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North Dakota Background Check
Choose a North Dakota BCI background check, prepare the required identifiers, and understand public-report limits before relying on the result.
Pick the North Dakota product that matches the purpose
Official North Dakota criminal history
Use the Bureau of Criminal Investigation route when the recipient wants an official North Dakota criminal-history record check. BCI distinguishes this from generic searches assembled from public sources.
Name-based BCI request
This can be appropriate for a standard public state check when the recipient does not require fingerprints. Supply full identifying information because a name-only match can be sensitive to aliases or similar names.
Fingerprint-based check
Fingerprints are the stronger identity key and may be required for a statutory employment/licensing program. Follow the requesting agency’s packet rather than converting a public form into a regulated check.
Build the public BCI request without leaving identity gaps
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01
List every known name
Include full current name, maiden/former names, and aliases on the official request. Add date of birth and the current address or the required authorization.
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Choose SSN or fingerprints as the form permits
The BCI request instructions call for the identifying fields specified by the form; fingerprint-based processing can resolve identity issues that a name variation might miss.
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Send the original signed request and fee
The published public-request fee is $15. BCI says to mail the original signed form with check or money order; its Bismarck office also accepts the public request under the posted payment rules.
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Plan for normal processing
BCI currently states approximately 7-10 business days. If certification or notarization is required, include a written request instead of assuming the ordinary response has that feature.
Audit the coverage before calling the report complete
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Need federal history?
A general public North Dakota BCI result does not include federal records.
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Need another state or tribal jurisdiction?
Those records are outside the North Dakota public criminal-history result and require the appropriate separate source or authorized product.
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Need juvenile, civil, or most traffic information?
The BCI result guide lists juvenile records, civil judgments, and most traffic records among categories not included in this product.
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Need a purpose-specific regulated screening?
Licensing, school, care, or other statutory programs may have their own fingerprint and recipient instructions. Use that packet when it applies.
Read the response according to North Dakota dissemination rules
| Response clue | What it supports | What it does not prove |
|---|---|---|
| Reported conviction/charge information | Information BCI is permitted to disseminate under the public-request rules. | It does not expand the report beyond the exclusions described in the official result guide. |
| No-information response | BCI did not return disseminable information for that request. | It can mean no information exists or that information is not permitted for release; it is not a universal “never arrested/charged” certificate. |
| Private-company background result | A vendor’s assembled report under its stated sources. | BCI says it does not verify the accuracy/completeness of a private background-check company’s result. |
Keep the report scope with every conclusion
A North Dakota check is not a nationwide criminal-history guarantee
The Attorney General’s comparison and result guidance define both the official product and its limits. Record the search method, identifiers supplied, request date, and whether the result was name- or fingerprint-based so a later reviewer can tell exactly what was checked.