Criminal Background Check Idaho

Select the Idaho check your recipient actually requires

Idaho State Police’s Bureau of Criminal Identification (BCI) supplies Idaho criminal-history checks. A name-based check costs $20; a fingerprint-based Idaho check costs $25 under the January 1, 2026 fee schedule. A local police-record search covers only that agency’s records. Ask the recipient whether it requires Idaho-only history, an authorized state-and-national check, or a notarized result before arranging fingerprints or paying.

The Idaho repository is built from reported Idaho arrests supported by fingerprint submissions. It does not include other states’ records, FBI records or federal-court convictions, and an unsubmitted arrest can exist locally without appearing in the repository. Juvenile records are excluded unless the event was handled as an adult case. A no-record response has these limits.

Prepare a name check and understand the waiver

Download BCI’s Name-Based Criminal Background Check Form and complete its payment authorization. Enter the full name, aliases including former married names, birth date and other required identifying fields; the form marks Social Security number as optional. Use a separate legible form for each request. Name-only results can be affected by shared names, aliases and false birth dates, and BCI does not notarize this product.

A waiver is not required for every Idaho name check. Without one, BCI cannot release an arrest more than twelve months old with no disposition to a noncriminal-justice requester. A waiver submitted with the request must have been signed within 180 days. If the middle name must appear in the response, tell BCI when submitting rather than assuming it will be printed automatically.

Assemble the fingerprint packet for positive identification

For the $25 fingerprint check, send the current fingerprint-based request form, payment authorization and a full set of inked, rolled fingerprints on an applicant card. The card needs the subject’s printed name and aliases, signature, current address, citizenship, physical descriptors, birth date and birthplace, and reason for fingerprinting. The official taking the prints must sign and date the card within 180 days of submission.

BCI can notarize Idaho fingerprint-based results on request, so indicate that requirement in the packet. This is different from a certified court disposition, which comes from the court. Review the card’s personal details with the technician before leaving; a legible fingerprint impression cannot compensate for an incomplete request form or incorrect payment.

Get prints taken at the appropriate location

ISP headquarters offers walk-in fingerprint collection at 700 South Stratford Drive, Suite 120, Meridian, ID 83642, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding government holidays. Bring a current government-issued photo ID. The collection service costs $10 for the first card and $5 for each additional card; these are separate from the repository-check fee. ISP district offices do not provide this collection service.

Outside the Treasure Valley, BCI directs applicants to local law enforcement for fingerprint collection. Confirm that the provider can prepare the required applicant card, its appointment policy and its own charge. Cash, check and credit/debit are listed for ISP collection; card transactions add $1 plus 2.5 percent of the transaction total. Do not assume another collection site charges ISP’s rate.

Use the correct submission and return channels

Name-check requests may be hand-delivered, mailed or faxed to BCI; fingerprint packets may be hand-delivered or mailed. Neither may be emailed. Use the forms’ current submission details and address mailed packets to Idaho State Police, BCI, 700 S. Stratford Drive, Suite 120, Meridian, ID 83642. Include payment authorization even when the rest of the packet is complete.

Checks and money orders on the name-check form are payable to Idaho State Police. ISP accepts cash, check or credit card for the published check fees, with the stated $1 plus 2.5 percent card surcharge. Incomplete data or wrong amounts can cause a return; a returned check carries a $20 processing charge. Results are not given by telephone, fax or email, even though a name request may be submitted by fax.

BCI processes requests in arrival order and asks applicants to allow sufficient time; the general instructions do not promise a fixed turnaround. Supply a reliable return mailing address and discuss deadline concerns with the Applicant Unit at 208-884-7130, option 1. [email protected] is a question contact, not permission to email a background-check application or its payment details.

Keep national checks and redistribution within their authorization

For an employer or licensing program requiring FBI information, obtain the authorized agency’s instructions. The dated 2026 ISP notice lists $37 for the specified initial concealed-weapons, employment, licensure and NCPA-employee national checks, and $35 for NCPA volunteers. Older NCPA amounts remain on part of the general page; use the dated notice and confirm the program’s full total with the submitting agency.

The NCPA route is for qualified entities serving covered populations; it is not an unrestricted public national-name search. Idaho also limits onward dissemination of BCI criminal-history information: a noncriminal-justice recipient generally needs the subject’s signed release or another legal basis to give it to someone else. Receiving a report does not by itself authorize redistributing it.

Correct a mistaken match or missing disposition

If a check contains charges that do not belong to you, BCI directs you to request your own fingerprint-based record to challenge the match. It says the fingerprint-based check is processed without charge when challenging a record; separately confirm any fingerprint-collection cost. After reviewing the response, supply supporting court or arresting-agency records identifying the error or missing disposition.

A dismissed charge can remain in Idaho history with the dismissal recorded. Disputing inaccurate information and seeking legal removal of an accurate record are different steps. BCI’s correction procedure uses originating-agency direction or an appropriate court order, so obtain the actual dated disposition when an entry lacks its outcome rather than treating the arrest entry as a conviction.