The FD-1164 fingerprint card is the form you use to request your own FBI Identity History Summary, commonly called a rap sheet. You download it from the FBI, fill it out in black ink, have your fingerprints rolled by a qualified technician, and send it to the FBI’s CJIS Division in Clarksburg, West Virginia with an $18 payment. You can also submit electronically through a participating U.S. Post Office or through an FBI-approved channeler, which is faster but costs more. The FBI rejects incomplete, unsigned, or poorly inked cards without processing them, so getting the details right the first time saves weeks.
What the FD-1164 Is
The FD-1164 is the specific fingerprint card the FBI uses for personal requests, meaning you are asking for a copy of your own federal criminal history record. It is not the card used when an employer or agency initiates a background check on you — that one is the FD-258. If you walk into a fingerprinting agency and they hand you their own card stock instead of the FD-1164 you brought, the FBI will still accept it, as long as the required information and prints are captured correctly.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
People typically pull their FBI record for international travel or foreign work visas, adoption proceedings, certain state professional licenses, or to verify that nothing inaccurate is sitting in the system under their name.
Getting the Card and Filling It Out
You can download the FD-1164 as a PDF from the FBI’s website and print it on standard white paper. The FBI explicitly accepts cards printed on regular paper.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions Each request needs a fresh card; the FBI does not accept previously used ones.
The form asks for your full legal name, any aliases or maiden names, date of birth, place of birth, and Social Security Number. It also asks for physical descriptors: sex, race, height, weight, eye color, and hair color.2Federal Bureau of Investigation. FD-1164 Identity History Summary Request If you want the last four digits of your Social Security Number to appear on your response letter, either the full nine digits or at least the last four need to be on the card when you submit it.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
Everything goes in black ink, in legible block letters. The FBI’s scanning equipment reads high-contrast text; sloppy handwriting and light ink cause delays. Sign the card in the designated signature block. An unsigned card is rejected.2Federal Bureau of Investigation. FD-1164 Identity History Summary Request
Eye and Hair Color Codes
The FBI uses three-letter codes for eye and hair color, and using the wrong format can hold up processing.3Federal Bureau of Investigation. Guidelines for Preparation of Fingerprint Cards and Associated Criminal History Information
Eye color:
- BLK — Black
- BLU — Blue
- BRO — Brown
- GRY — Gray
- GRN — Green
- HAZ — Hazel
- MAR — Maroon
Hair color:
- BLD — Bald
- BLK — Black
- BLN — Blonde or strawberry
- BRO — Brown
- GRY — Gray or partially gray
- RED — Red or auburn
- SDY — Sandy
- WHI — White
Getting Your Fingerprints Taken
Unless you have professional fingerprinting equipment, you need someone qualified to capture your prints. Local law enforcement agencies, county sheriff’s offices, and private fingerprinting companies all offer the service. Fees vary widely. Some agencies do it for free for residents; others charge up to $35, with a typical fee around $10.
The prints must be rolled from nail to nail on each finger so the full ridge pattern is visible. The card has ten individual blocks for rolled impressions, completed in the correct finger sequence. Below those blocks, the technician captures four-finger simultaneous impressions for each hand plus separate thumb impressions using the 4-4-2 method. Those plain impressions verify that the rolled prints were placed in the right order.4Federal Bureau of Investigation. Recording Legible Fingerprints
Print quality matters more than most people expect. Smudged, faint, or incomplete impressions are the single most common reason submissions are rejected. Someone who does this regularly will know the right ink pressure and rolling technique. If a livescan device is being used to print your fingerprints onto a physical card, confirm the output is sharp before you leave.
Three Ways to Submit
The FBI accepts three submission paths. They differ in speed and total cost.
By Mail
Send the completed FD-1164, payment, and signed request form to:
FBI CJIS Division – Summary Request
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburg, West Virginia 263062Federal Bureau of Investigation. FD-1164 Identity History Summary Request
Mail submissions are processed in the order received and this is the slowest option, typically several weeks depending on volume. Results come back by U.S. First-Class Mail.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
Electronically Through a U.S. Post Office
You can start the request online and then visit a participating U.S. Post Office to have your fingerprints captured electronically. The Post Office may add its own fee on top of the FBI’s $18. Electronic submissions are processed faster than mailed cards.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
Through an FBI-Approved Channeler
Channelers are private companies authorized by the FBI to collect your fingerprints and payment, forward everything to CJIS electronically, and deliver your results back to you. This is the fastest route, often returning results in a few business days rather than weeks. Channelers charge their own service fee on top of the $18, so you pay more for the speed.5Federal Bureau of Investigation. List of FBI-Approved Channelers for Departmental Order Submissions
The FBI publishes the current list of approved channelers on its website. As of late 2025 it includes companies such as Accurate Biometrics, Fieldprint, and Idemia Identity & Security, among roughly nine others. Only use a channeler from the FBI’s official list; any other company claiming to offer this service is not authorized.
Paying the $18 Fee
The fee is $18 per request. The FBI accepts certified checks and money orders made payable to the Treasury of the United States, and credit card payments.6eCFR. 28 CFR Part 16 Subpart C – Production of FBI Identification Records For credit card payments, include the FBI’s credit card payment form with your submission.
Personal checks, business checks, and cash are not accepted. If you send any of those, the check is destroyed without being returned and your request is not processed.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions Someone else may pay on your behalf if they provide payment information during the request.
If you cannot afford the $18 fee, you can request a fee waiver by contacting the FBI at (304) 625-5590 or identity@fbi.gov before submitting your request. Proof of indigency has to accompany the waiver claim.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
Submitting From Outside the United States
If you live abroad and need the FBI check for immigration, a foreign work permit, or a visa, you can still mail your FD-1164 to the Clarksburg address. Results are returned by U.S. First-Class Mail through the U.S. Postal Service, so international transit adds time on both ends.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions The FBI’s guidance points to local law enforcement and private fingerprinting agencies for capturing the prints but does not specifically address foreign providers. A U.S. embassy or consulate can sometimes point you to a local option. Using an FBI-approved channeler is often the better choice from overseas because results are delivered electronically.
If the check needs authentication for use in another country, that’s a separate downstream process handled by the U.S. State Department, not something the FD-1164 itself covers.
Fixing Errors in Your Results
When your results arrive you either receive your criminal history record or a statement confirming no record exists. If you spot an error — a wrong charge, an outdated disposition, an arrest that belongs to someone else — you have the right to challenge that information at no cost.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
To file a challenge, submit a written request that clearly identifies the information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete, along with copies of any documentation supporting your claim. Challenges are processed in the order received, and the FBI’s average response time is about 45 days.
One limit to know before you start. Federal arrest data is only removed from the FBI Criminal File at the request of the agency that originally submitted it or upon a federal court order directing expungement. For state-level arrest data, you have to contact the State Identification Bureau in the state where the offense occurred; the FBI cannot unilaterally change records that were submitted by state or local agencies.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions Your FBI rap sheet is a compilation of records submitted by other agencies, so correcting an entry often means going back to the original source agency and getting them to submit a correction.