Every state you hire in — in one merged view.
Select the states your company hires in and get a single table showing lookback limits, ban-the-box triggers, salary-history bans, and cannabis rules — the assembly you need for a remote or multi-state workforce.
Select states
Select one or more states above to build your merged obligations view.
How multi-state screening obligations stack
A remote workforce does not get one screening policy — it gets the strictest one that applies to each candidate. Employment screening law is set at three levels: the federal FCRA sets disclosure, authorization, and adverse action mechanics for every hire; state law adds reporting limits, ban-the-box timing, salary history restrictions, and cannabis protections; and city or county ordinances layer on individualized assessment steps, notice windows, and posting requirements that go beyond the state floor.
The four columns in the table above are the variables that most often break a national policy. Reporting lookback determines whether non-conviction or older conviction records can appear at all. Ban-the-box determines when in the process you may ask about or run criminal history. Salary history determines what your recruiters may ask on the first call. Cannabis determines whether a positive THC result can lawfully support a rescind decision. Set your policy at the strictest value across the states you actually hire in, then relax only where you can document a state-specific workflow.
Which state's law applies to a remote hire?
In most cases, the controlling law is the state — and often the city — where the candidate performs the work, not where your headquarters or your entity of record sits. A Colorado employer hiring a remote analyst in Illinois follows Illinois lookback and cannabis rules, plus any Chicago ordinance if the worker is located there. Where the role is hybrid or travels, screening teams typically apply the stricter of the two jurisdictions and document the reason in the file.
Frequently asked questions
Which state's background check law applies when we hire remote employees?
Generally the law of the state — and city — where the employee performs the work, not where the company is headquartered. For hybrid or traveling roles, most screening teams apply the stricter of the applicable jurisdictions and document the reason in the candidate file.
Can we run the same background check package in every state?
You can standardize the searches, but not the decision rules. Reporting lookback limits, ban-the-box timing, salary history questions, and cannabis protections differ by state, so the same report can be lawful to act on in one state and unlawful in another.
How far back can a background check go?
The FCRA allows non-conviction items to be reported for seven years and places no federal limit on convictions. Several states — including California, New York, Massachusetts, and Washington — impose a seven-year cap on convictions as well, sometimes with a salary threshold exception.
Do city ordinances override state ban-the-box rules?
They stack rather than override. Where a city ordinance is stricter — additional notice, individualized assessment, or a longer response window — the employer must satisfy both the state statute and the local ordinance.
How often do these rules change?
Materially every legislative session. Cannabis protections and lookback limits have been the fastest-moving categories in recent years, which is why this table is maintained alongside the state-by-state matrix rather than published as a static PDF.
Related tools and guides
- Background check laws by state — full statute-level detail for all 50 states.
- Ban-the-box laws by jurisdiction — state and city timing rules, plus a compliance checker.
- Adverse action guide — the pre-adverse and final notice sequence, with waiting periods.
- Package builder — assemble a defensible screening package by industry and role.
Educational summary. Not legal advice. Confirm current requirements with employment counsel before setting policy.