How Far Back Do Background Checks Go in Oregon?

In Oregon, most background checks reach back seven years for negative records like civil judgments, paid tax liens, collection accounts, and arrests that did not lead to a conviction. Criminal convictions are the big exception: they can appear on a report with no time limit at all, unless you have had the record set aside by a court. That is the short answer to how far back background checks go in Oregon, and the rest comes down to the type of record, the type of job or housing you are applying for, and whether Oregon law layers extra protections on top of the federal rules.

The Seven-Year Rule for Most Negative Records

Oregon has not set its own general time limit on background check reporting, so the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act controls. Under the FCRA, consumer reporting agencies cannot include most negative information older than seven years from the date the event was recorded.¹ That seven-year window covers:

Civil lawsuits and civil judgments
Paid tax liens
Accounts placed for collection
Records of arrest that did not lead to conviction
Other adverse items of a similar nature

Bankruptcies have a longer window of up to ten years from the date of the court order. If an item falls inside its reporting window, it is fair game for a background check in Oregon.

Why Criminal Convictions Have No Expiration

Convictions are carved out of the FCRA’s seven-year rule. A felony or misdemeanor conviction from 20 or 30 years ago can still appear on an Oregon background report, and the state has not passed any law overriding that. The only reliable way to make a conviction disappear from standard reports is a court order setting the record aside, which is covered further down.

The $75,000 Salary Exemption

The seven-year limit on other negative records also goes away for higher-paying positions. When a job pays $75,000 or more per year, the FCRA allows reporting agencies to include all adverse information regardless of how old it is.¹ That means old civil judgments, collection accounts, and non-conviction arrests can resurface. The threshold is based on the expected salary of the position, not what you currently earn.

When Oregon Employers Can Ask About Your Record

Even when a conviction is reportable, Oregon limits when an employer can bring it up. Under ORS 659A.360, an employer cannot require you to disclose a past conviction on a job application or at any point before an initial interview. If the employer does not interview candidates at all, it has to wait until after a conditional job offer.² The law does not stop employers from considering your record; it just delays that conversation so your application gets a fair first look.

Several employers are exempt. Law enforcement agencies, employers in the criminal justice system, and organizations recruiting unpaid volunteers can ask about convictions at any stage, as can any employer required by law to consider criminal history for a specific role.² The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries enforces the rule.³

Credit History Is Mostly Off-Limits

Oregon goes further than most states on credit reports. Under ORS 659A.320, employers generally cannot obtain or use an applicant’s or employee’s credit history for employment purposes.⁴ The exceptions are narrow: federally insured banks and credit unions, positions where state or federal law requires a credit check, law enforcement and certain public safety roles, and jobs where credit information is substantially related to the position. For that last category, the employer has to disclose the reasons in writing. BOLI has said “substantially job-related” generally means handling financial information well beyond a routine retail transaction.³

Tenant Screening Follows Different Rules

Landlords in Oregon do not have unlimited reach either. Under ORS 90.303, a landlord can look at criminal convictions and pending charges only in specific categories: drug-related crimes (excluding marijuana use or possession), crimes against people, sex offenses, financial fraud such as identity theft or forgery, and other crimes whose nature would threaten the property or other residents.⁵

An arrest on its own is not a valid reason to deny housing. A landlord can only weigh an arrest if it resulted in a conviction, or if charges are still pending and you are not in a diversion or deferred judgment program.⁵ Prior eviction actions that were dismissed, decided in your favor, or entered more than five years ago cannot be held against you.

Since January 2022, Oregon’s SB 291 has required landlords to perform an individualized assessment before denying an applicant based on criminal history, looking at the seriousness of the offense, how much time has passed, rehabilitation, and changed circumstances. A decade-old drug conviction that might once have been an automatic rejection now has to be weighed in context.

