Florida Background Check from Abroad
State criminal history check
Florida Background Check from Abroad
Yes, and easily: the certified search is ordered online with a card and needs no fingerprints at all.
- Fee
- $24.00 per search
- Processing
- Five business days non-certified, six to seven certified, before postage
- From abroad
- Possible
What to send, and where
| Agency | Florida Department of Law Enforcement |
|---|---|
| Form | Certified Criminal History Record Check, ordered online through the FDLE portal |
| Fee | $24.00 per search |
| Payment | Debit or credit card, online. |
| Processing | Five business days non-certified, six to seven certified, before postage |
| Post to | Ordered online at shield.fdle.state.fl.us; postal address for the free Personal Review only: Florida Department of Law Enforcement, PO Box 1489, Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489, Attn: Criminal History Record Maintenance Section |
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement page for this request
Specific to Florida
- Order the CERTIFIED search, not the free Personal Review. FDLE states in terms that a Personal Review result cannot be used for immigration, employment, licensing or certification, so it is no use for a visa however cheap it is.
- The certified search is demographic rather than fingerprint-based, which is why it works from abroad. Confirm your consulate accepts a name-based certificate before relying on it.
- Processing time excludes postal delivery, and the certificate has to reach you overseas before it can be apostilled.
Getting fingerprinted where you are
Local police, a private fingerprinting service, a U.S. post if it still offers it, or ink at home. Take more than one card. Use the FD-258 unless Florida specifies its own form above, in which case order that form first and allow for it reaching you overseas.
After it arrives
A Florida criminal history check is a state document, so it is authenticated by Florida, not by the U.S. Department of State. Most states require the response to be notarised or certified before the authenticating authority will touch it, and several sell a notarised version for exactly this purpose. Buy it at the time rather than discovering later that you have to start again.
We handle the apostille
Once your Florida check exists we can authenticate it, legalise it for a non-Convention country, and have it translated. Tell us the destination and the deadline.
Questions people actually ask
Can I request my Florida record from outside the United States?
Yes, and easily: the certified search is ordered online with a card and needs no fingerprints at all.
What does it cost?
$24.00 per search Debit or credit card, online.
How long does it take?
Five business days non-certified, six to seven certified, before postage. Add international postage in both directions on top of that.
Do I need the Florida check as well as the FBI one?
Only if the authority asking has said so. The FBI record already includes arrests that Florida reported federally. Ask before paying for both.
Will it need an apostille?
If it is going to a foreign authority, yes. A Florida check is a state document, so it is authenticated by Florida rather than by the U.S. Department of State, and it usually has to be notarised or certified first.
This guide is published by a private document processing service. It is not legal advice and we are not a government agency. Requirements change without notice, so confirm anything critical with the mission before you post documents.
