Louisiana background check laws for employers (2026): what you can check and when

Louisiana employers may run background checks, and since August 1, 2021 a state law limits how private employers use what they find. As of October 2026, the main Louisiana rules are R.S. 23:291.2, which bars requesting or considering arrests and charges that did not lead to a conviction and requires an individual assessment of convictions, the right of applicants not to disclose expunged records, State Police conviction checks that need the applicant's consent and fingerprints, mandatory checks for health care, schools and early learning centers, and a limit on negligent hiring claims. New Orleans and Baton Rouge add rules for their contractors.

The federal paperwork (stand-alone disclosure, authorization, pre-adverse and adverse action notices) applies to every Louisiana hire that uses a screening company and is covered in the FCRA background check process. This page covers what Louisiana law adds, with each statute linked. The rest of the state's hiring rules are on hiring employees in Louisiana.

What does Louisiana law say about criminal history in hiring?

R.S. 23:291.2, enacted by Act 406 of 2021 (HB 707) and effective August 1, 2021, has three parts:

• Arrests and charges. "Unless otherwise provided by law, when making a hiring decision, an employer shall not request or consider an arrest record or charge that did not result in a conviction, if such information is received in the course of a background check."
• Individual assessment. For other criminal history, the employer must assess whether the record "has a direct and adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job that may justify denying the applicant the position," considering the nature and gravity of the offense or conduct, the time elapsed since the offense, conduct or conviction, and the nature of the job sought.
• Copy on request. "Upon written request by the applicant an employer shall make available to the applicant any background check information used during the hiring process."

The section does not define "employer," set a size threshold, prescribe a waiting period or a notice before rejection, or list a penalty. It is not a ban-the-box law either: it does not say when you may ask. The federal FCRA pre-adverse action window is the natural place to carry out the assessment and hear the candidate.

Public employers, for contrast

State employers in the unclassified service may not ask about criminal history until after the applicant has had an opportunity to interview, or until a conditional offer if there is no interview, except for law enforcement, corrections and jobs where a check is required by law (R.S. 42:1701). Political subdivisions may not ask about arrest records on an initial application (R.S. 42:1702).

How far back can a Louisiana background check go?

Louisiana has no state lookback limit for screening companies, so the federal FCRA sets the rule: arrests and other non-conviction items older than seven years may not be reported for jobs paying under $75,000 a year, and convictions have no time limit (15 U.S.C. § 1681c). In practice, 23:291.2 makes the age of an offense part of the employer's assessment rather than a reporting limit.

One state rule touches screening data. Under R.S. 9:3571.1, a person denied employment wholly or partly because of information from a credit reporting agency is entitled to a free copy of the report if it is requested from the agency in writing within 60 days, and the employer must, on request, give the name of the agency.

What happens to expunged and juvenile records in Louisiana?

Under Code of Criminal Procedure article 973, an expunged arrest or conviction record "shall be confidential and no longer considered to be a public record," available only to law enforcement and prosecutors for listed purposes, by court order, or to the person. Article 973(C) adds that, except as to those recipients, no person whose record has been expunged "shall be required to disclose to any person that he was arrested or convicted of the subject offense, or that the record of the arrest or conviction has been expunged." So an application question that reaches expunged matters must tell candidates they need not list them.

Some employers still see expunged records. Article 973(B) allows confidential release to listed licensing boards and to anyone requesting a full arrest and conviction record under R.S. 15:587.1, the route used by employers of people who care for children, older people and people with disabilities. Ordinary employer requests to the State Police under 15:587(F) exclude expunged records.

Waiting periods are set in the Code: five years after completing the sentence for most misdemeanors (article 977) and ten years for most felonies (article 978). Juvenile records that have been expunged and sealed are treated as nonexistent, and the person need not disclose the arrest or adjudication (Children's Code article 922).

How do you get a Louisiana criminal record from the State Police?

R.S. 15:587(F)(1) entitles an employer or its representative to obtain an applicant's conviction records from the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information "if the applicant has signed a consent form authorizing the employer to obtain such conviction records," on the bureau's form, and each applicant must be fingerprinted. The State Police fingerprints and background checks page explains the process, and its authorization form lists $31 for the state check (including a $5 technology fee), with FBI processing extra.

