance are a separate product, and when a screening firm gathers information through personal interviews about someone's character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or lifestyle, the FCRA reclassifies that report as an investigative consumer report and adds a disclosure step: you must be told you have the right to a description of the nature and scope of the investigation.[1][2]\n\n### Identity and address history\n\nMost packages open with a Social Security number trace that returns the names and addresses associated with your number. The trace is not itself a finding of fraud; it tells the screening firm which counties to search and which former names to search under. Mismatches at this stage are a common source of records that belong to someone else, so the pre-adverse-action copy of the report is worth checking against your own address history.[1]","introHtml":"<p>Verification checks go to the source rather than reading what you wrote on the resume.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> An employment verification contacts each former employer or a payroll database to confirm job titles and start and end dates. Many large employers answer with dates and title only as a matter of policy, which is why a verification often comes back thinner than candidates expect and why a discrepancy in a title is more likely to stall an offer than a weak reference. Education verification goes to the registrar or a clearinghouse for the degree, the field, and the completion date. Professional license verification goes to the issuing board and returns current status along with any public discipline.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a></p>\n<h3>What a verification does not settle</h3>\n<p>A verification confirms that you held the role, not how well you performed in it. Conversations about performance are a separate product, and when a screening firm gathers information through personal interviews about someone&#39;s character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or lifestyle, the FCRA reclassifies that report as an investigative consumer report and adds a disclosure step: you must be told you have the right to a description of the nature and scope of the investigation.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a><a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a></p>\n<h3>Identity and address history</h3>\n<p>Most packages open with a Social Security number trace that returns the names and addresses associated with your number. The trace is not itself a finding of fraud; it tells the screening firm which counties to search and which former names to search under. Mismatches at this stage are a common source of records that belong to someone else, so the pre-adverse-action copy of the report is worth checking against your own address history.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a></p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":40},{"id":"d436f19d-882f-4577-8f16-7295d40ed291","sectionKey":"credit_driving_medical","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"What about credit reports, driving records, drug tests, and medical information?","introMarkdown":"Each of these is a separate product with its own rules, and none of them rides along automatically with a criminal search.[4][14]\n\n### An employment credit report is not the credit report a lender sees\n\nEmployers who pull credit receive a modified file. The version prepared for employment purposes leaves out your credit score, your date of birth, and your income, while showing identifying information, account balances, payment history, accounts in collections, and bankruptcies.[5] The pull is recorded as a soft inquiry and does not affect your score.[5] Access is restricted by state as well: California permits an employer credit report only for a defined list of positions, including managerial roles, sworn peace officers, jobs with signature or money-transfer authority over company accounts, jobs with regular access to $10,000 or more in cash during the workday, and jobs with access to trade secrets.[10] About ten states and several large cities apply comparable restrictions.[5]\n\n### Driving records\n\nA motor vehicle record comes from the state licensing agency rather than from the credit file, and employers order it for roles that involve operating a vehicle.[14] It reports license status, class and endorsements, and moving violations according to the retention rules of the issuing state, which vary and are not set by the FCRA's seven year clock.\n\n### Drug screening and medical questions\n\nA drug and alcohol screen is a separate collection and laboratory process with its own consent form, so a result does not appear inside the credit or court sections of a report.[14] Medical information is the most restricted category of all. An employer may not ask medical questions or require a medical examination before making a conditional job offer, and except in rare circumstances it may not seek genetic information, which includes family medical history, under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.[2]","introHtml":"<p>Each of these is a separate product with its own rules, and none of them rides along automatically with a criminal search.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/when-i-apply-for-a-job-what-do-employers-see-when-they-do-a-credit-check-for-employment-and-a-background-check-en-1823/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[4]</a><a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a></p>\n<h3>An employment credit report is not the credit report a lender sees</h3>\n<p>Employers who pull credit receive a modified file. The version prepared for employment purposes leaves out your credit score, your date of birth, and your income, while showing identifying information, account balances, payment history, accounts in collections, and bankruptcies.