An FBI fingerprint background check is a nationwide search of federal criminal history records, run against your fingerprints, that produces a document called an Identity History Summary (often called a rap sheet). Because it’s tied to your prints rather than your name or Social Security number, it pulls records even from arrests booked under a different name or alias. It covers federal, state, and local criminal history, and you can request your own copy for $18 or submit prints through an official channel when an employer, licensing board, or government agency requires one.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
What Shows Up on the Report
The core content is arrest data. Each entry typically includes the date of the arrest, the arresting agency, and the charges filed. When agencies have reported the outcome, the summary also shows dispositions such as convictions, acquittals, dismissals, or deferrals.
Both felonies and misdemeanors appear, whether federal, state, or local. Probation, parole, and incarceration tied to those offenses can be included. Any time you’ve been fingerprinted during a booking or an applicant background check for a government position, that event may show up on your summary.
What the Check Does Not Cover
The Identity History Summary is strictly a criminal history document. Several categories people assume are covered are not:
- Civil matters, including lawsuits, bankruptcies, divorce records, and child support orders.
- Financial records like credit history, debt, and bank accounts, which sit with the credit bureaus.
- Education, employment history, and professional licenses, unless directly connected to a criminal case.
- Minor traffic infractions such as speeding tickets and parking violations. Criminal traffic offenses like DUI can appear.
- Sealed or expunged juvenile records, though whether they truly stay off depends on the originating state updating its records with the FBI.
The Missing Disposition Problem
The most common trouble with an FBI rap sheet is what it leaves out. Research has found that nearly half of FBI rap sheets lack final disposition information, meaning there’s no record of whether charges were dropped, the person was acquitted, or the case was dismissed. About half the states failed to include complete disposition data in at least 25 percent of their cases, and ten states were missing updated information in over 50 percent of cases.
A missing disposition looks worse than a dismissed charge. Anyone reading the report sees an arrest with no resolution and tends to assume the worst, which matters most during employment screening and immigration reviews. The FBI reports what state and local agencies send it. If a county court dismissed your case but never forwarded the updated disposition to the state identification bureau, your summary will still show the arrest sitting open.
If you request your own summary and spot gaps like this, you can challenge the entries directly with the FBI at no cost.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions Doing that before an application deadline is far easier than doing it under one.
Who Requests These Checks and Why
The reason for the check determines who can request it and how the results are delivered.
- Employment. Federal jobs, national security positions, and roles involving vulnerable populations like children or the elderly frequently require an FBI check. Many private employers in regulated industries do as well.
- Professional licensing. Boards in healthcare, law, financial services, and education commonly require a fingerprint-based check before granting or renewing a license.
- Immigration and naturalization. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services requires an FBI Identity History Summary as part of the application process.
- Adoption. Both domestic and international adoption proceedings require FBI checks on prospective parents.
- Personal review. You can request your own summary to see what’s on file, catch errors, or prepare for any of the situations above.
One important boundary: a personal-review copy of your summary, obtained under 28 CFR 16.30–16.34, is not valid for employment, licensing, or adoption purposes. For those uses, fingerprints usually have to be submitted through a state identification bureau, the requesting federal agency, or an authorized channeler.2Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Review
How to Request Your Own Summary
Requesting your own copy costs $18 and can be done electronically or by mail.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions The FBI does not accept personal checks, business checks, or cash. Payment must be by certified check or money order made out to the Treasury of the United States, or by credit card.
Electronic Submission
Electronic is faster. You can visit a participating U.S. Post Office location to have your fingerprints captured and submitted digitally, or use an FBI-approved channeler, which is a private company authorized to collect prints electronically, forward them to the FBI, and return your results.3Federal Bureau of Investigation. List of FBI-Approved Channelers for Departmental Order Submissions Channelers charge their own service fee on top of the $18, and prices vary.
Mail Submission
To mail your request, you need a completed fingerprint card. A local law enforcement agency or a private fingerprinting service can take your prints, typically for a fee ranging from roughly $10 to $50 depending on the provider. The FBI accepts standard FD-258 fingerprint cards as well as other standard fingerprint card formats.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions Mail the card, payment, and a written request with your name, date and place of birth, and return address to the FBI’s CJIS Division in Clarksburg, West Virginia.4eCFR. Title 28 CFR 16.32
All requests are processed in the order received, and the FBI does not offer expedited processing for any submission method.
Fixing Errors on Your Record
If your Identity History Summary contains inaccurate or incomplete information, you can challenge it at no cost. Your challenge must identify the specific entry you believe is wrong and include copies of supporting documentation, such as court records showing a dismissal or proof of expungement.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions The FBI’s average response time is within 45 days of receiving the submission.
Expungement and sealing work differently. For nonfederal arrests, questions about expungement or sealing go to the state identification bureau where the offense occurred, since each state’s rules differ. Federal arrest data is removed only at the request of the agency that originally submitted it or by a federal court order specifically directing expungement.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
Using the Report Abroad
Many foreign countries require a police clearance certificate as part of visa, residency, or work permit applications. The FBI Identity History Summary serves this purpose for U.S. citizens and residents, but most countries will only accept it with an apostille from the U.S. Department of State, which certifies the document’s authenticity for use abroad.
To get the apostille, submit your original FBI document to the State Department’s Office of Authentications along with completed Form DS-4194 and a $20 fee per document.5U.S. Department of State. Requesting Authentication Services Standard processing by mail takes about five weeks. Walk-in processing takes about seven business days. Emergency same-day appointments are available only for life-or-death family emergencies abroad. Between the FBI processing time and the State Department’s timeline, the full sequence from fingerprints to apostilled document can run two months or more, so start early.