How Many Years Back Does a Criminal Background Check Go?

Under federal law, a criminal background check can go back seven years for arrests and other non-conviction records, but convictions can be reported for the rest of your life. That is the short answer to how many years back a criminal background check goes, and for most people the real range sits somewhere between seven years and forever depending on the record type, the job, and the state.

The Seven-Year Rule for Arrests

The Fair Credit Reporting Act is the main federal law governing what third-party background screening companies can put in a report. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1681c, a screening company cannot report an arrest that is more than seven years old. The same seven-year ceiling covers civil judgments and records of civil suits.¹

The clock starts on the date of arrest, not the date charges were dropped or the case was dismissed. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has flagged this as a recurring compliance problem: some screening agencies incorrectly used the disposition date, effectively stretching the reporting window beyond what the law allows.²

So if you were arrested eight years ago and the charge was dismissed six years ago, the arrest itself should no longer appear on a standard employment background check. A later dismissal does not restart any clock.

Convictions Can Be Reported Indefinitely

The seven-year limit does not apply to criminal convictions. The FCRA specifically carves out “records of convictions of crimes” from its time restrictions. A conviction from 30 years ago is just as reportable as one from last year, at least under federal law.¹

This gap between arrests (time-limited) and convictions (permanent) is the single most important distinction to understand. If a case ended in a guilty plea or verdict, the FCRA does not force a screening company to leave it off after any number of years.

The $75,000 Salary Exception

The seven-year cap on arrests and other non-conviction records disappears entirely for jobs paying $75,000 or more per year. At or above that salary, a screening company can report arrests, civil suits, and other adverse information no matter how old they are.³

The $75,000 figure is fixed by statute and has not been adjusted for inflation. Because many professional and mid-career positions now clear that number, the seven-year ceiling on non-conviction records fails to protect a large share of applicants. If you are applying for a role paying more than $75,000, assume your full history is available.

State Laws That Shorten the Window

The FCRA sets a floor, not a ceiling, and several states have gone further to protect applicants. Common state-level restrictions include:

Conviction look-back limits, often between seven and ten years, even though the FCRA allows indefinite reporting of convictions.
Broader arrest restrictions that bar employers from considering arrest records at all unless they led to a conviction or the case is still pending.
Overrides of the $75,000 salary exception, so the seven-year cap applies regardless of pay.

Because of this variation, the same record can appear on a report in one state and be excluded next door. Your state attorney general’s office or a local legal aid organization can point you to the specific statute where you live or where the job is based.

Industries and Government Checks That Reach Further

Certain jobs bypass the standard FCRA reporting limits altogether. Positions involving vulnerable populations, national security, or regulated industries often trigger deeper checks that reach as far back as records exist. Childcare, healthcare, law enforcement, financial services, and any role requiring a security clearance are typical examples.

Government security clearance investigations show just how far these checks can go. A Secret clearance investigation typically covers at least five years, a Top Secret investigation covers ten years, and certain questions on the SF-86 questionnaire have no time limit at all.⁴

Fingerprint-based searches through the FBI reach the furthest of any commonly used check. The FBI maintains fingerprint records submitted by federal, state, and local law enforcement going back decades, and criminal fingerprint records are retained until the individual reaches 99 years of age. A fingerprint-based check can surface records from essentially any point in a person’s life.⁵

Expunged and Sealed Records

When a court expunges or seals a record, it is removed from public access. For most employment and housing background checks, an expunged record should not appear, and you can generally answer “no” if asked whether you were convicted of the expunged offense.⁶

The protection has limits. Sealed records can remain visible to law enforcement agencies, and applications for certain government positions, law enforcement jobs, or professional licenses in fields like nursing, teaching, and legal practice sometimes require screenings that can reach sealed or expunged records. Information that once appeared in a public court database or news article can also linger online after the underlying record is sealed.⁷

Court filing fees for expungement petitions vary widely, ranging from nothing to a few hundred dollars. Some states have created automatic expungement processes for certain low-level offenses, removing the need to petition at all.

Checking Your Own Record Before You Apply

You can pull your own criminal history before an employer does. The FBI’s Identity History Summary is the same database used for many fingerprint-based checks. To request one, submit an application with a ten-fingerprint card and an $18 payment. The FBI accepts credit cards, certified checks, and money orders payable to the Treasury of the United States.⁸

The FBI check covers federal records and whatever state records have been submitted to the national database. It does not always include every county or municipal court record, so many people also request their own state criminal history through the state police or an equivalent agency, usually for a separate fee. Running both gives you the most complete picture.

If a Report Shows Something Wrong or Too Old

Errors on background checks happen more often than most people expect. A common one is a dismissed charge listed as still active, or another person’s record attached to yours because of a shared name or date of birth. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1681i, you have the right to dispute any information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete. The screening company must investigate, typically within 30 days, and correct or remove anything it cannot verify.⁹

If a screening company reports something it should not have, such as an arrest older than seven years on a job below the salary threshold, or an expunged record, you may have grounds for a legal claim. A willful FCRA violation can carry statutory damages between $100 and $1,000 per violation even without proof of financial harm, plus punitive damages and attorney’s fees. Negligent violations entitle you to recover actual losses and attorney’s fees.¹⁰

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports
2
Federal Register. Fair Credit Reporting; Background Screening
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c(b) – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports
4
Yale Law School. Before You Apply: Understanding Government Background Checks
5
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Privacy Impact Assessment for the Fingerprint Identification Records System (FIRS) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS)
6
American Bar Association. What Is “Expungement?”
7
National Institute of Justice. Expungement: Criminal Records as Reentry Barriers
8
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 1681i – Procedure in Case of Disputed Accuracy
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 1681n – Civil Liability for Willful Noncompliance