<a href=\"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[5]</a> The pull is recorded as a soft inquiry and does not affect your score.<a href=\"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[5]</a> Access is restricted by state as well: California permits an employer credit report only for a defined list of positions, including managerial roles, sworn peace officers, jobs with signature or money-transfer authority over company accounts, jobs with regular access to $10,000 or more in cash during the workday, and jobs with access to trade secrets.<a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=LAB&amp;sectionNum=1024.5\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"10\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[10]</a> About ten states and several large cities apply comparable restrictions.<a href=\"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[5]</a></p>\n<h3>Driving records</h3>\n<p>A motor vehicle record comes from the state licensing agency rather than from the credit file, and employers order it for roles that involve operating a vehicle.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> It reports license status, class and endorsements, and moving violations according to the retention rules of the issuing state, which vary and are not set by the FCRA&#39;s seven year clock.</p>\n<h3>Drug screening and medical questions</h3>\n<p>A drug and alcohol screen is a separate collection and laboratory process with its own consent form, so a result does not appear inside the credit or court sections of a report.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> Medical information is the most restricted category of all. An employer may not ask medical questions or require a medical examination before making a conditional job offer, and except in rare circumstances it may not seek genetic information, which includes family medical history, under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a></p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":50},{"id":"d9baea47-1cf8-4e54-9f5d-61f82ebf6595","sectionKey":"what_does_not_show_up","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"What does not show up on an employment background check?","introMarkdown":"Credit scores, sealed and expunged records, most adverse items older than seven years, salary history across much of the country, and anything medical or genetic are the main omissions.\n\n### Your credit score\n\nEmployers do not see it. The file prepared for employment purposes omits the score along with your date of birth and your income, so a hiring manager can see that an account went to collections but cannot see a three digit number summarizing your credit.[5]\n\n### Sealed and expunged records\n\nCourts that seal or expunge a record remove it from public access, so a court records search should not return it. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said in a January 2024 advisory opinion that a screening agency reporting expunged, sealed, or otherwise legally restricted records was not using reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy, then withdrew that opinion along with 66 other guidance documents applicable as of May 12, 2025.[8] The accuracy duty written into the FCRA itself did not change, so the practical effect is that this kind of error now gets resolved through disputes and private litigation instead of through published bureau guidance.\n\n### Most old adverse items\n\nBankruptcies come off after ten years. Civil suits, civil judgments, records of arrest, paid tax liens, collection accounts, and any other adverse item come off after seven, with criminal convictions carved out of that last category.[3]\n\n### Salary history across much of the country\n\n22 states plus the District of Columbia and 24 localities prohibit employers from asking applicants about pay history, and Virginia's statewide law takes effect July 1, 2026.[13] Several of those laws go further than the question itself and bar an employer from relying on prior pay to set a new salary even when the applicant volunteers the number, which is the rule in California.[13]\n\n### Protected characteristics\n\nA compliant report does not identify race, religion, marital status, or family medical history, and using background information of any kind to treat applicants differently on those bases violates federal antidiscrimination law regardless of how the employer obtained it. The same rule reaches the decision to run a check at all, because screening only some applicants based on race or national origin is itself evidence of discrimination.[2]","introHtml":"<p>Credit scores, sealed and expunged records, most adverse items older than seven years, salary history across much of the country, and anything medical or genetic are the main omissions.</p>\n<h3>Your credit score</h3>\n<p>Employers do not see it. The file prepared for employment purposes omits the score along with your date of birth and your income, so a hiring manager can see that an account went to collections but cannot see a three digit number summarizing your credit.<a href=\"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[5]</a></p>\n<h3>Sealed and expunged records</h3>\n<p>Courts that seal or expunge a record remove it from public access, so a court records search should not return it. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said in a January 2024 advisory opinion that a screening agency reporting expunged, sealed, or otherwise legally restricted records was not using reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy, then withdrew that opinion along with 66 other guidance documents applicable as of May 12, 2025.<a href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/05/12/2025-08286/withdrawal-of-guidance\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[8]</a> The accuracy duty written into the FCRA itself did not change, so the practical effect is that this kind of error now gets resolved through disputes and private litigation instead of through published bureau guidance.