Tennessee Background Check Laws (2026 Guide)

Last verified: March 2026. This page reflects current Tennessee Code Annotated (T.C.A.) provisions, federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requirements, and 2024-2025 legislative updates.

Table of Contents

• Overview of Tennessee Background Check Laws
• Ban the Box in Tennessee
• Employment Background Checks and the FCRA
• Lookback Periods and Reporting Limits
• Criminal Record Expungement in Tennessee
• Housing and Tenant Screening
• Professional Licensing Background Checks
• Firearm Background Checks
• Employer Liability Protections
• Recent Changes to Tennessee Background Check Laws
• Frequently Asked Questions

Overview of Tennessee Background Check Laws

Tennessee background check laws operate at both the state and federal level. The state does not have a comprehensive standalone background check statute that covers all private employers. Instead, Tennessee relies on a patchwork of specific laws addressing public employment, licensed professions, housing, and firearms, while deferring to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) for most private-sector employment screening.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) serves as the central repository for criminal history records in the state. The TBI maintains the state criminal history database and processes both name-based and fingerprint-based background checks for employers, licensing agencies, and individuals.

Tennessee law permits employers to conduct background checks on job applicants and current employees. However, certain rules govern when and how criminal history information can be requested, reported, and used in employment decisions. These rules vary depending on whether the employer is a public or private entity.

Understanding these laws matters whether you are an employer building a compliant screening process, a job applicant wondering what will show up on a check, or a landlord evaluating prospective tenants.

Ban the Box in Tennessee

Tennessee enacted its Ban the Box law in 2016 through Senate Bill 2440, codified at T.C.A. § 8-50-112. This law prohibits state government employers from asking about an applicant's criminal history on the initial job application form.

Who the Law Covers

The Ban the Box law applies only to public-sector employers at the state level. It covers positions within Tennessee state government agencies and departments. Private employers in Tennessee are not required to remove criminal history questions from their applications under state law.

However, the law includes an important exception. Positions that qualify as "covered positions" are exempt from the restriction. A covered position is one where a criminal background check is required under federal law, or where committing a specific offense disqualifies a person from employment under federal or state law.

What Employers Must Consider

When evaluating an applicant with a criminal history for a non-covered position, Tennessee law requires public employers to weigh several factors:

• The specific duties and responsibilities of the position
• How the criminal history relates to fitness for those duties
• The time that has passed since the conviction
• The applicant's age at the time of the offense
• The frequency and seriousness of the offenses
• Evidence of rehabilitation and subsequent conduct
• Any relevant public policy considerations

Local Ban the Box Ordinances

Several Tennessee cities and counties have enacted their own Ban the Box ordinances. These include Nashville/Davidson County, Memphis, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, and Shelby County. Like the state law, these local ordinances apply to public-sector hiring and do not extend to private employers.

Employment Background Checks and the FCRA

Private employers in Tennessee who use a consumer reporting agency (CRA) to conduct background checks must comply with the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681. Tennessee does not have its own "mini-FCRA" statute that adds state-level requirements for private employers beyond what federal law already mandates.

Disclosure and Consent Requirements

Before running a background check through a CRA, employers must:

1. Provide the applicant with a clear, standalone written disclosure stating that a background check may be conducted
2. Obtain the applicant's written authorization before proceeding
3. Certify to the CRA that they have a permissible purpose and have complied with all notice requirements

The disclosure must be a separate document. It cannot be buried in the job application or combined with other forms, according to FTC guidance on using consumer reports.

Adverse Action Process

If an employer decides not to hire someone based on information in a background check report, the FCRA requires a two-step adverse action process:

Step 1: Pre-Adverse Action Notice. Before making a final decision, the employer must send the applicant a copy of the background check report and a document titled "A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act." The applicant must receive a reasonable amount of time (generally five business days) to review the report and dispute any inaccuracies.

Step 2: Final Adverse Action Notice. If the employer proceeds with the adverse decision, they must send a final notice that includes the name and contact information of the CRA that provided the report, a statement that the CRA did not make the hiring decision, and notice of the applicant's right to dispute the report and obtain a free copy within 60 days.

What Employers Can and Cannot Ask

Tennessee does not restrict the types of questions private employers can ask during the application or interview process. Unlike states with broader Ban the Box laws, Tennessee private employers may ask about criminal history on the initial application. However, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recommends that all employers conduct individualized assessments when considering criminal history in hiring decisions.

Lookback Periods and Reporting Limits

Tennessee does not impose its own state-level restriction on how far back criminal convictions can be reported in a background check. This means that a screening report in Tennessee can include a person's entire criminal conviction history, regardless of how old the convictions are.

