An employment background check (sometimes called a pre-employment background check) is an important part of Canada’s employment and volunteer infrastructure. Background checks as employment verification can involve looking at a job candidate’s employment history, credit history, and criminal history.
Criminal background checks are one of the most important forms of pre-employment background checks; they play an essential role in employment, volunteering, and other critical pieces of Canada’s economy and social infrastructure.
As a result of their crucial role, background checks are quite common—and that means it can take some time to get the results of your background check. At FASTCHECK, we are committed to helping people in Winnipeg complete their criminal background checks quickly and efficiently.
This article aims to help readers understand more about criminal background checks, from how long they typically take to the factors that can influence that timeframe.
Factors Influencing Background Check Duration
Type Of Background Check
Broadly speaking, there are two different types of background checks in Canada:
- Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) checks: These are background checks that look into local police records. They don’t require fingerprinting and are sometimes referred to as name-based checks.
- Certified Criminal Record Checks: These are the most comprehensive record checks, conducted by the RCMP’s Canadian Criminal Real Time Identification Services (CCRTIS). These checks require fingerprinting—you can think of them as RCMP fingerprinting checks.
Other regional variations exist, too—we’ll take a look at those in the section “Jurisdictional Variations”, but they’re not relevant for jobs in Manitoba.
CPIC checks take less time than Certified Criminal Record Checks; they’re conducted by local police, however, so wait times can vary significantly depending on where you’re located.
Purpose Of The Check
For most careers and volunteer positions requiring a background check, a local police record check is sufficient. These checks tend to take less time to process because they’re name-based checks—no fingerprint processing is required.
For immigration and jobs requiring a higher level of security, certified criminal record checks are the gold standard. They’re much more comprehensive—as you can imagine, fingerprints are much more effective at helping identify an individual. They also scan more databases and include all convictions, pending charges, and discharges.
For work with vulnerable populations (like children and the elderly) or adoptions, you’ll need a different security check, known as a vulnerable sector check (VSS).
Vulnerable sector checks include records that are suspended (commonly known as pardons)—this information is searched in order to ensure that no one convicted of crimes against vulnerable populations (especially sexual crimes) works with those populations.
These checks are typically completed through CPIC at first (if a local name-based check is sufficient for the security clearance required for a position). Should no name matches be found in suspended records or criminal records, the check is complete. When there’s a potential name match, fingerprinting will be conducted, and the check will be completed as a certified criminal record check through CCRTIS.
Jurisdictional Variations
Other forms of criminal background checks exist in other provinces:
- Ontario: There is a middle-tier criminal background check known as the Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Check (CRJMC). This check flags a number of other entries, like warrants and peace bonds, that are not flagged in a traditional CPIC name-based check.
- British Columbia: The Criminal Records Review Program is a type of vulnerable sector check specific to British Columbia.
Rules may differ in your jurisdiction—contact your local police department or an accredited fingerprinting agency like FASTCHECK to learn about the rules and responsibilities governing criminal background checks in your area.
Typical Timeframes For Background Checks In Canada
Standard Criminal Record Checks
The timeframe for name-based checks through CPIC differs from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. For a background check in Winnipeg, local name-based record checks are completed quite quickly—wait times are a matter of hours, and you can usually get your results the day you request them.
CCRTIS criminal background checks take longer, but wait times are still quite short at the moment. When no match is found, a certified criminal record check takes 3 days or less—though getting the results in the mail can take a little longer.
When a possible match is found, on the other hand, certified criminal record checks take quite a bit longer—the current average is around 120 business days.
Enhanced Or Vulnerable Sector Checks
Vulnerable sector checks may take slightly longer than typical CPIC record checks, but can still typically be completed within a day if no match is found. Should a potential match be found, the process will move to the RCMP, where fingerprinting will be required—a wait time of 120 days is typical in these circumstances.
How FASTCHECK Ensures Prompt Background Checks
Advanced Technology Integration
Our goal is to provide you with information, take your fingerprints if necessary, and complete your criminal background check as efficiently as possible. We digitize all of the fingerprints and documents we take in order to ensure smooth, rapid transmission of information to local police and the RCMP.
Commitment To Accuracy And Efficiency
We want you to be able to get a criminal background check done over your lunch hour. Our highly trained staff have been taking fingerprints and helping individuals conduct background checks for years—we work quickly without sacrificing accuracy.
Tips To Expedite Your Background Check Process
Provide Complete And Accurate Information
To complete your background check, you’ll need to provide:
- Your name
- Your address
- Your phone number
- Your email
- At least two pieces of identification
We may also need other information. Contact us before your background check—we’ll tell you what information is required so you can prepare it before your visit.
Respond Promptly To Additional Requests
Police may request additional information or require you to visit in person; respond to these requests as quickly as possible to expedite the process.
Choose Reputable Service Providers
The RCMP has a list of accredited fingerprinting companies. These are companies you can trust to help you complete a background check—FASTCHECK is on the list.
Choose FASTCHECK For Your Next Background Check
Need a criminal background check? Call FASTCHECK today—we’ll help you complete your check quickly and efficiently, providing you with any information and guidance you may need along the way.
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