</p>\n<h3>Most old adverse items</h3>\n<p>Bankruptcies come off after ten years. Civil suits, civil judgments, records of arrest, paid tax liens, collection accounts, and any other adverse item come off after seven, with criminal convictions carved out of that last category.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a></p>\n<h3>Salary history across much of the country</h3>\n<p>22 states plus the District of Columbia and 24 localities prohibit employers from asking applicants about pay history, and Virginia&#39;s statewide law takes effect July 1, 2026.<a href=\"https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[13]</a> Several of those laws go further than the question itself and bar an employer from relying on prior pay to set a new salary even when the applicant volunteers the number, which is the rule in California.<a href=\"https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[13]</a></p>\n<h3>Protected characteristics</h3>\n<p>A compliant report does not identify race, religion, marital status, or family medical history, and using background information of any kind to treat applicants differently on those bases violates federal antidiscrimination law regardless of how the employer obtained it. The same rule reaches the decision to run a check at all, because screening only some applicants based on race or national origin is itself evidence of discrimination.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[2]</a></p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":60},{"id":"5bb81fd5-7beb-4cea-ac4b-4fff67e5474c","sectionKey":"how_far_back","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"How far back does an employment background check go?","introMarkdown":"Seven years is the federal default for most adverse information, ten years for bankruptcies, and no limit at all for criminal convictions.[3]\n\n### The seven year rule\n\nSection 605 of the FCRA prohibits a consumer reporting agency from including bankruptcies older than ten years; civil suits, civil judgments, and records of arrest older than seven years or the governing statute of limitations, whichever period is longer; paid tax liens more than seven years past payment; collection accounts older than seven years; and any other adverse item older than seven years apart from records of convictions of crimes.[3]\n\n### The $75,000 salary exception\n\nThose limits do not apply when the report is used in connection with employment at an annual salary that equals, or may reasonably be expected to equal, $75,000 or more.[3] The threshold has never been indexed for inflation, so it now covers a large share of professional roles, and a candidate for a $90,000 job can see a ten year old civil judgment on the report where a candidate for a $60,000 job would not.\n\n### State law can shorten the window\n\nCalifornia drops the salary exception entirely for investigative consumer reports. The only exemptions there are life insurance underwriting involving $250,000 or more and employers that a government regulatory agency explicitly requires to check for the otherwise restricted records.[9] California also added medical debt to its list of items that may never be reported, effective January 1, 2025.[9] Because state rules stack on top of the federal ones, a lookback period that is correct in Texas can be wrong in California for the same candidate and the same job.","introHtml":"<p>Seven years is the federal default for most adverse information, ten years for bankruptcies, and no limit at all for criminal convictions.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a></p>\n<h3>The seven year rule</h3>\n<p>Section 605 of the FCRA prohibits a consumer reporting agency from including bankruptcies older than ten years; civil suits, civil judgments, and records of arrest older than seven years or the governing statute of limitations, whichever period is longer; paid tax liens more than seven years past payment; collection accounts older than seven years; and any other adverse item older than seven years apart from records of convictions of crimes.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a></p>\n<h3>The $75,000 salary exception</h3>\n<p>Those limits do not apply when the report is used in connection with employment at an annual salary that equals, or may reasonably be expected to equal, $75,000 or more.<a href=\"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[3]</a> The threshold has never been indexed for inflation, so it now covers a large share of professional roles, and a candidate for a $90,000 job can see a ten year old civil judgment on the report where a candidate for a $60,000 job would not.</p>\n<h3>State law can shorten the window</h3>\n<p>California drops the salary exception entirely for investigative consumer reports. The only exemptions there are life insurance underwriting involving $250,000 or more and employers that a government regulatory agency explicitly requires to check for the otherwise restricted records.<a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=1786.18\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[9]</a> California also added medical debt to its list of items that may never be reported, effective January 1, 2025.<a href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=1786.18\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[9]</a> Because state rules stack on top of the federal ones, a lookback period that is correct in Texas can be wrong in California for the same candidate and the same job.