International Screenings

This article will help you understand:

• International product overview
• Available screenings
• Supported countries
• Candidate experience

International product overview

Checkr offers several screenings targeted to our international customers, allowing them to conduct background checks for candidates around the world from a single dashboard. Depending on the country, we offer a combination of Criminal Screenings, Global Watchlist Checks, Education and Employment Verifications, Adverse Media Searches, and Identity Document Validation to suit your needs.

By providing both domestic and international checks from a single platform, Checkr helps reduce the complexity of international background checks by unifying disparate background check processes.

• Single source of truth: Manage background checks for all of your domestic and international candidates in a single platform, with a unified billing system.
• Automated compliance workflows: Checkr supports your compliance by requesting the appropriate information and documentation from candidates depending on the countries being searched.
• Frictionless candidate outreach: Rather than spending days reaching out for personal information, Checkr emails candidates directly so you can simply request the check and receive results.
• Guidance and support for candidates: International background checks can be confusing, and require even more documentation and PII than in the US. Checkr’s flow allows candidates to save their progress, see their results, and dispute any errors.

Available screenings

Checkr offers the following checks specific to international candidates:

Identity Document Validation: Verifies that the candidate’s passport, national ID or driver’s license is authentic and validly in circulation. This check provides a multi-level validation process by inspecting document data and positioning for authenticity, scanning the Machine Readable Zone (if available), and cross-checking the information provided against government databases to discover if the document is stolen, lost, expired or invalid.

Average turnaround time is 3-5 days. Submitted passports result in a turnaround time of 1-2 days.

International Criminal Check: Criminal records check in supported countries. Criminal data is accessed from the appropriate database or agency. 

Average turnaround time varies significantly by jurisdiction. In order to complete UK criminal searches, the authorities require an Employer Identify Verification (EIV) form to be filled out by the employer to ensure the candidate's identity is confirmed (see attachment).  

Global Watchlist Check: A comprehensive search of multiple U.S. and International government watchlists which include the FBI’s Most Wanted list, Interpol's Most Wanted lists, Office of Foreign Asset Control Sanction lists, Denied Persons lists, Department of State Sanction lists, and the Specially Designated Nationals List.

Average turnaround time is 4 days.

Adverse Media Check: In countries where third party access to criminal record information is restricted, Adverse Media Checks may be performed to access private databases, public sanctions lists, media sources, and other public and private record repositories.

Average turnaround time is 5-7 days.

International Education Verification: The verification of academic status of any educational level such as high school, college and post-grad may include institution name, dates of attendance, graduation/conferred date, degree obtained, major, minor, honors and relevant awards. Reasonable attempts will be made to search available industry databases and international educational institutions.

Average turnaround time is 6-8 days.

International Employment Verification: Verification of previous employment history may include employer’s name, dates of employment, position/title, reason for leaving, eligibility for rehire, and comments. Reasonable attempts will be made to verify available government agencies and employment databases. Email verification, and phone verification may be used in countries where the records of former employers are not available in searchable form, and where contacting the supervisor or manager is common practice.

Average turnaround time is 6-8 days.

Supported countries

Checkr International screenings are available in all countries in which criminal screenings are allowed.

The following countries restrict employers from access and use of criminal information. For these countries, Checkr provides an Adverse Media Check:

• Christmas Island
• French Guiana
• French Polynesia
• Guadeloupe
• Guernsey and Alderney
• Hong Kong
• Iran
• Isle of Man
• Israel
• Japan
• Kiribati
• Laos
• Macao
• Mauritania
• Mayotte
• Micronesia
• Sierra Leone
• South Korea
• Syria
• Timor-Leste

Candidate Experience

Candidates are generally unfamiliar with the background check process, and may need to produce information that they don’t have on hand. Checkr’s International Candidate Portal provides step-by-step guidance throughout the background check process, and empowers candidates to save their progress, see their results, and dispute any errors in their information.