Canada

Revision Date: October 4, 2022

The following has been provided as general educational information only. It is not legal advice, express or implied. Consultation with legal counsel in all matters of employment and business law is recommended.

Services Available:

• Criminal Search
• Education Verification
• Employment Verification
• Global Watchlist Search
• International Motor Vehicle Report (IMVR)
  • Note: IMVR is currently in beta and may not be available to all candidates. 

Disclaimer:  The following guide is provided for general educational purposes only. It is not legal advice, and users are encouraged to seek their own independent counsel when evaluating these services. Importantly, the specific screenings offered by Checkr do not guarantee an organization’s legal rights to request or use them. Several factors, including the residency and location of your organization and your candidates, may implicate additional data privacy and employment laws.

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Criminal Search

Description:

A national-level search in Canada that returns available criminal conviction records.

Sources:

Canadian Police Information Center (CPIC)

Ordering Requirements:

• Last Name, First Name, Middle Name 
• DOB 
• Address 
• Authorization Form 
• Special release and self-declaration forms are required for this search; please note that the bottom of the special consent form must also be signed by a witness before submitting the form to Checkr.
• Identity Verification - A credit bureau-based identity verification is performed with a secondary stage that requires validation of two pieces of valid, government-issued identification.

Estimated Time Service:

On average 2 to 3 business days.

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Education Verification

Description:

The verification of academic status of any educational level such as high school, college, and post-grad. It may include institution name, dates of attendance, graduation/conferred date, degree obtained, major, minor, honors, awards, and comments.

Sources:

The searches are conducted through the specified education institution requested.

Search Type:

An education verification search is conducted and charged per degree. Multiple degrees/majors listed in an order will be billed as separate orders.

Ordering Requirements:

• Applicant’s Name - Last Name, First Name, Middle Name (Time of Enrollment)
• Institution Name
• Institution Address
• Institution Telephone Number (Include Point of Contact)
• Dates of Attendance
• Graduation Date
• Degree Type
• Major
• Minor
• Copy of degree. 
• Authorization form

Estimated Time Service:

On average 6 to 8 days. Some verifications may take longer to complete depending on the cooperation with the institutions being verified.

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Employment Verification

Description:

Verification of previous employment history to confirm work experience. It may include such information as the employer's name, dates of employment, position/title, and/or reason for leaving.. Salary information will be provided if available for disclosure by the source.

Sources:

Government agencies and employers across the country. In some countries, the records of former employees are not kept in a searchable form, and contacting the supervisor or manager is the normal practice.

Ordering Requirements:

• Applicant’s Name - Last Name, First Name, Middle Name
• DOB
• Employer’s Name
• Employer’s Address
• Employer’s Telephone Number
• Dates of Employment
• Position/Title
• Reason for Leaving
• Authorization form

Estimated Time Service:

On average 6 to 8 days. Some verifications may take longer to complete depending on the cooperation with the institutions being verified.

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Global Watchlist Search

Description:

The Global Watchlist Search product provides a thorough search of multiple National and International repositories and government watchlists. The search consists of thousands of databases, many of which are updated daily to provide more up-to-date coverage. 

Sources:

OFAC, FBI Most Wanted (incl. Terrorists), FBI Seeking Information, FBI Hijack Suspects, Politically Exposed Persons, governmental lists, sanctions, enforcements, and warnings from over 500 agencies, criminal courts, & news sources from around the world.

Search Type: 

Multi-jurisdictional database search consisting of both historical and near real-time updated information.

Ordering Requirements:

• Last name 
• First name 
• DOB 
• Authorization Form

Estimated Time Service:

On average 2 days. Verifications will be closed, as Unable to Verify, after 15 business days of unsuccessful attempts.

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International Motor Vehicle Report (IMVR)

Description:

Assesses the validity of a license, its class or classes, and any current suspensions. IMVR provides information on whether the driver is legally eligible to drive. It includes the information present on a physical driver’s license. International MVR is currently available to candidates with a Canadian work location and a Canadian driver’s license. 

Sources:

The Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) data connection for each province is the data source for this screening. 

Ordering Requirements:

• Applicant’s Name - Last Name, First Name, Middle Name
• Country of issue
• Province of issue
• Driver License number
• License Class
• License expiration date

Estimated Time Service:

Unless there are exceptions that require additional input from the candidate, turnaround time is real-time, within seconds.

In Canada, identity verification must be completed for all candidates we obtain a criminal record check for.

Candidates are redirected to the Identity Verification page after completing all steps of the apply flow.

A credit bureau lookup is used to pull 4 knowledge-based questions in a single stage.

When the knowledge-based questions are not completed successfully, the candidate is prompted to upload two images of their ID.