</p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":70},{"id":"c304cde1-d95d-4c0a-ac59-94e96e8389db","sectionKey":"contributor_perspective","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"How this answer was researched","introMarkdown":"This answer was built from primary legal sources rather than from screening vendor marketing. The statutory text comes from Section 605 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act as codified at 15 U.S.C. 1681c. The procedural requirements come from the Federal Trade Commission's guidance for employers and from the joint FTC and EEOC publication on background checks. State examples come from the California codes as published by the state legislature, chosen because California is both stricter than the federal floor and widely copied. The regulatory status notes reflect what actually changed in 2025 and 2026, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's withdrawal of its background screening advisory opinion and the Justice Department's June 2026 opinion on the EEOC's disparate impact guidelines. Screening practice still varies by vendor, state, and role, and nothing here is legal advice. If you run a screening program, represent candidates in disputes, or work inside a consumer reporting agency and can show that something here is out of date in your jurisdiction, send a correction with a citation and it will be reflected at the next review.","introHtml":"<p>This answer was built from primary legal sources rather than from screening vendor marketing. The statutory text comes from Section 605 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act as codified at 15 U.S.C. 1681c. The procedural requirements come from the Federal Trade Commission&#39;s guidance for employers and from the joint FTC and EEOC publication on background checks. State examples come from the California codes as published by the state legislature, chosen because California is both stricter than the federal floor and widely copied. The regulatory status notes reflect what actually changed in 2025 and 2026, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau&#39;s withdrawal of its background screening advisory opinion and the Justice Department&#39;s June 2026 opinion on the EEOC&#39;s disparate impact guidelines. Screening practice still varies by vendor, state, and role, and nothing here is legal advice. If you run a screening program, represent candidates in disputes, or work inside a consumer reporting agency and can show that something here is out of date in your jurisdiction, send a correction with a citation and it will be reflected at the next review.</p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":"This answer was written and reviewed by the AnswerStack Editorial Team, which has no commercial stake in the products, companies, or methods discussed. Every claim is cited inline and verified on the dates shown.","noteHtml":"<p>This answer was written and reviewed by the AnswerStack Editorial Team, which has no commercial stake in the products, companies, or methods discussed. Every claim is cited inline and verified on the dates shown.</p>\n","sortOrder":80},{"id":"9844548c-6685-461b-9264-2b58a043297c","sectionKey":"what_it_is_not","sectionType":"markdown_section","heading":"What an employment background check is not","introMarkdown":"### It is not a search of one national database\n\nNo comprehensive national criminal database exists for private employers to query. Commercial multistate products are aggregations of whatever records individual states and counties make available, which is why a hit still has to be confirmed at the courthouse and why a gap in coverage can produce a clean report that is not actually clean.[14]\n\n### It is not an FBI record check or a suitability determination\n\nFingerprint based federal checks and suitability determinations run on a separate track, generally for government positions, licensed occupations, and roles that require access to classified information.[6][12] A commercial pre-employment report does not reach those systems.\n\n### It is not a performance review\n\nVerification establishes dates, titles, degrees, and license status.[14] Any judgment about how you did the work comes from references, and a reference product built on personal interviews is an investigative consumer report carrying extra disclosure duties.[1]\n\n### It is not a fixed set of rules\n\nTwo federal changes are recent enough that a lot of the published advice on this topic is now out of date. The CFPB withdrew both its January 2024 background screening advisory opinion and Circular 2024-06 on background dossiers and algorithmic worker scores, applicable as of May 12, 2025.[8] In June 2026 the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion to the EEOC concluding that the agency's disparate impact guidelines are unconstitutional, which changes federal enforcement posture toward criminal history screens; the EEOC's 2012 enforcement guidance remains posted and private plaintiffs can still bring Title VII claims in court.[6][7] State and local fair chance and salary history laws are untouched by either change.[11][13]\n\n### It is not legal advice\n\nRequirements differ by state, city, industry, and job. Treat the federal rules described here as the floor, then check the law of the jurisdiction where the job sits before you build a screening policy or challenge a report.","introHtml":"<h3>It is not a search of one national database</h3>\n<p>No comprehensive national criminal database exists for private employers to query. Commercial multistate products are aggregations of whatever records individual states and counties make available, which is why a hit still has to be confirmed at the courthouse and why a gap in coverage can produce a clean report that is not actually clean.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a></p>\n<h3>It is not an FBI record check or a suitability determination</h3>\n<p>Fingerprint based federal checks and suitability determinations run on a separate track, generally for government positions, licensed occupations, and roles that require access to classified information.