Sensitive Positions Have Their Own Lookback

Some jobs trigger deeper, statute-specific background checks that follow their own rules rather than the standard FCRA framework. The Department of Human Services and the Oregon Health Authority must run criminal records checks on employees of residential care facilities, adult foster homes, and publicly funded home care workers.⁶ These run through fingerprint-based systems authorized by ORS 181A.195.⁷

When deciding whether someone is fit to work in these roles, DHS and OHA generally cannot consider a conviction more than ten years old. They also cannot weigh non-conviction arrests or charges, marijuana convictions that are no longer criminal offenses, a single DUII conviction within the past five years, or participation in deferred sentencing and diversion programs. The exception is the most serious offenses listed in ORS 443.004(3) and (5), which have no time limit in care settings.⁷

Setting Aside a Record Is the Real Way to Shorten the Lookback

If a conviction can be reported forever under federal law, the practical fix is to make it legally disappear. Oregon lets you petition for an order setting aside certain convictions and arrest records under ORS 137.225. Once granted, the record is treated as though the event never happened, and you can answer “no” when asked about a criminal record in most situations.⁸ A set-aside record should not appear on a standard consumer background report.

Waiting Periods by Offense Class

You cannot petition the day you finish your sentence. The required wait depends on the severity of the offense, measured from the date of conviction or release from incarceration, whichever comes later:

Class B felony: seven years
Class C felony: five years
Class A misdemeanor: three years
Class B or C misdemeanor, violation, or contempt: one year

If your probation was revoked, the wait extends to at least three years from the revocation date or the standard period for the offense class, whichever is longer.⁸

Non-conviction records are faster. After an acquittal or dismissal, you can petition immediately. If the prosecutor declines to file charges, you can petition 60 days after that decision.⁸

What Cannot Be Set Aside

Not every conviction qualifies. Oregon excludes most sex crimes, with narrow exceptions for certain offenses committed by minors close in age to the victim. Convictions for elder abuse, certain forms of child endangerment, criminally negligent homicide charged as a felony, and traffic offenses are also permanently ineligible, and Class A felonies generally cannot be set aside either.⁸

There is no filing fee. The 2026 circuit court fee schedule lists motions to set aside a conviction, arrest record, or criminal charge at $0.⁹ Even once a record is sealed, a prosecutor or defendant in the original case can petition to unseal it for a specific investigation, and sealed records can be disclosed in civil cases where truth is an element of a claim or defense.⁸

Pending Charges and Non-Conviction Arrests

Arrests that never led to a conviction, dismissed charges, and acquittals can still appear on Oregon background checks within the FCRA’s seven-year window, and that window disappears for jobs paying $75,000 or more.¹ Pending charges sit outside the seven-year lookback for non-convictions because the case has not been resolved; they remain reportable until it concludes. If the charges are later dismissed, the record then falls under the standard limits and may become eligible for a set-aside.

Fixing Inaccurate Results on a Background Check

Background check errors are common: mixed files, outdated records, and charges listed without their dispositions all show up regularly. The FCRA gives you the right to dispute inaccurate information directly with the consumer reporting agency that compiled the report. The agency has to investigate and resolve the dispute within 30 days, delete or correct anything it cannot verify, and send you a free copy of the updated report.¹⁰ If an agency willfully refuses to investigate or correct a genuine error, the FCRA allows statutory damages of $100 to $1,000 per violation, plus potential punitive damages and attorney fees.¹¹

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports
2
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code ORS 659A.360 – Restricting Criminal Conviction Inquiries; Exceptions
3
Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries. Hiring Discrimination and Ban the Box
4
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code ORS 659A.320 – Discrimination Based on Information in Credit History Prohibited; Exceptions; Remedies for Violation
5
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code ORS 90.303 – Evaluation of Applicant
6
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code ORS 443.004 – Criminal Records Check Required for Employees and Volunteers Providing Direct Care
7
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code ORS 181A.195 – Criminal Records Check; Authorized Agencies
8
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code ORS 137.225 – Order Setting Aside Conviction or Record of Criminal Charge
9
Oregon Judicial Department. 2026 Circuit Court Fee Schedule
10
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681n – Civil Liability for Willful Noncompliance