What Shows Up on a Background Check?
Answer a few questions about a past case and the job you want. Get a plain-language answer based on the FCRA seven-year rule, the salary exception, and state limits. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
- Plain-language result
- Which rule applies
- Next steps
Not legal advice · Last reviewed Oct 2026
If you are not sure, pick the state you live in.
Private: this runs in your browser. Nothing you choose is sent anywhere or saved.
Likely won't be reported
This should not show up: it is older than seven years.
Under the FCRA, arrests and charges that did not end in a conviction older than seven years generally cannot be included in an employment background report for a job paying under $75,000 a year.
Government fingerprint checks (for example for some licenses or care jobs) follow different rules and can include older records.
Rule: FCRA §605(a)(2) and (a)(5), 15 U.S.C. §1681c
Next steps
- If it shows up anyway, dispute it with the background check company in writing.
- To know exactly what a report says, look at one. You can request your file from any background check company, or get your own $5 PreHireBadge to see what a national criminal search finds.
Know for sure. See what a national criminal search finds about you before an employer does.
Get my $5 PreHireBadgeWhy you'd use this
If you have a past arrest, charge, or conviction, it is natural to wonder whether it will show up when a gig platform or employer runs a background check. The answer depends on what kind of record it is, how old it is, how much the job pays, and which state's law applies.
Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, background check companies generally cannot report arrests and other non-conviction records older than seven years, unless the job pays $75,000 a year or more. Convictions have no federal time limit, but several states limit reporting of older convictions. This self-check walks through those rules for one record at a time.
It is private: the tool runs in your browser, and nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
In your browser, nothing saved
Using it
- 1
Describe the record
Conviction, arrest or charge without a conviction, pending case, sealed record, or civil judgment, and roughly how long ago.
- 2
Describe the job
The state and whether the pay is $75,000 a year or more.
- 3
Read your result
A plain-language answer, the rule behind it, and next steps.
The FCRA seven-year rule
Section 605 of the FCRA bars background check companies from reporting most negative information older than seven years, including records of arrest that did not lead to a conviction and civil judgments. Records of criminal convictions are excluded from that limit, so federal law allows them to be reported regardless of age.
The seven-year limits do not apply to jobs with an annual salary reasonably expected to be $75,000 or more.
States with stricter limits
California, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Texas, and Washington are commonly cited as limiting reports of older convictions, several of them only below a salary threshold. Details, including how the seven years is counted, differ by state.
Reported does not mean rejected
Even when a record can be reported, many employers must consider what the offense was, how long ago it happened, and whether it relates to the job, and must give you a chance to respond before deciding.
Primary sources
Read the rules at the source. Laws and agency guidance change; last reviewed Oct 2026.
Questions people ask about this
How far back do background checks go?
For most jobs, arrests and other non-conviction records can be reported for seven years. Convictions have no federal time limit, though some states limit them to seven years. Jobs paying $75,000 or more are exempt from the federal seven-year limits.
Will a dismissed charge show up on a background check?
It can for up to seven years from the arrest or charge, but the report should show that it was dismissed. If it shows the charge without the outcome, you can dispute it as incomplete.
Will a sealed or expunged record show up?
It should not. If it does, dispute it with the background check company and send a copy of the court order.
Do government fingerprint checks follow the same rules?
No. FBI and state fingerprint checks used for some licenses and care jobs follow different rules and can include older records.
How can I see exactly what is on my record?
Request your file from a background check company, or get your own $5 PreHireBadge to see what a national criminal search finds.
General information only, not legal advice. Using this tool does not make a process compliant on its own, and federal, state, and city rules differ and change. An employment lawyer can apply them to your facts.
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