Each state has different departments and procedures for administering criminal background checks. Consult the table below for state-specific information concerning fees, contact information, and request forms to ensure that you can obtain the documents that you need in order to submit a successful criminal rehabilitation or temporary resident permit application.
| State | Department | Address | Phone Number | Fee | Processing Time (Approximate) |
| Alabama | Alabama Department of Public Safety, Alabama Bureau of Investigation
Attention: Identification Unit |
P.O. Box 1511
Montgomery, AL 36192-1511 |
(334) 242-4372 or (334) 242-4392 | $25.00 | |
| Alaska | Alaska Department of Public Safety
Attention: Records and Identification |
5700 East Tudor Road
Anchorage, AK, 99507
|
(907) 269-5767 or (907)-269-5765 | $25.00 (name-based) or $35.00 (fingerprints) | |
| Arizona | Arizona Department of Public Safety Criminal Identification Section | P.O. Box 6638 Phoenix, AZ,
85005 |
(602) 223-2000 | $65.00 or $67.00 | 5-8 weeks |
| Arkansas | The Arkansas State Police
Attention: I.D. Bureau |
1 State Police Plaza Drive
Little Rock, AR, 72209
|
(501) 618-8500 | $25.00 | |
| California | The California Department of Justice
Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information Attention: Record Review Unit |
P.O. Box 903417
Sacramento, CA, 94203-4170
|
(916) 322-2209 or (916) 227-3849 | $32.00 | |
| Colorado | The Colorado Bureau of Investigation Identification Unit
Contact: Frank Vanecek |
690 Kipling Street, Suite 3000
Denver, CO, 80215 |
(303) 239-4300 or (303) 239-4208 | $13.00 | |
| Connecticut | The State of Connecticut Department of Public Safety
State Police Bureau of Identification |
1111 Country Club Road
P.O. Box 2794 Middletown, CT, 06475-9294
|
(860) 685-8270 | $36.00 or $50.00 | |
| Delaware | The Delaware State Police | 1441 North Dupont Highway
(P.O. Box 430) Dover, DE 19903-0430 |
(302) 739-5871 | $52.50 (only State) or $69 (State and Federal) | |
| District of Columbia | The Metropolitan Police Department
Attention: Criminal History and Records |
300 Indiana Avenue N.W.,
Suite. 3055 Washington, DC, 20001 Request PD Form 70 in person
|
(202) 727-4245 | $7.00 | 24 hours or 6-8 weeks for finger-print FBI checks |
| Florida | The Florida Department of Law Enforcement
Attention: Criminal Records Inquiry Section |
P.O. Box 1489
Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489
|
(850) 410-7000 | $24.00 | |
| Georgia | Georgia Crime Information Center
GCIC/CCH Identification Services |
P.O. Box 370748
Decatur, GA 30037-0748 |
(404) 244-2639 | $20.75 | 10-14 business days |
| Hawaii | State of Hawaii
Department of the Attorney General Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center |
Kekuanao’a Building, Room 101
465 South King Street Honolulu, HI 96813 Fill request form online at http://bit.ly/K70T5j
|
(808) 587-3279 | $20.00 | |
| Idaho | The Department of Law Enforcement
Criminal Identification Bureau BCI Applicant Unit Contact: Maria Wiley, Unit Supervisor |
700 South Stratford Drive,
Ste 120 Meridian, ID 83642
|
(208) 884-7130 | $10.00 | |
| Illinois | The Illinois State Police
Bureau of Identification |
260 North Chicago Street
Joliet, IL 60431-1060 Fill request form online at http://bit.ly/do3ye1
|
(815) 740-5160 | $20.00 | |
| Indiana | The Indiana State Police
Criminal History Limited Check |
P.O. Box 6188
Indianapolis, IN 46204-6188
|
(317) 233-5424 | $7.00 | Minimum 5
business days |
| Iowa | The State of Iowa
Department of Public Safety Division of Criminal Investigation Bureau of Identification |
215 E. 7th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319 |
(515) 725-6066 | $15.00 | 2-5 business days |
| Kansas | The Kansas Bureau of Investigation
Attention: Records |
1620 South West Tyler Street
Topeka, KS 66612-1837 Fill Request Form Online at http://bit.ly/JGKjmN
|
(785) 296-8200 | $35.00 | |
| Kentucky | The Department of State Police Records | 1250 Louisville Road
Frankfort, KY, 40601
|
(502) 227-8700 ext. 8713 | $20.00 | |
