The Arizona Board of Fingerprinting aims to make its web site as accessible as possible to users with disabilities. Among other methods, the Board uses web standards to improve accessibility. The Board will continue to make changes to its web site to maximize accessibility. The Board web site complies with State Guidelines and the World Wide Web Consortium W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines WCAG 1.0. Although the Board is not a federal agency, this web site complies with the section 508 guidelines of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998

Applicants who are not approved for a card under an expedited review must appear at a hearing. Hearings take place in Phoenix, Arizona, and are conducted by an administrative law judge designated by the Board. At the hearing, the administrative law judge will ask questions and give the applicant the opportunity to submit testimony (the applicant's own testimony or that of a witness) to demonstrate that he or she is rehabilitated and not a recidivist. The hearing is the applicant's opportunity to demonstrate why he or she should be granted a good cause exception.

For applications received on or

Application's are available on the Forms and Resources page.  Please be sure to read the instructions carefully and to see the section on frequently asked questions. If you can't download the application, please contact us at (602) 265-0135 or [email protected].

Before the Board looks at the application, it must receive a complete application package. Failure to submit a complete application package will delay the process and may cause the application to be denied. A complete application must include at least the following.

1. Application form (completed, signed, and notarized). Applicants

This page includes information to help you learn about the good-cause-exception process. It includes an overview of the application process, information about application requirements, and articles to help you with particular aspects of the process.

• Good Cause Exception Process: Information on the process after a person's fingerprint clearance card is denied or suspended
• Central Registry Exception Process: Information on the process after a person fails a central-registry background check

You may also want to see our FAQ Page.

Feel free to contact the Board Staff with any questions.  Our contact

A few jobs require employees to have a background check on the Central Registry, which is a collection of databases where the Department of Child Safety keeps information about allegations of child abuse or neglect.  Individuals who don't clear this check may be eligible to apply to the Board of Fingerprinting for a central registry exception.  If granted, a central registry exception allows the person to receive background clearance despite the substantiated allegation of abuse or neglect.

To receive a central registry exception, the applicant must provide to the Board's satisfaction that he

Individuals who apply for a fingerprint clearance card — whether a Level I fingerprint clearance card or a standard fingerprint clearance card (see below for an explanation of the difference) — submit this application to the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), along with fingerprint imprints. DPS conducts a background check on your criminal history at both the state and national (i.e., FBI) levels. If there are any arrests on your record, DPS compares the criminal offenses with a list of offenses that would cause the denial or suspension of a fingerprint clearance card, such as assault

In 2009, a new law went into effect that created two types of fingerprint clearance cards rather than just one type. Beginning on July 1, 2009, DPS began issuing Level I fingerprint clearance cards, in addition to the standard fingerprint clearance cards. There are more types of criminal charges that can cause a Level I card to be denied or suspended, so the Level I card is more restrictive and harder to get. Standard cards correspond, for the most part, with the fingerprint clearance card that existed prior to the legislative changes.

Level I cards are required for the following professions or