Written by Background Check Repair
Background Checks | August 3, 2023
Table of Contents
When entering job market for the first time in a while, a common question is how long does an employment background check take?
The fact is that the length of time required for a background check can vary, based on a number of different factors, including the company and the types of background checks being run.
For example, the type of job or position can dictate how long does a background check take…and a person’s record can also play a role. Other common situations that impact how long does a background check take for employment include:
Basically, the level of trust connected to the position has a whole lot to do with how long the background check can take because it impacts the type of check that needs to be performed (namely a level 1 background check or a level 2 background check that uses fingerprints, or even a level 3 background check or higher).
Fortunately, with the continuous digitization of records taking place, these checks are faster than ever and will usually take less than a week for most jobs, depending on the job description.
That’s why it is handy to have a list of jobs (and industries) like the large one below, that outline how long the average employment background check takes.
How long an employment background check takes will depend entirely on the job that is being applied for. Obviously, certain jobs will require more intensive background checks, especially if these jobs deal with sensitive information or sensitive groups.
On average, an employment background check will take less than a week to complete, around 1-3 days in most cases. This will depend on a large variety of factors but for jobs that do not run any special checks because of the industry or if the job deals with sensitive information then less than a week should be expected.
Other more intensive employment background checks for industries like nursing or child care,1 the background check will take much longer.
Although most databases are online, sometimes various checks must be performed by hand or may require the individual conducting the check to contact someone else directly.
For example, some jobs will require references and will need to talk to these individuals directly. In this case, the length of the background check is at the mercy of the individual, employer, or university, that the individual needs to contact.
Still, it is rare for a background check to take more than two weeks, even in situations where fingerprints are required. Although there are a few exceptions such as working for the FBI,2 background checks are almost always completed in less than two weeks.
The level of the background check will have the biggest impact when it comes to “how long does an employment background check take? The most common kind of background check is what is often referred to as a Level 1 background check.
This will include all the information that many will view as standard on a background check. Level 1 checks will be what individuals can expect for retail jobs, food-industry jobs, general office jobs such as those in advertising, and other service industry jobs. The following checks can be expected:
Other checks can be run as part of a level 1 check, such as employment or education verification as well.
Beyond a level 1 check, the types of checks being run, and subsequently how long the background check takes, will depend on the job. Different industries have different background check standards and in some cases, they will even have legal requirements when it comes to what checks they must perform.
There are a few common checks that will affect the timeline for a background check:
As mentioned, the biggest factor when it comes to “how long does an employment background check take?” is the job position. Certain jobs will simply require more checks for various reasons, resulting in the check taking longer.
Beyond this, the employer will also play a part as certain companies may have established background check practices for all employees. In some fields, the employer will also make a difference because the individual is dealing with sensitive information.
For example, an engineer working for a private company will have different background checks than an individual doing the same job for a company that works with the U.S. military.
The typical minimums are given in the table below.
