Can an Employer Deny a Job for a Crime Over 7 Years Old?

Can an Employer Deny a Job for a Crime Over 7 Years Old?

If you’ve heard of the “7-year rule,” you might think old criminal records simply disappear from background checks after seven years. Many job seekers believe this, and many employers assume the opposite: that they can consider any record, no matter how old.

The answer is in the middle. Yes, in most states an employer can legally deny employment based on a conviction that is more than seven years old. But there are important limits. Federal law restricts what can be reported, several states restrict what can be considered, and anti-discrimination rules restrict how the decision gets made.

Here’s what the 7-year rule actually means for employers and candidates in the US.

What Is the 7-Year Rule in Background Checks?

The “7-year rule” comes from the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). This law controls what background check companies, like Sure Check, can include in an employment report. Under the FCRA, a background check report generally cannot include these items once they are more than seven years old:

• Arrest records that did not lead to a conviction
• Civil suits and civil judgments
• Paid tax liens
• Collection accounts
• Most other adverse (negative) information

However, criminal convictions are exempt from the federal 7-year rule. Under federal law alone, a conviction: whether a misdemeanor or a felony, can be reported indefinitely, no matter how long ago it happened.

The $75,000 Salary Exception

The FCRA’s 7-year limits don’t apply at all when the job is expected to pay an annual salary of $75,000 or more. For those higher-paying roles, even old arrest records and other aged information can appear on a report under federal law.

So Can a Conviction From 8, 10, or 20 Years Ago Show Up?

Under federal law, yes. A conviction from ten or twenty years ago can legally appear on an employment background check, and an employer can consider it.  But federal law is only the floor. Several states limit how far back convictions can be reported, and those state rules override the more permissive federal standard.

States That Limit Conviction Reporting to 7 Years

A group of states restricts background check companies from reporting convictions older than seven years. These are often called the “7-year states,” and they include California, Colorado, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Texas, and Washington.

The catch is that most of these states include salary exceptions that narrow the rule:

• New York allows convictions older than seven years to be reported when the job pays $25,000 or more per year.
• Washington lifts its restriction for jobs paying $20,000 or more.
• Kansas and Maryland also use a $20,000 salary threshold.
• Texas ties its exception to jobs paying $75,000 or more, similar to the federal standard.
• California is among the strictest, limiting conviction reporting to seven years regardless of salary.

Most jobs today pay above the $20,000–$25,000 thresholds. That means the rule has less practical effect in those states than candidates expect. California is different. There, a conviction more than seven years old generally should not appear on a background check at all, so an employer never sees it and can’t use it.

These laws change often, so both employers and candidates should confirm the current rules in their state.

Reporting vs. Denying: Two Different Questions

It helps to separate two issues that often get mixed together:

1. Can the record be reported? This is governed by the FCRA and state reporting limits described above.
2. Can the employer deny the job because of it? Even when a record is legally reportable, separate laws control how an employer may use it.

An old conviction showing up on a report does not automatically mean a lawful denial. That’s where EEOC guidance and fair chance laws come in.

EEOC Guidance: No Blanket Bans on Old Convictions

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) warns against blanket policies like “we never hire anyone with a felony.” These policies can violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act because they can unfairly screen out protected groups.

Instead, the EEOC guidance says employers should weigh three factors, often called the Green factors:

• The nature and gravity of the offense. A decades-old shoplifting charge is not the same as a recent fraud conviction.
• The time that has passed since the offense or the end of the sentence. The older the record, the weaker the justification for denial. A crime more than seven years old carries less weight than a recent one.
• The nature of the job. The conviction should relate to the actual duties of the role. A DUI matters for a delivery driver; it matters far less for a data entry role.

The EEOC also recommends an individualized assessment: telling the candidate they may be screened out, giving them a chance to explain their circumstances or show rehabilitation, and then deciding whether the exclusion still makes sense.

So, can an employer deny employment for a crime more than seven years ago? Often yes, but the older and less job-related the offense, the more legal risk the employer takes on by denying without an individualized review.

Ban-the-Box and Fair Chance Laws Add More Rules

More than 37 states and over 150 cities and counties have passed ban-the-box or fair chance laws. These laws typically require employers to:

• Remove criminal history questions from the initial job application
• Wait until after an interview or a conditional job offer to run a background check
• Complete an individualized assessment before rescinding an offer
• Follow a formal notice process, giving the candidate a copy of the report and time to respond

Some jurisdictions go further and set their own lookback limits. Philadelphia, for example, limits consideration of most misdemeanors to four years and felonies to seven years for employment decisions. Los Angeles County requires employers to complete two separate individualized assessments before denying a candidate. Washington State’s amended Fair Chance Act, effective July 2026, adds new requirements as well.

For multi-state employers, this patchwork is one of the biggest compliance challenges in hiring.

What Candidates Should Know

If you have an older conviction, keep these points in mind:

• Know your state’s rules. In 7-year states like California, older convictions generally shouldn’t appear on your report at all.
• You have FCRA rights. Before an employer denies you based on a background check, they must send a pre-adverse action notice. This includes a copy of the report and a summary of your rights, plus reasonable time to respond.
• You can dispute errors. If your report shows a record that shouldn’t be there — because it’s too old, expunged, or simply wrong — you can dispute it with the background check company, which must investigate.
• Look into expungement or sealing. Many states have expanded record-clearing and “clean slate” laws. A sealed or expunged record generally cannot be reported or considered.
• Be ready to show rehabilitation. Steady work history, training, references, and time passed all strengthen your case during an individualized assessment.

What Employers Should Do

Employers who want to stay compliant while still making informed hiring decisions should:

• Avoid blanket policies that automatically reject anyone with a criminal record.
• Apply the Green factors — nature of the offense, time elapsed, and job relatedness — to every conviction, especially older ones.
• Follow the adverse action process required by the FCRA: pre-adverse action notice, a copy of the report, the summary of rights, a waiting period, and a final adverse action notice.
• Track state and local laws wherever you hire, since lookback limits, salary thresholds, and fair chance requirements vary widely.
• Work with a compliant screening partner that automatically filters out records that can’t legally be reported in each state.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do background checks go back more than 7 years?

Yes. Under federal law, convictions can be reported no matter how old they are. The 7-year limit applies mainly to arrests that didn’t lead to conviction and other non-conviction records — and it doesn’t apply to jobs paying $75,000 or more.

Can an employer refuse to hire me for a felony from 10 years ago?

In most states, yes, an employer can consider a 10-year-old felony if it appears on your report. However, EEOC guidance pushes employers to weigh how old the offense is and whether it relates to the job, and fair chance laws in many areas require an individualized assessment first.

What states follow the 7-year rule for convictions?

California, Colorado, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Texas, and Washington limit conviction reporting to seven years, though most include salary-based exceptions.

Does the 7-year rule apply to expunged records?

Expunged or sealed records generally cannot be reported or considered at any time, regardless of the 7-year rule. If one appears on your report, dispute it.

An employer usually can deny employment based on a crime that happened more than seven years ago — but not always, and not carelessly. State reporting limits may keep old convictions off the report entirely. EEOC guidance discourages rigid policies against old or unrelated offenses. And fair chance laws set the process employers must follow before saying no.

This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. Consult an attorney about your specific situation.

 

SureCheck Background helps employers hire with confidence — and stay compliant. Our employment background checks automatically apply federal and state reporting limits, so you only see what you’re legally allowed to consider. Contact SureCheck Background today for fast, accurate, FCRA-compliant screening.