Ohio Background Check Laws

Ohio Revised Code 9.73 bars public employers from asking about criminal background on employment applications. Employers may notify applicants of legal disqualifications for an offense. The rule does not cover private employers; check applicable local rules.

Ohio law generally aligns with the federal FCRA regarding the use of consumer reports for employment purposes. Employers must still comply with FCRA requirements such as obtaining written consent, providing pre-adverse action and adverse action notices, and ensuring the background check provider is FCRA-compliant. Ohio does not impose additional statewide consent requirements or notice periods beyond the FCRA.

Ohio record-relief and authorized-access rules must be checked for the case and statute involved. Under federal FCRA § 605 [15 U.S.C. § 1681c], criminal convictions are excluded from the seven-year limit in § 605(a)(5). Civil suits, civil judgments and arrest records have the § 605(a)(2) seven-year-or-longer-statute-of-limitations rule. For employment at an annual salary equal to or reasonably expected to equal $75,000 or more, § 605(b)(3) excepts the time limits in § 605(a)(1)–(5), not all FCRA restrictions. State law and other applicable protections still require checking.

Record relief depends on the case and applicable statute. R.C. 2953.32 covers eligible convictions and bail forfeitures; R.C. 2953.33 covers acquittals, dismissals, no-bills and pardons. R.C. 2953.34 preserves authorized access and employment-inquiry exceptions, including divisions (L) and (N). Sealing or expungement is not a universal bar to authorized access or inquiry.

Ohio's statewide application rule (Ohio Revised Code 9.73) applies to public employers. This guide does not identify a statewide fair-chance hiring law for private employers; check applicable local rules.