FCRA Seven-Year Rule

The federal FCRA does impose a seven-year lookback limit on certain types of non-conviction information reported by CRAs. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1681c, a CRA generally cannot report:

Information Type	Lookback Limit
Arrests that did not result in conviction	7 years
Civil suits and civil judgments	7 years
Paid tax liens	7 years
Collection accounts	7 years
Bankruptcies (Chapter 7)	10 years
Bankruptcies (Chapter 13)	7 years
Criminal convictions	No limit

Salary Threshold Exception

The seven-year lookback limit does not apply to positions with an annual salary of $75,000 or more. For these higher-paying positions, CRAs may report arrests, civil suits, and other non-conviction records beyond the seven-year window.

Practical Impact

Because Tennessee has no state-level lookback cap on convictions, and federal law imposes no limit on conviction reporting, a Tennessee background check can reveal criminal convictions from decades ago. This makes expungement particularly important for Tennessee residents seeking to limit what appears on their records.

Criminal Record Expungement in Tennessee

Tennessee's expungement laws allow eligible individuals to have certain criminal records removed from their history. The primary statute governing expungement is T.C.A. § 40-32-101, which the legislature has expanded and reorganized in recent years.

Non-Conviction Expungement

Charges that resulted in a dismissal, nolle prosequi, no true bill, or a not guilty verdict are eligible for expungement at no cost to the individual. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation processes these expungements after the court issues an order. Individuals who completed a pretrial or judicial diversion program may also petition for expungement, though clerk fees apply.

Conviction Expungement

Tennessee permits expungement of certain criminal convictions, subject to strict eligibility requirements. Only individuals with one or two total criminal convictions (including convictions in other states and federal court) may apply. The eligible offenses fall into specific categories:

Eligible offenses include:

• Most misdemeanor convictions (excluding domestic violence and DUI)
• Certain Class E felonies, including theft, forgery, vandalism, and fraudulent insurance claims
• A limited number of specific Class C and D felonies enumerated in the statute

Ineligible offenses include:

• DUI convictions
• Domestic assault (even misdemeanor level)
• Any offense requiring sex offender registration
• Violent felonies classified as Class A or B
• Most offenses involving minor victims

Waiting Periods

Offense Level	Waiting Period After Sentence Completion
Misdemeanor	5 years
Class E felony	5 years
Class C or D felony	10 years

Effect of Expungement on Background Checks

Once a Tennessee court grants an expungement, the record is treated as if the arrest or conviction never occurred. The individual is not required to disclose the expunged offense on job applications. A background check conducted by a CRA should not report an expunged record. Employers who discover an expunged record cannot use it as a basis for an adverse employment decision.

How to File

The process begins at the court in the county where the arrest occurred. For conviction expungements, the District Attorney's office in that county handles the initial review. The individual files a petition, pays applicable fees (typically $100 for conviction expungements), and the court reviews eligibility. If granted, the order is sent to the arresting agency, county jail, Tennessee Department of Correction, and the TBI for record removal.

Housing and Tenant Screening

Tennessee landlords may conduct background checks on prospective tenants, but several federal requirements apply. The state does not impose specific restrictions beyond federal law for residential tenant screening.

Consent and Disclosure

Landlords who use a CRA for tenant screening must comply with the FCRA, which requires written notice to the applicant and consent before running a report. Tennessee law also requires landlords to obtain written consent before conducting any background checks on prospective tenants.

Criminal Records in Housing Decisions

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has issued guidance stating that blanket policies denying housing to anyone with a criminal record may violate the Fair Housing Act if they disproportionately affect protected classes. Tennessee landlords should conduct individualized assessments when evaluating applicants with criminal histories.

Certain offenses do provide valid grounds for denial. Convictions for sex offenses that require registration, drug manufacturing on the premises, and other serious crimes can justify a denial without running afoul of fair housing requirements.

Application Fees

Tennessee does not cap the amount a landlord can charge as an application fee. Landlords may charge what they deem reasonable to cover the cost of screening, but the fee should bear a reasonable relationship to the actual cost of conducting the check.

FCRA Lookback in Housing

The same FCRA seven-year lookback limit applies to tenant screening reports. Non-conviction records generally cannot be reported beyond seven years. Criminal convictions have no reporting time limit. Eviction records typically appear for seven years from the filing date.

Professional Licensing Background Checks

Tennessee requires fingerprint-based criminal background checks for a wide range of licensed professions. These checks are more thorough than standard name-based searches because they run through both the TBI and FBI databases.

Healthcare Workers

The Tennessee Department of Health requires all applicants for initial licensure to complete a fingerprint-based criminal background check through IdentoGO, the state's designated vendor. This requirement applies to nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and allied health professionals.

