What shows up on a background check in California?

For most private-employment checks by consumer reporting agencies, convictions older than seven years cannot be reported (Civil Code section 1786.18), arrests that never led to conviction generally cannot be used (Labor Code section 432.7), and employers with five or more employees cannot ask about convictions before a conditional offer (Government Code section 12952).

What an employer may see and what it may use are governed separately. On reporting, California's Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act limits background-check companies to convictions from the last seven years (Civil Code section 1786.18). On use, Labor Code section 432.7 bars most employers from considering arrests that did not end in conviction, participation in diversion, and convictions judicially dismissed or sealed — so relief under Penal Code section 1203.4 has practical teeth in hiring. The Fair Chance Act (Government Code section 12952) then controls sequence: employers with five or more employees may not ask about criminal history until after a conditional offer, and may withdraw the offer only after an individualized assessment tied to the job's duties, with notice and a chance to respond. Exceptions exist where the law requires checks — peace officers, many licensed and caregiving positions — and licensing boards and courts see more. Reviewing your own record through the Department of Justice shows what the rap sheet actually says.

Authority: Cal. Civ. Code § 1786.18