Georgia Employment Background Screening Laws in 2025: A Comprehensive Guide

Georgia employers must navigate evolving background screening laws to avoid legal risks. This guide explains 2025 updates, criminal history lookback periods, ban-the-box policies, credit report restrictions, and AI-driven employment screening.

Learn how to stay compliant with actionable insights from Georgia General Assembly statutes and federal regulations.

The Legal Framework: FCRA and Georgia State Law

At the federal level, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is the primary legislation governing employment background checks. This act classifies third-party background screening companies as Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRAs) and outlines strict procedures for employers to follow. Importantly, before conducting a background check through a CRA, employers must:

• Provide a clear, standalone disclosure to the applicant that a background check will be conducted.
• Obtain written consent from the applicant.

Furthermore, should an employer consider taking adverse action based on the report’s findings, the FCRA mandates a two-step adverse action process, which gives the applicant an opportunity to review and dispute the information.

How Many Years Back Can Criminal Offenses Be Considered in Georgia?

A common question for employers is how far back they can look into an applicant’s criminal history. In Georgia, the answer depends on the nature of the offense:

• Criminal Convictions: Generally, there is no statewide limit on how far back an employer can look at an applicant’s felony criminal conviction history.
• Non-Convictions: The FCRA places a seven-year lookback period on non-conviction information from the date of disposition. This includes arrests that did not lead to a conviction or misdemeanors.

Violent crimes or sex offenses may disqualify applicants for roles like childcare and Long-Term Care Facilities regardless of seven-year lookback period.

It’s also essential for employers to be aware of Georgia’s First Offender Act. Under this act, if an individual completes their sentence without any violations, the offense is discharged and is not considered a conviction, with certain exceptions for sensitive positions.

EEOC Guidance and Preventing Discrimination

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) plays a vital role in preventing employment discrimination. While the EEOC does not prohibit employers from considering criminal records, it cautions against blanket policies that disqualify all applicants with a criminal history. Such policies may have a disparate impact on certain protected groups, potentially violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The EEOC advises employers to conduct an individualized assessment for each applicant with a criminal record, considering:

• The nature and gravity of the offense.
• The time that has passed since the offense and/or completion of the sentence.
• The nature of the job held or sought.

Georgia’s “Ban the Box” Initiative

In 2015, Georgia’s governor signed an executive order creating a “ban the box” policy for public sector employment. This means that state agencies are prohibited from asking about an applicant’s criminal history on the initial job application. However, it’s important to note that this does not apply to private employers in Georgia. Despite this, an increasing number of private companies are voluntarily adopting similar practices as a matter of good faith and to broaden their talent pool.

Important: Employers in Atlanta and Savannah must comply with local ban-the-box ordinances prohibiting criminal history questions on initial applications for most positions.

Employment Credit Reports

Although Georgia does not prohibit employers from running credit checks on applicants or employees, it is better to implement the “safe-harbor” method by using it only for financially sensitive roles. Employers must:

• Obtain written consent from applicants
• Provide adverse action notices if rejecting based on credit

AI in Employment Background Checks

AI tools analyze criminal records faster but risk bias. Georgia employers must ensure algorithms comply with Title VII and FCRA. For instance, automated platforms flagging minor offenses could trigger discrimination claims.