<a href=\"https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[6]</a><a href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/about/careers-at-treasury/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act-fact-sheet\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"12\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[12]</a> A commercial pre-employment report does not reach those systems.</p>\n<h3>It is not a performance review</h3>\n<p>Verification establishes dates, titles, degrees, and license status.<a href=\"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"14\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[14]</a> Any judgment about how you did the work comes from references, and a reference product built on personal interviews is an investigative consumer report carrying extra disclosure duties.<a href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[1]</a></p>\n<h3>It is not a fixed set of rules</h3>\n<p>Two federal changes are recent enough that a lot of the published advice on this topic is now out of date. The CFPB withdrew both its January 2024 background screening advisory opinion and Circular 2024-06 on background dossiers and algorithmic worker scores, applicable as of May 12, 2025.<a href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/05/12/2025-08286/withdrawal-of-guidance\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[8]</a> In June 2026 the Justice Department&#39;s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion to the EEOC concluding that the agency&#39;s disparate impact guidelines are unconstitutional, which changes federal enforcement posture toward criminal history screens; the EEOC&#39;s 2012 enforcement guidance remains posted and private plaintiffs can still bring Title VII claims in court.<a href=\"https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[6]</a><a href=\"https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-concludes-eeoc-disparate-impact-guidelines-violate-constitution\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[7]</a> State and local fair chance and salary history laws are untouched by either change.<a href=\"https://www.nelp.org/insights-research/ban-the-box-fair-chance-hiring-state-and-local-guide/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"11\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[11]</a><a href=\"https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/\" class=\"citation-ref\" data-citation-index=\"13\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\">[13]</a></p>\n<h3>It is not legal advice</h3>\n<p>Requirements differ by state, city, industry, and job. Treat the federal rules described here as the floor, then check the law of the jurisdiction where the job sits before you build a screening policy or challenge a report.</p>\n","outroMarkdown":null,"outroHtml":null,"contentJson":{},"configJson":{},"noteMarkdown":null,"noteHtml":null,"sortOrder":90}],"citations":[{"title":"Using Consumer Reports: What Employers Need to Know","url":"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know","excerpt":"This notice must be in writing and in a stand-alone format. The notice cannot be in an employment application.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"FCRA duties before ordering a report, standalone written disclosure and written permission, employer certification, pre-adverse-action copy of the report and summary of rights, adverse action notice contents and the 60 day free report, investigative consumer report disclosure.","domain":"ftc.gov","publisherName":"Federal Trade Commission"},{"title":"Background Checks: What Employers Need to Know (joint EEOC and FTC publication)","url":"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know","excerpt":"Don't ask any medical questions before a conditional job offer has been made.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"Categories of background information employers seek, application of federal antidiscrimination law to any background information regardless of source, ban on medical questions before a conditional offer, GINA limits on genetic information, disparate impact framing for criminal record screens.","domain":"ftc.gov","publisherName":"Federal Trade Commission and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission"},{"title":"15 U.S. Code 1681c: Requirements relating to information contained in consumer reports","url":"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c","excerpt":"Any other adverse item of information, other than records of convictions of crimes which antedates the report by more than seven years.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"Ten year bankruptcy limit; seven year limits on civil suits, civil judgments, arrest records, paid tax liens and collections; the catchall exclusion of records of convictions of crimes; the exemption for employment at an annual salary of $75,000 or more and for credit and life insurance at $150,000 ","domain":"law.cornell.edu","publisherName":"Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute"},{"title":"When I apply for a job, what do employers see when they do a credit check for employment and a background check?","url":"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/when-i-apply-for-a-job-what-do-employers-see-when-they-do-a-credit-check-for-employment-and-a-background-check-en-1823/","excerpt":"Employment reports often include credit checks, criminal background checks, public records such as bankruptcy filings and other court documents, and information related to your employment history.