How to Check a Background Check: Request, Track, and Dispute Errors

To check a background check, you request your file from the consumer reporting agency that produced it, review what it contains, and dispute anything inaccurate in writing. Federal law under the Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you the right to see the full report, learn who received it, and have errors reinvestigated at no cost.¹ The steps below walk through what to gather, where to send the request, how to follow a check that’s still in progress, and how to fix mistakes.

What to Gather Before You Request Your File

Federal law requires you to provide proper identification before any consumer reporting agency will release your file to you.² Pull these together in one place before you start:

Your full legal name, including any former surnames, maiden names, or aliases you’ve used on applications or legal documents.
Your Social Security number and date of birth, which let the agency distinguish your records from those of people with similar names.
Your residential address history for the past seven to ten years, so the agency knows which jurisdictions to search.
A government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license or passport, as a physical copy or clear digital scan.

Agencies use this information to pull court records, employment verifications, and other data tied to your history in different places. Missing or inconsistent details are one of the more common reasons a request stalls.

How to Request Your Report from a Screening Company

Finding the Right Agency

Background screening is handled by hundreds of consumer reporting agencies, not just the three major credit bureaus. If an employer or landlord recently ran a check on you, the fastest route is to ask them which screening company they used. Each company runs its own applicant portal, and you have to contact the specific one that holds your report.

When you submit the request, the agency must disclose everything in your file, the sources of that information, and a list of everyone who received your report for employment purposes within the past two years, or within the past year for any other purpose.¹ Most agencies accept requests through a digital portal, but you can also send a written request by certified mail if you want a paper trail.

When the Report Is Free

Every nationwide consumer reporting agency must provide one free file disclosure per twelve-month period on request through its centralized system.³ You’re also entitled to a free copy if:

An employer, landlord, or creditor took adverse action against you based on information in the report.⁴
You’re unemployed and looking for work.
Your file is inaccurate because of fraud.
You’re receiving public assistance benefits.

When you qualify for a free disclosure, the agency has 15 days from receipt of your request to provide it.³ If none of these situations apply, the maximum an agency can charge in 2026 is $16.00.⁵

How to Pull Your Government Records Directly

Private screening companies build their reports largely from government sources, so going to those sources yourself gives you the most accurate view of what’s on file.

Your FBI Identity History Summary

An FBI Identity History Summary Check pulls your federal criminal record from the FBI’s database. You submit a set of rolled-ink fingerprint impressions on a standard fingerprint card, along with your name and date of birth, directly to the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division in Clarksburg, West Virginia. The fee is $18, payable by certified check or money order to the U.S. Treasury.⁶

You can speed up the process by using an FBI-approved channeler, which submits fingerprints electronically and typically returns results faster than mailing a card. Channelers charge their own processing fees on top of the $18 government fee. Some U.S. Post Office locations also offer digital fingerprinting for this purpose, though the service isn’t available everywhere; check by ZIP code before visiting.⁷

Your State Criminal History

Each state maintains its own criminal history database through an agency such as the State Bureau of Investigation or Department of Justice. Most offer an online portal for name-based searches. Fees and turnaround times vary by state. Name-based searches generally cost less and return results faster; fingerprint-based searches are more thorough but slower. Electronic results often arrive within a few days, while mailed fingerprint submissions can take several weeks.

How to Track a Check That’s Still in Progress

Most large screening providers give you an applicant dashboard to follow the check in real time. When you authorized the check, you likely received a login or a confirmation email with a portal link. Common status labels include:

Pending, meaning the agency is still collecting records, often waiting on court documents or employment verification.
Decisional, meaning data collection is complete and the report has been sent to the employer for review.
Complete, meaning the entire process, including the employer’s review, is finished.

If you don’t have portal access, wait about a week from the date you authorized the check, then contact the employer’s Human Resources department for an update. Standard employment screenings usually wrap up within a few business days, but the timeline depends on the complexity of your history and how many jurisdictions have to be searched.

Delays are common when a county court has no electronic database and someone has to search records at the courthouse in person. Unresponsive former employers, schools that verify on their own schedule, and name mismatches can each add time. If you’ve lived in multiple states, each jurisdiction is searched separately, and one slow county can hold up the entire report. Verifying credentials or criminal records from another country typically adds one to two weeks.

What Can and Can’t Appear on Your Report

Federal law caps how far back a consumer reporting agency can go for most types of negative information. Knowing the cutoffs helps you spot entries that should have aged off.

Criminal convictions are the main exception; they carry no federal time limit and can appear on your report indefinitely. None of the time limits above apply when the report is used for a position with an annual salary of $75,000 or more.⁸ Several states impose stricter rules than federal law, so the exact limits depend on where you live.

How to Dispute Something That’s Wrong

If you find inaccurate information on your report, whether it’s a criminal record belonging to someone else, an outdated entry that should have aged off, or employment dates that don’t match, you have the right to dispute it directly with the consumer reporting agency. The agency must reinvestigate free of charge and record whether the disputed item is confirmed, corrected, or deleted.⁹

The reinvestigation must typically be completed within 30 days. Within five business days after finishing, the agency must send you written notice of the results, an updated copy of your report reflecting any changes, and information about the furnisher that supplied the disputed data.⁹ If the agency can’t verify the information, it must be removed.

Submit your dispute in writing and include copies, not originals, of any supporting documents, such as court disposition records showing a case was dismissed or pay stubs confirming employment dates. Keep the request and any response letters together, because you may need them if the same error resurfaces or if you take further action.

Your Rights If a Report Costs You the Job

If an employer decides not to hire you (or a landlord decides not to rent to you) based on something in your background check, federal law requires a two-step notice process that gives you a chance to respond before the decision becomes final.

Before making a final decision, the employer must send you a pre-adverse action notice that includes a complete copy of the background check report and a written summary of your rights under the FCRA.¹⁰ This step is designed to give you a reasonable window to review the report and flag anything inaccurate. The statute doesn’t set a fixed waiting period, but the notice serves no purpose if the employer doesn’t leave time for a response.

If the employer proceeds with the denial, they must send a final adverse action notice that includes the name, address, and phone number of the screening company that supplied the report, a statement that the screening company didn’t make the hiring decision, and a reminder that you have the right to dispute any inaccurate information and to request an additional free copy of your report within 60 days.¹¹ Save both notices. They’re your paper trail if you need to challenge the process or the underlying report.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681g – Disclosures to Consumers
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681h – Conditions and Form of Disclosure to Consumers
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681j – Charges for Certain Disclosures
4
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act
5
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Appendix O to Part 1022
6
eCFR. 28 CFR Part 16 – Production or Disclosure of Material or Information
7
USPS. Register for Fingerprinting at the United States Postal Service
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681i – Procedure in Case of Disputed Accuracy
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681b – Permissible Purposes of Consumer Reports
11
Federal Trade Commission. Using Consumer Reports: What Employers Need to Know