By Susan Chance, courtesy of SBAM Approved Partner ASE
When requesting a background check it is important to provide complete and accurate information to your screening company to get the most accurate and timely report possible. Following is a general list of information needed to complete checks:
Education
- The student’s name at the time of graduation if it was different than the current name
- Date of graduation (at least the year)
- For high school, specify if a diploma or a GED was obtained
- Location of testing for a GED
- Specify which campus when the school has more than one location
NOTE: for most Detroit Public High Schools the student has to request the verification from the Detroit Public Schools website, https://www.detroitk12.org/studentrecords
Employment
- Verify if a position was direct or contract; when contract, list the agency, not the company to which the person was assigned
- Full name of employer, not acronyms or abbreviations
- City and state of work location
- Start and end dates (month and year of the specific dates are not known)
Criminal
- Location-specific forms may be required
Driving
- State-specific forms may be required
When requesting international checks, more information is typically required. These checks can also take longer for completion.
The following points apply generally to all international checks:
- Some locations (countries, schools, etc.) require additional information/documentation and the notification of the need for more documentation can come some time after the check has been requested.
- Some locations require additional consent forms.
- Some locations charge additional fees for the verification.
- Some countries require the subject’s name and/or other information in that countries language (i.e., in China, the person’s name must be provided in Chinese characters)
- A government id card or number may be required when applicable.
Some information applies to the type of check requested, and in addition to the subject’s full name and date of birth, the following information may be required depending on the entity or location:
Education
- List the students name exactly as it appears on records and/or diploma
- Student ID Number
- Student seat Number
- Copy of diploma (both front and back in some locations)
- Mark sheets (transcripts)
- School Address (must specify campus attended if the school has more than 1 location)
- End date of enrollment
- Mother’s maiden name
Employment
- Address of employer
- Employee ID number
- Government ID number
- Employee type (direct, contractor, intern, etc.)
- Experience certificate and/or employment letter
- Last title/position held
- Department
- End date of employment
- Mother’s maiden name
Criminal
- Full address
- Father’s full name
- Mother’s maiden name
- Copy of subject’s birth certificate
- Copy of subject’s voter ID card or passport
NOTES:
Each address checked is a separate order.
Records that are a name match only, with no other identifiers, will not be reported.
Driving
- Copy of driver’s license (in some cases both front and back of license)
- Original issue date
- City where license issued
- Location specific form
- Father’s full name
- Mother’s maiden name
- Place of birth
As always, signed Disclosure and Authorization forms are required before any check is requested. Attaching the completed forms to the profile allows checks to be processed more efficiently when the forms are required to complete a verification.