Two state rules apply to how you pay and what you promise. R.S. 23:897(A) makes it unlawful for any public or private employer to require an applicant to pay, or to pass on, the cost of fingerprinting or of records the employer requires. And R.S. 23:291(D) gives an employer that ran a background check after obtaining the person's written consent immunity from claims arising out of the disclosure of the information, including failure-to-hire and privacy claims. Written consent is worth getting even when a screening company is not involved.

Which Louisiana jobs require criminal history checks?

• Health care. Before making an offer to a nonlicensed person who will provide nursing care, health-related services or supportive assistance, covered employers must request a State Police criminal history and security check (R.S. 40:1203.2). Temporary employment pending the result is allowed if the person's details are sent within 72 hours, and businesses that provide contract staffing to health care providers must comply too. People with offenses listed in R.S. 40:1203.3 may not be employed, unless pardoned or expunged. The Department of Health's CNA and direct service worker registry page covers the registry checks.
• Schools. People convicted of listed offenses may not be hired as school employees of any kind, and staff of cafeteria, transportation, janitorial and similar contractors count as hired by the school system; fingerprints are required (R.S. 17:15).
• Early learning centers. Fingerprint-based checks for owners, staff, volunteers and contractors, and "under no circumstances" may a center employ a person until the Department of Education has received the required report (R.S. 17:407.42; LDOE child care background checks).

Does Louisiana limit negligent hiring claims?

Yes. Under R.S. 23:291(E), an employer, general contractor, premises owner or other third party is not subject to a negligent hiring or supervision claim "solely because that employee or independent contractor has been previously convicted of a criminal offense." The protection does not apply where the harmful act relates to the prior offense and the employer knew or should have known of the conviction, or to crimes of violence and sex offenses the employer knew or should have known about.

Two more protections sit beside it. An employer that hires a person holding a certificate of employability is not subject to a negligent hiring claim solely because of the person's prior conviction (R.S. 23:291.1). And under 23:291(A) and (B), an employer that gives accurate information about a former employee's job performance or reasons for separation is immune unless it acted in bad faith, and a prospective employer that reasonably relies on it is immune from negligent hiring claims unless a criminal background check or other investigation is required by law. More on the doctrine is in what negligent hiring is.

Do New Orleans, Baton Rouge or Shreveport add rules?

Can Louisiana employers check credit, salary history or social media?

• Credit. We found no statute limiting private employers' credit checks, so the federal FCRA steps and R.S. 9:3571.1 apply; New Orleans contractors are the exception above. Other states are compared in credit check laws for employers.
• Salary history. No statewide ban for private employers; see salary history ban states.
• Social media. R.S. 51:1953 bars requesting or requiring an applicant's username, password or other access to a personal online account, and refusing to hire someone who declines. Public information may still be viewed.

Louisiana background check rules at a glance

What should recruiters and staffing agencies do in Louisiana?

1. Tell your screening company to suppress non-conviction items, or make sure the decision maker never sees them. 23:291.2 bars considering them once received in a background check.
2. Write the individual assessment. For each conviction you rely on, note the gravity, the time elapsed and how it relates to the job's specific duties, and keep the background information ready, since the candidate may ask for it in writing.
3. Get written consent every time, including for State Police checks, and never pass the cost of fingerprints or records on to the candidate.
4. Leave expunged matters off your forms. If a client form asks about convictions, add that expunged records need not be listed.
5. Keep criminal history out of interviews and notes. If a candidate volunteers an arrest, do not follow up or record it. If you record interviews, check Louisiana's recording consent rules and remove the passage from notes you share.
6. Know the regulated settings. Agencies staffing health care providers have their own duty under R.S. 40:1203.2, and early learning centers may not start anyone before the report arrives. Licensing for the agency itself is covered in staffing agency licensing in Louisiana.
7. Put it in a policy. A background check policy or a fair chance hiring policy keeps the assessment consistent across recruiters and clients.

Drug testing follows its own rules, covered in Louisiana drug testing laws. Work authorization checks are a separate process, covered in Louisiana E-Verify requirements, and restrictive covenants in Louisiana non-compete law.