A Massachusetts SORI background check is a free inquiry through the Sex Offender Registry Board (SORB) that tells you whether a specific person is a registered sex offender in the Commonwealth, along with their assigned risk level and offense details. Anyone 18 or older can request one for personal safety reasons, and you can submit the request online through the eSORI portal, in person at any local police station, or by mail. The check only returns information on Level 2 and Level 3 offenders; Level 1 data is not released to the public.
What a SORI Check Can and Cannot Tell You
Massachusetts sorts registered sex offenders into three risk levels, and the level controls what a SORI check will show you.1General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title II, Chapter 6, Section 178K
Level 1 (low risk). Information stays with police and certain state agencies, including the Department of Children and Families and the Parole Board. A SORI request from a member of the public or an employer will not return Level 1 data.
Level 2 (moderate risk). The public can obtain Level 2 information through a SORI request or at a police station. The SORB also publishes Level 2 offenders classified after July 12, 2013, on its online database.2Mass.gov. Sex Offender Registry Board Level 2 offenders classified before that date will not appear online; you need to file a request to see them.
Level 3 (high risk). Information is actively disseminated, fully searchable on the SORB’s public website, and local police may notify the community when a Level 3 offender moves into the area.
A “no match” result does not mean the person has no sex offense history. It means they are not currently classified at Level 2 or Level 3 in Massachusetts. They could be a Level 1 offender, registered in another state, or have an offense predating the state’s registry requirements.
How to Submit a SORI Request
You have three options, and the method you pick affects both speed and what you can ask.
Online Through the eSORI Portal
The SORB’s eSORI portal is the fastest route. You enter the subject’s first name, last name, and date of birth (dates must be in MMDDYYYY format with no dashes or spaces). The portal supports single requests and batch submissions, which is useful for organizations screening multiple people at once.3Mass.gov. ESORI Portal User Guide
In Person at a Local Police Station
Walk into any city or town police station in Massachusetts with valid ID and fill out a sex offender inquiry form. This method is the most flexible: you can ask about a specific named person, ask whether any registered offenders live or work in a particular city or town, or narrow the search to a specific street address or zip code.4Mass.gov. Request Sex Offender Registry Information (SORI) It is the only option that lets you search by location rather than by name.
By Mail
Print the Sex Offender Inquiry Form from the SORB’s website, fill it out, and mail it to the SORI Coordinator, Sex Offender Registry Board, P.O. Box 392, North Billerica, MA 01862.4Mass.gov. Request Sex Offender Registry Information (SORI) This is the slowest route. Make sure the subject’s name matches their legal identification exactly; a spelling or date-of-birth discrepancy can produce an inconclusive result and force you to start over.
What You Need to Provide
Every SORI request requires the subject’s first name, last name, and date of birth at minimum.3Mass.gov. ESORI Portal User Guide For in-person and mail requests, you also need to provide your own name and address, the reason for the request, and valid government-issued ID.4Mass.gov. Request Sex Offender Registry Information (SORI) Adding optional identifiers like the subject’s Social Security number or home address reduces the risk of a false match.
The reason matters legally. Under Section 178I, individual requests must state that the information is for the requester’s own protection, the protection of a child under 18, or the protection of someone in the requester’s care or custody. Requests without a stated purpose, or made for other purposes, can be denied.5General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title II, Chapter 6, Section 178I The law also limits individual requests to named inquiries about specific people and does not allow bulk data collection.
What a SORI Report Contains
If the subject is registered at Level 2 or Level 3, a report from the SORB will indicate that the person has a registration obligation, list the specific offenses they were convicted of, and provide the conviction dates.5General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title II, Chapter 6, Section 178I
Police station responses tend to be more detailed. A match returned through a local department can include the offender’s name, home and work addresses, the name and address of any college attended, age, sex, height, weight, eye and hair color, offenses, dates of conviction, and a photograph when available. The board will not release information identifying the victim by name, address, or relationship to the offender.