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"Employment reports commonly include credit checks, criminal background checks, public records such as bankruptcy filings, and employment history; hundreds of companies qualify as consumer reporting agencies; written permission and adverse action notice requirements.","domain":"consumerfinance.gov","publisherName":"Consumer Financial Protection Bureau"},{"title":"Why Do Employers Check Credit?","url":"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/","excerpt":"Employers are never able to see your credit score. ... It's not something a potential employer would use to make a hiring decision and is not included in the modified credit report that they see.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"INDEPENDENT","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"Employment credit reports omit the credit score, date of birth, marital status and income while showing accounts, balances, payment history and bankruptcies; the pull is a soft inquiry; roughly ten states plus New York City, Chicago and Philadelphia restrict employment credit checks.","domain":"experian.com","publisherName":"Experian"},{"title":"Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions Under Title VII","url":"https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions","excerpt":"The fact of an arrest does not establish that criminal conduct has occurred, and an exclusion based on an arrest, in itself, is not job related and consistent with business necessity.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"An arrest by itself does not establish that criminal conduct occurred and is not job related and consistent with business necessity; an employer may act on the conduct underlying an arrest; disparate treatment and disparate impact framework; document still posted as of the verification date.","domain":"eeoc.gov","publisherName":"U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission"},{"title":"Justice Department Concludes EEOC Disparate-Impact Guidelines Violate the Constitution","url":"https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-concludes-eeoc-disparate-impact-guidelines-violate-constitution","excerpt":"businesses can use hiring practices that are generally related to job performance, such as aptitude tests, knowledge-based tests, criminal-background checks, and SAT scores","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"June 9, 2026 Office of Legal Counsel opinion to the EEOC on disparate impact liability under Title VII, implementing Executive Order 14281, and its explicit reference to criminal background checks as a hiring practice.","domain":"justice.gov","publisherName":"U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs"},{"title":"Interpretive Rules, Policy Statements, and Advisory Opinions; Withdrawal (90 FR 20084)","url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/05/12/2025-08286/withdrawal-of-guidance","excerpt":"4. Fair Credit Reporting; Background Screening, 89 FR 4171 (January 23, 2024).","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"Withdrawal applicable May 12, 2025 of the January 23, 2024 Fair Credit Reporting; Background Screening advisory opinion (89 FR 4171) and of Consumer Financial Protection Circular 2024-06 on background dossiers and algorithmic scores, among 67 guidance items.","domain":"federalregister.gov","publisherName":"Consumer Financial Protection Bureau via the Federal Register"},{"title":"California Civil Code Section 1786.18 (Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act)","url":"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=1786.18","excerpt":"Records of arrest, indictment, information, misdemeanor complaint, or conviction of a crime that, from the date of disposition, release, or parole, antedate the report by more than seven years.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"Seven year cap on arrests, indictments, misdemeanor complaints and convictions measured from disposition, release or parole; no $75,000 employment salary exception; 30 day accuracy verification for public record items; prohibition on reporting pardoned convictions or arrests with no conviction; medi","domain":"leginfo.legislature.ca.gov","publisherName":"California Legislative Information"},{"title":"California Labor Code Section 1024.5 (employer use of consumer credit reports)","url":"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=LAB&sectionNum=1024.5","excerpt":"An employer or prospective employer shall not use a consumer credit report for employment purposes unless the position of the person for whom the report is sought is any of the following.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"The closed list of positions for which a California employer may use a consumer credit report, including managerial positions, sworn peace officers, signature and money transfer authority, regular access to $10,000 or more in cash during the workday, and access to trade secrets.","domain":"leginfo.legislature.ca.gov","publisherName":"California Legislative Information"},{"title":"Ban the Box: U.S. Cities, Counties, and States Adopt Fair Hiring Policies","url":"https://www.nelp.org/insights-research/ban-the-box-fair-chance-hiring-state-and-local-guide/","excerpt":"Nationwide, 37 states and over 150 cities and counties have adopted what is widely known as 'ban the box.'","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"INDEPENDENT","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"37 states, the District of Columbia and more than 150 cities and counties have adopted fair chance policies; 15 states extend the conviction question ban to private employers; more than four fifths of the U.S. population lives in a covered jurisdiction.","domain":"nelp.org","publisherName":"National Employment Law Project"},{"title":"The Fair Chance to Compete Act Fact Sheet","url":"https://home.treasury.gov/about/careers-at-treasury/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act/the-fair-chance-to-compete-act-fact-sheet","excerpt":"an agency employee may not request, in oral or written form, that an applicant for an appointment to a position in the civil service disclose criminal history record information before the appointing authority extends a conditional offer","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"PRIMARY","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"The Fair Chance Act bars requesting criminal history record information before a conditional offer of federal employment; OPM final regulations at 5 CFR Part 920; statutory exceptions at 5 U.S.C. 9202(c) for classified access, sensitive national security duties and federal law enforcement positions.","domain":"home.treasury.gov","publisherName":"U.S. Department of the Treasury"},{"title":"Salary history bans: a running list of states and localities that have outlawed pay history questions","url":"https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/","excerpt":"State-wide Bans: 22. Local Bans: 24.