| Profession | Background Check Time | Type of Check | Fingerprints | Credit Check | Tax Records | Additional Records |
| Retail Rep. | 1-3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Typically, a SSN is used to verify personal information and local criminal record |
| Service Rep. | 1-3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Typically, a SSN is used to verify personal information and local criminal record |
| Real Estate Background Check | 3 – 6 weeks | Level 2 | Yes | No | No | Fingerprints used to run a state criminal history check and FBI criminal history check |
| Non-Profit Background Check | 3 – 10 days | Level 2 | Yes | No | No | Fingerprints used to run a state criminal history check and FBI criminal history check |
| Nanny Background Check | 3 – 10 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Varies widely but will likely include a name-based criminal check at a minimum. |
| Nursing Background Check | 3 – 10 days | Level 2 | Yes | No | No | Specific checks will vary by state law. FACIS checks, mental health checks and other healthcare databases are also checked. |
| Daycare Background Check | 3 – 10 days | Level 2 | Yes | No | No | Numerous specific checks required by federal and state law. |
| Mining | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Executive positions in the mining industry will be subject to additional checks. |
| Engineers | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Education Verification is standard as well as verification of licenses for certain positions |
| Architects | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Checks will depend on employer, government employers will likely require fingerprint-based background checks. |
| Advertising | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Typically, a SSN is used to verify personal information and local criminal record |
| Trucking | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | DOT records will be required, criminal checks are usually name-based. |
| Construction | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Certain positions will require DOT Records or checks of required licenses. |
| Finance | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | Yes | Yes | Checks for financial crimes such as fraud are checked as well as any bankruptcies on record. tte |
| Tech Industry | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | Education checks and name-based criminal checks are fairly standard. |
| Private Security | 1 – 3 days | Level 1 | No | No | No | No federal standards for private security, and state laws vary. |
| Government Background Check | 1 – 10 days | Level 1 – Level 4 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Checks will depend on the level of security clearance. |
| FBI | 2 months or more | Level 4 | Yes | Yes | Yes | One of the most intensive checks,3 requires Standard Form 864 which goes back 10 years. Lots of unique checks as well as 2 polygraph tests. |
| Local Law Enforcement | 1 month or more | Level 4 | Yes | Yes | Yes | All permanent records are checked, as well as interviews with family members, drug tests and more. |
| Military | 1 month or more | Level 3 to Level 4 | Yes | Yes | Yes | All permanent records are checked, and additional checks are required for positions with security clearance. |
| Executive | 1- 10 days | Level 1 | No | Yes | Yes | Extensive checks are rare, most often financial records will be checked to ensure there is no history of fraud. |
| TSA | 3 – 10 days | Level 2 | Yes | No | No | Criminal background checks are done to check for disqualifying offenses.5 |
How long does an employment background check take? Each state has its own stipulations and rules concerning when and how long a background check can take.
Whether or not what state the check is being performed in makes a difference depends on two factors:
Basically, employers who are conducting background checks on their employees have 3 options to complete the background checks.
Option 1: Manual Search
The first is to DIY the check, which means checking various public databases, such as court records, and finding any relevant information themselves. This method is fairly time-consuming and requires a huge amount of effort to remain compliant with federal Fair Credit Reporting Act rules.
Option 2: State Issued Search
The second option is to perform background checks using the background check services offered by state or local law enforcement. In this case, the applicant’s information will be given to the agency in charge of performing background checks and the state or local police will perform the check and return the results.
Official state background check practices vary from state to state, however, it is fairly common for the state police to require fingerprints to perform the background check. This is done so they can perform a more accurate and comprehensive background check using both state fingerprint databases and the fingerprint database that is maintained by the FBI.
Since fingerprints have to be taken, sent to the proper agency, and checked against multiple databases, the process can take longer than a name-based check.
Option 3: Approved Background Check Agency Contract
The final and most common option used by employers to perform background checks is to work with a private background check company (some offer 7 day free trial background checks). This option is the most common for most employers because it is generally the cheapest and the fastest option, making it a must in certain industries that deal with high turnover rates for their employees.
In this case, the employee’s information is given to the background check company which performs checks of numerous online databases. Since this check is done using online information, it can be completed in less than 24 hours and is almost always completed in less than 3 days.
With all that being said, although the state can impact the answer to “how long does an employment background check take?” it usually is not an issue. As long as the employer is not requiring an official state background check, which is required for certain industries, then the timeline of the background check should not be affected by the state.