If no match is found, the report says so explicitly. Read that result carefully; it only rules out current Level 2 or Level 3 classification in Massachusetts.
The Online Database as a Quick Check
The SORB maintains a free, searchable public database that includes all Level 3 offenders and those Level 2 offenders classified after July 12, 2013.2Mass.gov. Sex Offender Registry Board No Level 1 data appears there.6General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title II, Chapter 6, Section 178D It’s a reasonable starting point for a quick look, but Level 2 offenders classified before July 2013 will not show up. For a thorough answer, submit a formal SORI request or visit a police station.
Who Is Required to Run SORI Checks
Massachusetts separates organizations that must check the registry from those that may.
Schools, summer camps, childcare providers, and other organizations that serve children under 18 are required to verify the registry status of employees and volunteers. This is a condition of operating, not a best practice, and failing to run checks can jeopardize an organization’s license and create liability exposure.7Mass.gov. Levels of Name-Based Criminal Record Check Access These organizations typically use the eSORI portal and submit batch requests.3Mass.gov. ESORI Portal User Guide
General employers, landlords, and property managers are authorized to request SORI information but are not always mandated to. They use the same channels available to individuals. Any resident 18 or older can request information at no cost under the Section 178I conditions described above.5General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title II, Chapter 6, Section 178I
How You Can and Cannot Use the Information
Massachusetts law is explicit: SORI information cannot be used to commit a crime against an offender, to harass an offender, or to engage in illegal discrimination. Every SORI report carries a warning to that effect. Violations are punishable by up to two and a half years in a house of correction, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.8General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title II, Chapter 6, Section 178N
Employers face an additional layer. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, a blanket policy of rejecting all applicants with a criminal record can be illegal discrimination if it disproportionately affects applicants of a particular race or national origin without being closely related to the job. EEOC guidance calls for an individualized assessment weighing the nature and seriousness of the offense, the time since conviction or completion of sentence, and the nature of the position.9U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Arrest and Conviction Records: Resources for Job Seekers, Workers and Employers
Landlords face parallel constraints under the Fair Housing Act. HUD guidance treats criminal-history screening policies that have a disparate impact on minority applicants as potentially unlawful when applied as blanket exclusions, and screening based on arrest records alone is considered presumptively discriminatory. Housing providers are expected to conduct individualized assessments and apply screening criteria consistently.
None of this prohibits using SORI data. It means decisions should be tailored to the specific offense, the time elapsed, and the relevance to the role or housing situation. A youth sports organization declining to hire a Level 3 offender sits on solid ground. A property manager rejecting every applicant who shows up on any registry, without looking at the details, does not.
When Massachusetts Alone Isn’t Enough
A SORI check covers only the Massachusetts registry. If the person you are screening has lived in other states, a Massachusetts-only search can miss registrations elsewhere. The federal National Sex Offender Public Website (NSOPW) at nsopw.gov searches the registries of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, and participating tribal jurisdictions in real time.10Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website. FAQs
NSOPW is free and requires no account. It is not a centralized database; it queries each jurisdiction’s system live, so if a state’s system is temporarily offline, those results won’t appear. Search fields also vary because not every state provides the same data. The Department of Justice does not maintain or verify the underlying information, and NSOPW’s own guidance recommends confirming results with the jurisdiction where the offender is registered. NSOPW is a public resource separate from the FBI’s law-enforcement-only National Sex Offender Registry.
SORI vs. CORI: Different Checks, Different Purposes
A SORI check is narrow. It covers sex offense convictions and the offender’s assigned risk level, and nothing else. A Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) check pulls from the broader criminal record database maintained by the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services and covers all types of criminal offenses, including arrests, charges, and dispositions.
Organizations screening people who will work with vulnerable populations often need both. A CORI check could surface a drug conviction or an assault charge that a SORI check would never return, while a SORI check gives you the risk-level classification and sex-offense specifics that a CORI report may not break out the same way. Running only one when you need both is a common mistake, especially among smaller organizations new to screening requirements.