How to Get a Fingerprint Card | Legal Beagle

How to Get a Fingerprint Card

Written By
Jane Meggitt
Jane Meggitt
Aug 26, 2010
1 minute read

If you must undergo a criminal background check for a job or volunteer position, submitting a copy of your fingerprints is part of the process. Obtaining a fingerprint card isn't difficult – and you have various options for getting one. The actual fingerprinting process requires a trained technician, so it's likely that the agency requiring the testing will supply the cards for you as an individual. If you're purchasing for an organization, bulk cards are readily available.

Obtaining Fingerprint Cards

You can obtain fingerprint cards from your local law enforcement agency. You can also visit the Federal Bureau of Investigation website and download the standard FBI fingerprint card, Form FD-258. This is the type of card used for non-criminal fingerprints. Various online office product companies also sell standard fingerprint cards in bulk if you need to order a large number of cards for background check purposes for an organization.

Read More: How to Obtain Fingerprint Records

Using the Fingerprint Cards

The agency requesting the fingerprints will hopefully tell you where to go to have your fingerprints recorded. The trained fingerprint technician will use black ink to apply your fingerprints to the appropriate places on the card. The ink used can be either black printers ink or a Porelon pad. There is a rolling technique that is used to capture your entire fingerprint.

Jane Meggitt

Jane Meggitt has been a writer for more than 20 years. In addition to reporting for a major newspaper chain, she has been published in "Horse News," "Suburban Classic," "Hoof Beats," "Equine Journal" and other publications. She has a…

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