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

Pennsylvania employers may run background checks, and the state sets its own rules for how criminal records are used. As of October 2026, the main ones are: convictions may be considered only as they relate to suitability for the job, with written notice when a rejection is based on them (18 Pa.C.S. 9125); records expunged or given limited access under the Clean Slate law may not be asked about or used; the Pennsylvania State Police drop stale arrests from the reports they release; and jobs with children and older adults need state-mandated clearances. Philadelphia adds a stricter fair chance law that was amended effective January 6, 2026.

The federal paperwork (stand-alone disclosure, authorization, pre-adverse and adverse action notices) applies to any Pennsylvania hire that uses a screening company and is covered step by step in the FCRA background check process. This page covers the Pennsylvania layer, with each statute linked to the General Assembly's site.

How may Pennsylvania employers use criminal records?

Section 9125 of the Criminal History Record Information Act is short and applies to every employer that receives information from an applicant's criminal history record file:

• Only convictions, only if relevant. "Felony and misdemeanor convictions may be considered by the employer only to the extent to which they relate to the applicant's suitability for employment in the position for which he has applied" (9125(b)).
• Written notice. "The employer shall notify in writing the applicant if the decision not to hire the applicant is based in whole or in part on criminal history record information" (9125(c)).

Because the section speaks of felony and misdemeanor convictions, arrests that did not end in conviction and summary offenses are not on the list of what may be weighed. In practice, the 9125(c) notice can travel with the federal adverse action notice, but it is a separate state duty, so make sure the letter says the decision was based in whole or in part on criminal history. A background check notification email template helps keep these notices consistent.

What does Clean Slate mean for employers?

Pennsylvania's Clean Slate law puts many records under "limited access," which keeps them out of the reports the public and employers can get. Under 18 Pa.C.S. 9122.2, limited access applies automatically, subject to exceptions, to:

• charges that ended in a final disposition other than a conviction;
• summary offense convictions after five years, once restitution is paid;
• second and third degree misdemeanors, and misdemeanors punishable by no more than two years, after seven years free of convictions punishable by a year or more, once restitution is paid;
• convictions for certain qualifying offenses after ten years free of convictions punishable by a year or more, once restitution is paid;
• convictions for which a conditional pardon was granted.

The effect on hiring is set out in section 9122.5. An individual "may not be required or requested to disclose" an expunged or limited-access record, and if asked "may respond as if the offense did not occur." Except where federal law requires it, those records "may not be used by any individual or noncriminal justice agency for employment," and they do not count as a conviction that would disqualify someone from a job under Pennsylvania law. The disclosure rule does not apply where federal law, including the rules of a securities self-regulatory organization, requires the employer to consider criminal history.

To make hiring such candidates less risky, section 9122.6 makes an employer immune from liability for claims arising from an employee's misconduct that relates to the expunged or limited-access part of the record, and protects an employer's otherwise lawful use of information an applicant volunteers.

What does a Pennsylvania State Police check show?

The State Police run the state repository and sell checks through the Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH) site. As of October 2026, the State Police's request page says an individual check costs $22 (plus $5 to notarize), volunteer checks are free, and online and mail-in requests are checked against Pennsylvania records only, not federal records.

Before releasing a record to an employer, the State Police must extract arrests where three years have passed with no disposition and nothing shows the case is pending, and everything subject to a limited access order (18 Pa.C.S. 9121(b)(2)). A PATCH result is not a consumer report, so the FCRA disclosure does not apply when you run it yourself, but section 9125 does. A screening company's report can contain county court data that PATCH would not, so read dispositions carefully and do not use anything section 9122.5 puts off limits.

We did not find a Pennsylvania statute that sets its own reporting lookback for screening companies, so the federal limits apply to their reports (15 U.S.C. § 1681c), and Philadelphia's lookback below applies to employers there.

Which Pennsylvania jobs need state clearances?

• Jobs with children. Under the Child Protective Services Law, 23 Pa.C.S. 6344, employees of child-care services, people 14 or older applying for paid positions responsible for children's welfare or with direct contact with children, and contractors providing child-care services must, before starting, give the employer a State Police criminal history report, a Department of Human Services child abuse certification, and an FBI fingerprint-based report, with narrower requirements for some applicants aged 14 to 17. The employer must keep copies. Public school employees follow section 111 of the Public School Code, plus the child abuse certification.
• Care for older adults. Facilities covered by the Older Adults Protective Services Act still must run criminal history checks for all applicants, but the Department of Aging's background check page explains that the Commonwealth Court held the Act's lifetime employment ban unenforceable in 2015 and recommends a case-by-case, individualized risk assessment with counsel. Federal checks run through fingerprints with the Commonwealth's vendor.

Staffing agencies placing tutors, camp staff, child care workers or home care aides should confirm with the client who collects the clearances and that they are on file before the first shift.

What does Philadelphia require?

Philadelphia's Fair Criminal Records Screening Standards Ordinance, also called the Fair Chance Hiring law, applies to employers with one or more employees, with some exceptions. According to the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations' fair chance page, employers may not ask about criminal records on job applications, may run a criminal background check only after a conditional offer, may not ask about arrests or accusations that did not lead to conviction, may reject an applicant only if the record makes the person an "unacceptable risk," and must give written reasons, the report and 10 days to respond.

The city's notice of 2026 amendments (enacted October 8, 2025, effective January 6, 2026) adds:

• a lookback of seven years for felony convictions and four years for misdemeanor convictions, counted from conviction or release from custody, whichever is later, and no consideration of summary offenses;
• a statement, in the notice of intent to run a check, that the check will include an individualized assessment;
• a duty to consider evidence of rehabilitation;
• a written adverse decision packet: notice of rights, the basis for the decision with the criminal history and documents used, what evidence of errors or rehabilitation will be considered, how to respond, and the 10 days to do so;
• a presumption of retaliation for adverse action within 90 days of someone exercising their rights.

Philadelphia also restricts employment credit checks (Code § 9-1130) and salary history questions (Code § 9-1131); see credit check laws for employers and salary history bans by state and city. We did not find a statewide Pennsylvania law on either. The city also has a separate rule on pre-employment marijuana testing; see Pennsylvania drug testing laws.

Pennsylvania background check rules at a glance

What should recruiters and staffing agencies do in Pennsylvania?

1. Ask about convictions only, and tell candidates they need not list expunged or limited-access records. In Philadelphia, ask nothing about records until a conditional offer.
2. Keep criminal history out of interviews. If a candidate volunteers a case, do not follow up or note it. If you transcribe interviews with an AI note taker, remove the passage from any notes you share.
3. Write the job-relatedness reason before any rejection based on a conviction, and send the section 9125(c) notice alongside the FCRA notices.
4. Apply the Philadelphia lookback and notices for any Philadelphia job, including the 10-day response window.
5. Collect child and older-adult clearances before day one, and keep copies where the law requires.
6. Put it in a policy. A background check policy that names checks by role keeps recruiters and clients consistent.