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"INDEPENDENT","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"22 statewide salary history bans and 24 local bans as tracked on April 28, 2026; California's ban on both asking and using pay history; Virginia's statewide law effective July 1, 2026.","domain":"hrdive.com","publisherName":"HR Dive"},{"title":"Applying for a job? It's important to know what goes into your background screening reports","url":"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/","excerpt":"Background screening companies provide an array of verification information such as credit history, employment, salary, and education and professional license verification to employers and others.","quoteText":null,"sourceRole":"SUPPORTING","verifiedAt":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","supportsText":"The range of products screening companies sell: credit history, employment, salary, education and professional license verification, criminal arrest and conviction information, driving records, and drug and alcohol testing and health screening. Marked as archived CFPB content.","domain":"consumerfinance.gov","publisherName":"Consumer Financial Protection Bureau"}],"revisions":[],"relatedAnswers":[{"id":"72492b35-0af1-4a64-9156-e4f70d3a5618","slug":"ai-resume-screening-software-actually-work","question":"Does AI resume screening software actually work, and is it worth it (bias, accuracy)?","publishedAt":"2026-07-21T21:20:44.609","confidenceScore":82,"confidenceLabel":"High","industry":{"id":"e1a1da3c-52a8-4e99-88ad-d08ef17d7c3f","slug":"hr-technology","label":"HR Technology","description":"ATS, HRIS, payroll, and workforce management"},"topic":{"slug":"candidate-screening-assessment","label":"Candidate Screening & Assessment","description":"Background Checks, Pre-Employment Testing, Reference Checks, Skills Assessment","schemaKind":null},"contributor":{"id":"ec39deab-44fe-48d8-9029-fefe993ab85a","slug":"answer-stack","displayName":"AnswerStack","websiteUrl":null},"snippet":"Independent audits find language-model resume rankers favor some demographic groups on otherwise identical resumes. The deeper issue is what these tools are trained to predict, usually a past hiring decision rather than job performance, so a high accuracy score can mean only that the model agrees with last year's recruiters. AI screening holds up on high-volume roles with concrete requirements, used to rank rather than reject, with human review and monitored adverse impact.","url":"/q/ai-resume-screening-software-actually-work"},{"id":"8b7d74e4-7ae0-4d1e-8cff-6b3dcda9e3d4","slug":"candidates-cheat-on-online-skills-assessments-and-does-proctoring","question":"Do candidates cheat on online skills assessments, and does proctoring / anti-cheat actually stop it (including AI/ChatGPT)?","publishedAt":"2026-07-21T21:20:42.255","confidenceScore":78,"confidenceLabel":"Medium","industry":{"id":"e1a1da3c-52a8-4e99-88ad-d08ef17d7c3f","slug":"hr-technology","label":"HR Technology","description":"ATS, HRIS, payroll, and workforce management"},"topic":{"slug":"candidate-screening-assessment","label":"Candidate Screening & Assessment","description":"Background Checks, Pre-Employment Testing, Reference Checks, Skills Assessment","schemaKind":null},"contributor":{"id":"ec39deab-44fe-48d8-9029-fefe993ab85a","slug":"answer-stack","displayName":"AnswerStack","websiteUrl":null},"snippet":"Cheating on remote skills assessments is real, and generative AI widened it for coding challenges and knowledge questions. Proctoring catches tab switching, pasted code, proxy test takers, and leaked items, and it cannot see a phone outside the webcam frame. Every published detection rate is a vendor figure. Biometric identity checks and recorded video also carry Illinois BIPA and AI Video Interview Act exposure.","url":"/q/candidates-cheat-on-online-skills-assessments-and-does-proctoring"},{"id":"7c1df232-4afc-4f90-acc6-373bb41cf94d","slug":"screening-background-check-software-integrate-with-my-ats","question":"Does screening / background check software integrate with my ATS or HRIS?","publishedAt":"2026-07-21T21:20:40.075","confidenceScore":88,"confidenceLabel":"High","industry":{"id":"e1a1da3c-52a8-4e99-88ad-d08ef17d7c3f","slug":"hr-technology","label":"HR Technology","description":"ATS, HRIS, payroll, and workforce management"},"topic":{"slug":"candidate-screening-assessment","label":"Candidate Screening & Assessment","description":"Background Checks, Pre-Employment Testing, Reference Checks, Skills Assessment","schemaKind":null},"contributor":{"id":"ec39deab-44fe-48d8-9029-fefe993ab85a","slug":"answer-stack","displayName":"AnswerStack","websiteUrl":null},"snippet":"Screening and assessment vendors ship certified ATS and HRIS connectors, so ordering, status, and results move without rekeying. The mechanics that decide whether the integration helps are narrower: where the FCRA disclosure and authorization are hosted, what writes back, who can read results, and whether adverse action fires from the screening platform or your