After uploading, the candidate requests video verification and the process continues with live verification or through uploaded videos.

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Acceptable pieces of identification for Canada Identity Verification

A Candidate must provide two (2) valid pieces of identification: A primary card and a secondary card.

PRIMARY pieces of ID

Any government-issued card that includes the Candidate's name, date of birth, signature, and photo.

Examples:

• Driver’s License (issued by Canadian province or territory)
• Foreign Driver’s License
• Canadian Passport
• Foreign Passport
• BC Driver’s Licence and Services Card
• Photo BC Services Card
• Permanent Resident (PR) Card
• Canadian Citizenship Card
• Secure Certificate of Indian Status Card
• Canadian National Institute of The Blind (CNIB) Identification Card
• Federal, Provincial or Municipal Identification Card
• Military Family Card
• Firearms Acquisition Certificate (FAC) or Possession/Acquisition License (PAL)
• Provincial or Territorial Health Cards (1)

SECONDARY pieces of ID

A second “PRIMARY” piece of ID OR a piece of identification from the list below. (Candidate’s name on the secondary piece of ID must match that on the primary ID.)

Examples:

• Government Employment Card
• International Student Card
• Age of Majority Card
• Birth Certificate
• Baptismal Certificate
• Non-Photo BC Services Card
• Hunting License
• Fishing License
• Boating License
• LCBO/Age of Majority Card
• Outdoors Card
• Hospital Card
• Canadian Blood Donor Card
• Immigration Papers
• Student ID
• City/Municipal Library Card
• Utility bill (water, electricity, taxes or Lease agreement showing both name and address will be accepted. To be used only in cases where the Candidate does not have a Secondary piece of ID).

Will NOT be accepted: 

Some examples: Non-Government Employment Card, Social Insurance Number (SIN) card, Credit/Debit Card, Gym member Card, Costco Card, Air Miles Card, etc.

(1) Provincial or Territorial Health Card as Primary ID or Secondary ID: as permitted to be used for identification purposes under provincial law. Government-issued Health card that includes the Candidate's name, date of birth, signature and photo will be accepted if the Candidate volunteers to submit his/her Health Card as a piece of identity and the photocopy of the Health Card number is blacked out before submitting for a criminal background check.

 

• What is an Enhanced Criminal Check?
• Are Vulnerable Sector Checks available in Canada?
• Does the candidate need to verify their identity?

What is an Enhanced Criminal Check?

The Enhanced Criminal Record Check searches the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) within the National Repository of Criminal Records, including Investigative, Identification and Ancillary banks plus local police records which includes the Police Information Portal (PIP) based on the candidate’s name and date of birth. The Enhanced Check will discover any Canadian Criminal Convictions that have not been pardoned or discharged, as well as identifiers that additional information may be present related to the candidate.

The Enhanced Criminal Check identifiers may include any of the following:

• Criminal conviction for which a pardon has not been granted, and conditional and absolute discharges which have not been removed from the CPIC system.
• Probation information
• Prohibited person information
• Wanted person information
• Accused person information
• Peacebonds
• Judicial orders
• Warrants
• If relevant, Absolute and Conditional Discharges, Criminal charges that have been withdrawn, dismissed or Stayed of Proceedings.
• Any negative contact with Police

Are Vulnerable Sector Checks available in Canada?

Due to the Criminal Record Check Act in Canada vulnerable sector checks are available only  to candidates directly from the RCMP or a local police station.

• People who volunteer or have jobs where they are in positions of trust or authority over children or vulnerable persons can be asked to obtain a vulnerable sector check. Accurately referred to as Vulnerable Sector Search/Check (VSS), federal policy prescribes that these checks can ONLY be initiated by the Canadian police service where the candidate lives.

If you do not require a vulnerable sector check then the Enhanced Criminal check will most likely cover what you need.

• In Canada, sexual offenses against a vulnerable person (such as a child) are no longer granted. Therefore the database is not considered active (not increasing) as no one can apply for this type of conviction pardon any longer. The law regarding record suspensions (formerly pardons) took effect March 13th, 2012, and in such pardons are no longer granted for the types of convictions that are included in the pardoned sex offender database.  The one component of the VSS that we are not able to provide are the pardons that relate to sexual crimes against children.

If you require a vulnerable sector check for new candidates, we recommend that you send the candidate to the police station following an Enhanced Criminal Record Check.

For more information, see the Royal Canadian Mounted Police document: Types of criminal background checks.

Does the candidate need to verify their identity?

Yes. In Canada, identity verification must be completed for all candidates we obtain a criminal record check for. For more information on Identity Verification, refer to What identification documents are accepted for Canada Identity Verification?

*Please note: Identity verification is conducted as part of the Checkr Canada background check process but is not conducted as part of US background checks.