GoodHire’s federal background check guide explains that a federal background check is a specific type of criminal screening that searches the U.S. federal court system (across 94 federal districts via PACER) to uncover convictions for federal offenses—such as fraud, embezzlement, tax evasion, identity theft, counterfeiting, and kidnapping—that may not appear in state or county records. Employers often include federal checks as part of a broader pre-employment screening to better assess candidate eligibility, safety, and risk for sensitive or high-responsibility roles, especially in regulated industries. Federal checks are typically complementary to state and local searches and must comply with federal hiring laws like the FCRA, requiring candidate consent and appropriate adverse-action pro

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