| Louisiana | Louisiana State Police
Bureau of Identification |
P.O. Box 66614
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70896
|
(504) 925-6095 | $26.00 | |
| Maine | The State Bureau of Identification | 45 Commerce Drive
State House Station 42 Augusta, ME 04333-0042 Fill Request Form Online at http://bit.ly/JGO7V0
|
(207) 624-7240 | $41.00 | |
| Maryland | The State of Maryland
Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services CJIS Central Repository |
P.O. Box 32708
Pikesville, MD, 21208 |
(410) 764-4501 | $34.50 | |
| Massachusetts | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Office of Public Safety Criminal History Systems Board Criminal Justice Information |
Suite 2200
200 Arlington Street Chelsea MA, 02150
|
(617) 660-4600 | $25.00 | |
| Michigan | The Michigan State Police
Criminal Records Division |
106 W. Allegan
Lansing, Michigan 48933 |
(517) 322-1956 | $30.00 | 3-5 Weeks |
| Minnesota | The Department of Public Safety
Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) |
1430 E. Maryland Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55106 |
(651) 793-2400 | $8.00 | 2 weeks |
| Mississippi | Criminal Information Centre
Special Processing Unit |
3891 Highway 468 West
Pearl, MS 39208 |
(601) 933-2600 | ||
| Missouri | The Missouri State Highway Patrol
Criminal Records & Identification Division |
P.O. Box 9500
Jefferson City, MO 65102 |
(573) 526-6153 | $16.50 | |
| Montana | The Montana Department of Justice
Law Enforcement Services Division Attention: ID Bureau |
303 North Roberts – 4th Floor
P.O. Box 201403 Helena, MT 59620-1403 |
(406) 444-3625 | $32.25 | |
| Nebraska | The Nebraska State Patrol
Criminal Investigation Division Records and Identification |
Box 94907
Lincoln, NE, 68509-4907
|
(402) 471-4545 | $15.00 | |
| Nevada | Department of Public Safety
Records Bureau |
333 West Nye Lane, Suite 100
Carson City, NV 89706
|
(775) 684-6262 | $21.00 | |
| New Hampshire | The New Hampshire Department of Safety
Division of State Police |
33 Hazen Drive Concord, NH 03305
|
(603) 271-2538 | $25.00 | |
| New Jersey | Department of Law and Public Safety
Division of State Police, CIU Attention: Records and Identification Section |
P.O. Box 7068, West Trenton, NJ, 08628
|
(609) 882-2000 ext. 2991 | $41.00 | |
| New Mexico | The Department of Public Safety
Records Section |
P.O. Box 1628, 4491 Cerrillos Street, Sante Fe, NM 87504-1628
|
(505) 827-9233 | $44.00 | 7-15 Working Days |
| New York | The New York State
Division of Criminal Justice Services |
4 Tower Place, Albany, NY 12203-3764
|
(518) 485-7675 | $60.75 | |
| North Carolina | The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation
Division of Criminal Information |
3320 Old Garner Road Raleigh, NC 27626-0500
|
(919) 662-4509 Ext. 6266 | $25.00 | |
| North Dakota | Bureau of Criminal Investigation | Box 1054, 4205 State Street Bismark, ND 58503 | (701) 328-5500 | $29.50 | |
| Ohio | The State of Ohio
Office of the Attorney General Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation |
P.O. Box 365, London, OH, 43140
|
(740) 845-2000 or 1-877-224-0043 | $8.00 | |
| Oklahoma | The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation
Criminal History Information |
6600 North Harvey, Building 6, Oklahoma City, OK 73116 | (405) 848-6724 | $19.00 | |
| Oregon | Oregon State Police
Unit 11 |
P.O. Box 4395, Portland, OR, 97208-4395
|
(503) 378-3070 | $33.00 | |
| Pennsylvania | The Pennsylvania State Police
Central Repository |
1800 Elmerton Avenue Harrisburg, PA, 17110-9758
Fill Form Online At http://bit.ly/3d6G7t
|
(717) 783-5588 | $10.00 | 2-3 weeks |
| Rhode Island | State of Rhode Island
Office of the Attorney General Bureau of Criminal Identification |
150 South Main Street Providence, RI, 02903 | (401) 421-5268 | $5.00 | 7 Business Days |
| South Carolina | South Carolina Law Enforcement Division
S.L.E.D. Records |
P.O. Box 21398 4400 Broadriver Road Columbia, SC, 29221 | (803) 896-7005 | $25.00 | |
| South Dakota | Office of Attorney General