ATS.","url":"/q/screening-background-check-software-integrate-with-my-ats"},{"id":"ef2314e9-45b8-4867-adcb-bb8bb029b6e7","slug":"pre-employment-assessments-and-background-checks-legal-eeoc-ada-fcra","question":"Are pre-employment assessments and background checks legal (EEOC, ADA, FCRA, disparate impact)?","publishedAt":"2026-07-21T21:20:37.515","confidenceScore":86,"confidenceLabel":"High","industry":{"id":"e1a1da3c-52a8-4e99-88ad-d08ef17d7c3f","slug":"hr-technology","label":"HR Technology","description":"ATS, HRIS, payroll, and workforce management"},"topic":{"slug":"candidate-screening-assessment","label":"Candidate Screening & Assessment","description":"Background Checks, Pre-Employment Testing, Reference Checks, Skills Assessment","schemaKind":null},"contributor":{"id":"ec39deab-44fe-48d8-9029-fefe993ab85a","slug":"answer-stack","displayName":"AnswerStack","websiteUrl":null},"snippet":"Screening is lawful in principle and regulated in the details. Third-party background reports trigger FCRA disclosure, authorization, and a two-step adverse action sequence. Tests and criminal-record screens face Title VII adverse impact analysis under the Uniform Guidelines. The ADA restricts what you may ask or examine before a conditional offer. Fair-chance, salary history, credit, and automated hiring tool rules vary by state and city. A June 2026 federal opinion narrowed enforcement posture on disparate impact without repealing the statute.","url":"/q/pre-employment-assessments-and-background-checks-legal-eeoc-ada-fcra"}],"contributorStats":{"verifiedAnswers":224,"openDisputes":0},"schemaJson":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Question","name":"What shows up on an employment background check (and what doesn't)?","text":"What shows up on an employment background check (and what doesn't)?","url":"https://www.answerstack.io/q/what-shows-up-on-an-employment-background-check","answerCount":1,"datePublished":"2026-07-20T16:33:12.965","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"AnswerStack Editorial Team","worksFor":{"@type":"Organization","name":"AnswerStack"},"url":"https://www.answerstack.io/contributors/answer-stack"},"about":[{"@type":"Thing","name":"Candidate Screening & Assessment"},{"@type":"Thing","name":"HR Technology"}],"acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"An employment background check is a consumer report an employer buys from a screening company, and its contents are set by the package that employer ordered rather than by any standard national file: most packages cover criminal court records, employment and education verification, and, when the job calls for it, a credit report, a motor vehicle record, or a drug screen.[1][2][4][14] Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act a screening company may not report bankruptcies older than ten years, or arrest records, civil judgments, tax liens, collections, and other adverse items older than seven, though the statute exempts criminal convictions from that cutoff and lifts the limits entirely for jobs paying $75,000 or more a year.[3] Several things candidates expect are absent: the credit report prepared for employment omits your credit score, date of birth, and income,[5] sealed and expunged records are removed from public court access,[8][9] and 22 states plus the District of Columbia bar employers from asking about pay history.[13] Before any rejection based on the report, the employer must give you a copy of it along with A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.[1][2] None of this is legal advice, and state rules are frequently stricter than the federal floor.","url":"https://www.answerstack.io/q/what-shows-up-on-an-employment-background-check","upvoteCount":0,"datePublished":"2026-07-20T16:33:12.965","dateModified":"2026-07-20T00:00:00","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"AnswerStack Editorial Team","worksFor":{"@type":"Organization","name":"AnswerStack"},"url":"https://www.answerstack.io/contributors/answer-stack"},"citation":[{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"Using Consumer Reports: What Employers Need to Know","url":"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/using-consumer-reports-what-employers-need-know"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"Background Checks: What Employers Need to Know (joint EEOC and FTC publication)","url":"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/background-checks-what-employers-need-know"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"15 U.S. Code 1681c: Requirements relating to information contained in consumer reports","url":"https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/1681c"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"When I apply for a job, what do employers see when they do a credit check for employment and a background check?","url":"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/when-i-apply-for-a-job-what-do-employers-see-when-they-do-a-credit-check-for-employment-and-a-background-check-en-1823/"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"Why Do Employers Check Credit?","url":"https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/why-employers-check-your-credit-report-and-what-they-see/"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions Under Title VII","url":"https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"Justice Department Concludes EEOC Disparate-Impact Guidelines Violate the Constitution","url":"https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-concludes-eeoc-disparate-impact-guidelines-violate-constitution"},{"@type":"CreativeWork","name":"Interpretive Rules, Policy Statements, and Advisory Opinions; 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It's important to know what goes into your background screening reports","url":"https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/applying-job-its-important-know-what-goes-your-background-screening-reports/"}]}}}