Fingerprint card question- FBI clearance

Bug Out, BSN · Oct 3, 2009

EDITED...

Looking into it more it I believe there is a difference in the way the investigations are conducted.

The basic "background check" only goes back 7 years.

The AZ basic fingerprint clearance card looks at only certain criminal offenses. The Level 1 card is a bit more strict and much more broad on the type of offenses it looks at. The basic card only looks at offenses that are seen as "morally corrupt" offenses.

The FBI clearance (depending on what level and type you are applying for) is a bit more broad, kind of like the AZ Level 1 card looking at your total history and taking into account all the violations.

OCD_Mom · Oct 3, 2009

I havea family member who works for the FBI and I know the FBI is very very detailed and goes through your entire history not to miss a thing. So people take years to get through the background investigation while some are lucky enough to only take a few months. These two type of entities are so different. They look into everything you have done asking questions about everyday activities and things many of us would think have no bearing on the job but they do.

smileyperson · Nov 1, 2009

The Department of Defense Secret/Top Secret clearance is primarily concerned with anything in your life that could cause you to be unreliable with the classified material you're supposed to be keeping secret. Serious criminal activity, excessive debt, gambling habit, substance habit, potential for you to be blackmailed, or relationships with anti-American groups or foreign nationals from other countries. The FBI sometimes needs to send agents to visit your references and neighbors to ask questions about your behavior and character. Anyone who knows you can be interviewed. It can take upwards of a year to get your clearance.

The DPS fingerprint card identifies you as someone who hasn't been convicted of any serious crimes in the United States. They run your fingerprints through the federal criminal database and the databases of all 50 states as well. It only takes 6-8 weeks to get your card.

So that is the difference between the two. It's entirely possible to get an AZ DPS fingerprint card and yet not qualify for a DOD clearance. It would be an odd situation if someone were able to get a clearance and not a fingerprint card.