Below is the average background check time for each state.
| State | Average Background Check Time |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Alabama | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Alaska | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Arizona | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in California | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Colorado | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Connecticut | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Delaware | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Florida | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Georgia | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Hawaii | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Idaho | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Illinois | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Indiana | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Iowa | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Kansas | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Kentucky | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Louisiana | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Maine | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Maryland | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Massachusetts | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Michigan | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Minnesota | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Missouri | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Mississippi | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Montana | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Nebraska | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Nevada | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in New Hampshire | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in New Jersey | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in New Mexico | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in New York | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in North Carolina | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in North Dakota | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Ohio | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Oklahoma | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Oregon | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Pennsylvania | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Rhode Island | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in South Carolina | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in South Dakota | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Tennessee | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Texas | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Utah | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Vermont | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Virginia | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Washington | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in West Virginia | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Wisconsin | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
| How Long Does An Employment Background Check Take in Wyoming | 1-5 days, 5 – 10 days if fingerprints are required. |
Getting a background check performed can be a scary process, especially for individuals who don’t know what to expect. Luckily, most background checks are fairly simple allowing for a simple answer to the question: How long does an employment background check take?
Individuals can expect most pre-employment background checks to take 1 – 3 days to complete. However this will be longer for certain industries.
An employer background check will take just a few days to complete, assuming a level 1 background check is being performed.
Pre-employment background checks will vary widely when it comes to how long they will take to complete. Entry-level retail jobs can take just a few days to complete, on the other hand, law enforcement background checks can take weeks as additional information is checked with a more difficult timeline.
Employment background length tends to be related to the amount of sensitive information the individual will have access to. High-level finance jobs will be far more intensive, and therefore longer background checks than a background check for a cashier.
Most jobs that require background checks will take a week at most. Since most employers work with private background check companies, all of the checks are performed online and therefore can be done very quickly.
A background check for employment will take 2 weeks at max, besides those with intensive searches such as jobs with the FBI, or various law enforcement agencies. However, it is rare for a background check to take more than a week for most jobs.
Employment background checks are usually performed by a third-party company with access to dozens of online databases with public information. Since they are often able to search all of these databases at the same time, the searches are both through and completed in just a few days.
TSA employment background checks are only slightly more intensive than typical background checks. TSA background checks involve a fingerprint-based check where a list of disqualifying felony offenses is checked in the state, local, and federal databases. All of these databases are online so checks take less than two weeks.
A 7-year background check should take less than two weeks to complete. If the background check is only a name-based check, as opposed to fingerprint-based, it will be completed in just 1 -3 days.
How long a background check takes for a job depends on the job, industry, and a number of other factors. Usually, background checks take 1 – 3 days and up to two weeks in certain cases, but rarely longer.
How long a background check takes for a government job will depend on the security clearance that comes with the job. The higher the clearance, the longer the background check will take. Jobs with low-level or no clearance usually take less than 10 days.
Amazon generally performs name-based background checks so the check should be completed in 1 – 3 days in most cases.
Most companies will not bother performing a background check unless they plan on hiring the individual.
Companies are generally required to contact individuals after a background check, regardless of the outcome. If passed, they will contact the individual to offer a job, if failed they will need to contact them to notify the individual that they did not pass the background check.
Previous jobs should only show up on a background check if the applicant includes them on the application. There is no generalized employment database that can be checked.
Employment background checks exist to ensure the applicant is trustworthy. Checks usually include criminal history information and the verification of anything included on the application.
Red flags on background checks will vary by company but in general, how long does a felony stay on your record (can be forever) and major convictions and anything dishonest on the application will be red flags.
Employers verify an individual’s work history by contacting the employer listed on the applicant’s application.
1Background Checks: What You Need To Know. (2022). Childcare.gov. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from <https://childcare.gov/consumer-education/background-checks-what-you-need-to-know>
2FBI Jobs. (2022). Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from <https://www.fbijobs.gov/>
3Background Checks for New Applicants. (2022). FBI.gov. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from <https://www.fbi.gov/audio-repository/news-podcasts-inside-background-checks-for-new-applicants.mp3/view>
4Questionnaire for National Security. (2016). Standard Form 86. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from <https://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf86.pdf>
5A Follow-up Review of the Transportation Security Officer Background Check Process. (2022). DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY Office of Inspector General. Retrieved May 17, 2022, from <https://www.oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/Mgmt/OIG_07-67_Aug07.pdf>
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