How Long Does the HireRight Background Check Take?

HireRight is one of the leading providers of background screening services and is helping all kinds of organizations and individuals make the right hiring decision.

But what does the screening process look like? How long does it take? What does it involve? We answer all these questions below.

Keep on reading to learn more!

What Is HireRight?

When it comes to background screenings, HireRight is a well-known and reputable company that has been operating in the field for over 30 years.

By continuously innovating, HireRight has managed to stay one of the most effective and popular suppliers of background screening solutions.

Any company looking for customer-focused, quick, and detailed background checks should engage HireRight’s services. By doing so, they will get a unified screening platform that provides close to 100% accurate and dispute-free information.

How Long Does the HireRight Background Check Take?

The entire HireRight background screening procedure typically takes between 2 to 4 business days. However, the length of the process depends on the exact checks that are ordered and how extensive they are. For that reason, we’re taking a closer look at several different checks employed by HireRight and their completion times.

Main Checks Conducted by HireRight

Naturally, different screening types involve different levels of complexity, information gathering, and purposes. So let’s see how HireRight’s checks differ.

1. Criminal Background Check

This type of background check involves searching for any criminal records associated with an individual. Employers commonly use criminal background checks to ensure workplace safety and assess an applicant’s trustworthiness. 

Criminal background checks typically involve searching various databases for records related to an individual’s criminal activities, including felony and misdemeanor convictions, arrests, pending charges, sex offender registries, and other relevant records. The search extent will vary based on the employer’s and the industry’s regulations.

However, since this type of check is the most extensive and involves checking with various city, county, state, and federal databases, it can take up to 2–3 days. Employers checking international criminal records may even have to wait a few weeks.

2. Employment Verification 

One of HireRight’s verification services is the employment history check, which is crucial for hiring managers, as they need to look at the candidate’s previous job titles, dates of employment, and reasons for leaving. Not to mention the applicant’s work experience and qualifications are also checked.

Employment verification typically involves contacting the applicant’s previous employers to obtain relevant information, which can be done through direct contact with HR departments or designated personnel responsible for providing employment verification.

The turnaround time for employment verification checks can range from a few days to a couple of weeks, depending on the location and responsiveness of the employers.

3. Education Verification

Another verification service offered by HireRight is the education check, which seeks to validate an individual’s educational credentials, such as degrees, certifications, and dates of attendance, to determine if he or she possesses the necessary qualifications.

During the education verification, employers seek to confirm several key details, such as the applicant’s attendance dates, degrees earned, areas of study, honors received, and any other relevant achievements. In some cases, employers may also request verification of professional certifications or licenses obtained through educational institutions.

Education verifications typically take a few days but may be prolonged up to a couple of weeks when trying to obtain information from uncooperative institutions.

4. Reference Checks

Reference checks involve contacting the sponsors of the candidate’s references to gather information about his or her character, work ethic, and professional abilities.

References typically come from individuals who have had a professional relationship with the applicant, including their former supervisors, colleagues, clients, or others who can provide a valuable perspective on the applicant’s work performance. Personal references, such as friends or family members, are generally not included in the check.

The duration of reference checks largely depends on the responsiveness of the sponsors. That said, they are normally completed within a single day.

5. Professional License Verification

For individuals in regulated professions or industries, HireRight conducts professional license verification to confirm the validity of their licenses. This check is often required for positions such as doctors, nurses, engineers, financial advisors, or even commercial drivers.

The timeframe for professional license verification can vary depending on the licensing board and its response time, typically ranging from a few days to several weeks.

6. Credit History Check

A credit history check examines an individual’s credit report to assess their creditworthiness, i.e., their ability to take on, handle, and dispose of debt. Needless to say, this check is crucial for positions that involve handling finances or sensitive financial data and can be obtained within an hour when applied for by the actual record holder.

Credit reports contain abundant information, including the number and status of the individual’s credit accounts, payment history, debts, and bankruptcies, and when and how often the report was accessed. Combined together, all these pieces of information provide invaluable insights into an individual’s borrowing and repayment habits.

It’s important to note that credit history checks must comply with applicable laws and regulations, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) in the United States. These laws protect individuals’ privacy rights and ensure that the information obtained from credit reports is used appropriately and legally.

Why Does the HireRight Process Duration Vary?

Several factors are to blame for any delays during the screening process. For instance, applicants requesting background checks may fill out the necessary forms incorrectly, or they may fail to obtain the required authorizations for them.

Also, the sources where the checks seek information may be at fault: missing court records, slow response times, and missing credit histories all affect some background checks. Not to mention that for individuals with multiple names and residencies, the process lengthens as all the data must be dug up, checked, and compared.

Bottom Line

All in all, while a comprehensive HireRight background check may take up to four days to conclude, the length of time will still vary from case to case; after all, external circumstances, such as the weather or the record-keeping technologies, factor in.

That said, if you are not ordering extensive screenings, you should receive the background screening report within a couple of days. For that reason, employers and job candidates should maintain open communication with the screening company at all times.