Healthcare facilities, including hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home health agencies, and ambulatory surgical centers, must conduct background screenings before allowing employees to provide direct patient care. These screenings include verification of professional licenses, state criminal database searches, and checks against abuse registries.

Education

Teachers and school employees in Tennessee undergo TBI and FBI fingerprint-based background checks. The Tennessee Department of Education requires these checks for all individuals seeking licensure or employment in public schools.

Other Licensed Professions

Additional professions requiring fingerprint-based background checks include:

• Child care workers (under T.C.A. § 71-3-507)
• Real estate agents and brokers
• Insurance agents
• Private investigators and security guards
• Financial professionals (banking, trust companies)

Processing Timeline

The TBI processes fingerprint submissions through the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). Results are typically returned within two to four hours of submission. Applicants must have their fingerprints scanned within two weeks of registration or they will need to re-register and pay the processing fee again.

Firearm Background Checks

Tennessee operates its own point-of-contact system for firearm background checks through the Tennessee Instant Check System (TICS), which has been in operation since 1998.

How TICS Works

When a person attempts to purchase a firearm from a licensed dealer, the dealer contacts the TBI's TICS Unit. The TBI runs the purchaser's information through both the federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) databases and Tennessee state criminal history files. The dealer must receive a unique approval number before completing the transfer.

Handgun Carry Permits

Tennessee's Handgun Carry Permit does not exempt holders from a background check at the point of purchase. The permit does not meet the requirements of the federal Brady Bill because it lacks a requirement for annual rechecks of the holder's criminal history and does not require a NICS check. Permit holders still undergo a full background check when purchasing a firearm from a licensed dealer.

Prohibited Persons

Both federal law and Tennessee state law prohibit certain individuals from purchasing or possessing firearms. These include persons convicted of felonies, individuals subject to certain protective orders, persons adjudicated as mentally incompetent, and individuals under indictment for crimes punishable by more than one year of imprisonment.

Employer Liability Protections

Tennessee provides specific legal protections for employers who hire individuals with criminal records, creating incentives for second-chance hiring.

Certificate of Employability

Under T.C.A. § 40-29-107, Tennessee offers a Certificate of Employability program for individuals with criminal records. When an employer hires a person who holds this certificate, the employer receives immunity from negligent hiring claims related to that person's criminal history, provided the employer knew about the certificate at the time of hire.

This immunity has specific limits. It does not apply if the employee later demonstrates dangerous tendencies or is convicted of another felony and the employer knew about it but retained the employee anyway. The certificate serves as evidence of due care in hiring but does not provide blanket protection against all liability.

Negligent Hiring Protections

Tennessee law also provides broader protections for employers regarding negligent hiring claims. Under state law, a negligent hiring, training, retention, or supervision claim generally cannot be based solely on an employee's criminal history. Evidence of an employee's criminal history is typically inadmissible in such actions.

These protections do not apply when the employer knew or reasonably should have known of the person's criminal history and the offense was committed under conditions substantially similar to the employment duties, or the conviction was for a violent or violent sexual offense.

Recent Changes to Tennessee Background Check Laws

Several notable changes have affected Tennessee's background check landscape in recent years.

2024 Expungement Amendments (Senate Bill 2844)

The Tennessee General Assembly passed Senate Bill 2844 in April 2024, making significant amendments to the expungement statute at T.C.A. § 40-32-101. The bill clarified waiting periods and eligibility criteria for conviction expungements. Specifically, it established five-year waiting periods for misdemeanors and Class E felonies and ten-year waiting periods for Class C and D felonies, measured from the completion of the sentence.

2025 Expungement Code Reorganization

In 2025, Tennessee reorganized its expungement statutes into a clearer structure. Non-conviction expungements moved to T.C.A. § 40-32-106, conviction expungements to T.C.A. §§ 40-32-107 and 40-32-108, and general provisions to T.C.A. §§ 40-32-101 through 40-32-110. The substantive eligibility requirements remained the same, but the reorganization made the law easier to navigate.

Mental Health Records and NICS

Effective July 1, 2024, Tennessee updated its procedures for entering mental health adjudication records into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Individuals found incompetent to stand trial are now required to be entered into NICS, ensuring they are flagged during firearm purchase background checks.

Healthcare Background Check Updates

Tennessee Code § 33-2-1202 was amended by 2024 Tennessee Acts, Chapter 688, effective July 1, 2024. This amendment updated background check requirements for organizations providing mental health and substance abuse services, expanding the scope of mandatory screening for employees in these settings.

Frequently Asked Questions