The Division of Criminal Investigation |
1302 E. Highway 14
Suite 5, Pierre, SD 57501
|
(605) 773-3331 | $43.25 | |
| Tennessee | Tennessee Bureau of Investigation | 901 R.S. Gass Blvd. Nashville, TN 37216
Fill Form Online At http://bit.ly/M9aerv
|
(615) 744-4095 | $29.00 | |
| Texas | The Texas Department of Public Safety
Attention: Crime Records Division |
P.O. Box 15999, 505 North Lamar Blvd. Austin, TX, 78761-5999
|
(512) 424-2079 | $24.95 | |
| Utah | Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification | 3888 W. 5400 Street Taylorsville, Utah 84129
|
(801) 965-4445 | $15.00 | |
| Vermont | The Department of Public Safety
Vermont Criminal Information Center |
103 South Main Street Waterbury, VT, 05671-2101
|
(802) 244-8727 | $30.00 | 5-7 days by mail
or 10 minutes in person |
| Virginia | Department of State | P.O. Box 85076 Richmond, VA 23261-5076
|
(804) 674-2000 | 15.00 | |
| Washington | The Washington State Patrol
Identification Division |
P.O. Box 42633 Olympia, WA, 98504-2633
|
(360) 534-2000 | $17.00 | |
| West Virginia | West Virginia State Police | 725 Jefferson Road South Charleston, WV, 25309
Fill Form Online At http://bit.ly/Lvl1JN
|
(304) 746-2170 | $28.85 (State Only) | |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin Department of Justice
Crime Information Bureau |
P.O. Box 2688 Madison, WI, 53701-2688
Fill Form Online At http://bit.ly/L0NE2x
|
(608) 266-7314 | $7 (by internet) $12 (if mail/fax) | |
| Wyoming | The State of Wyoming
Division of Criminal Investigation |
316 West 22nd Street Cheyenne, WY, 82002 | (307) 777-7523 | $15.00 | 10 business days |
Each state has different departments and procedures for administering criminal background checks. Consult the table below for state-specific information concerning fees, contact information, and request forms to ensure that you can obtain the documents that you need in order to submit a successful criminal rehabilitation or temporary resident permit application.
The tragic events of September 11th, 2001 propelled changes even further placing added conditions of entry on the notably friendly border. As of June 1st, 2009 the full provisions of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative were implemented which required any foreign national to present their passport or equivalent document in order to enter the United States. Similarly, American citizens now need to present their passports to enter Canada. The process of entering Canada also has additional steps for any American citizen with a criminal record.
Depending on the circumstances of a particular case, foreign nationals have two options in terms of overcoming their inadmissibility to Canada; the short-term solution of acquiring a Temporary Resident Permit or the permanent solution of Criminal Rehabilitation. While slightly different in their outcome, both of these options require submitting applications to a Canadian consulate in the United States. Among the requirements of these paperwork-heavy applications are state police clearances, and in some cases FBI clearances. The title of such documents can vary by state, but they all serve the same purpose of outlining offenses incurred by an individual.
A state police clearance can offer immigration officials an official and trusted account of the applicant’s criminal history within the jurisdiction of the specified state. An application is strengthened when a background check from the Federal Bureau of Investigation is also included, as it discloses one’s criminal history in all of the United States.
To acquire state police clearances individuals must make requests through the individual states.
For more information on Temporary Resident Permits, Criminal Rehabilitation and all matters involving Canadian Immigration, contact us here!
FWCanada is a Montreal-based immigration law firm that provides professional legal services on Canadian immigration. For more tips and updates on Canadian immigration follow FWCanada on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.
