Delaware Teacher Fingerprinting: Locations, Fees, and Background Checks

The Three-Part Background Screening

Delaware requires every educator to clear a three-part background screening before they can work in a public or charter school. No exceptions — this applies to traditional graduates, ARTC career changers, reciprocity applicants, and even long-term substitutes. All three clearances must be current before you can have unsupervised contact with students under House Bill 97.

Part 1: Fingerprint Criminal Background Check

Your fingerprints are captured through IdentoGO and routed to both the Delaware State Bureau of Identification (SBI) and the FBI for a dual state and federal criminal records check.

How to schedule: Register online through IdentoGO's website. You'll need your school-specific or state-specific Service Code (such as 27S2HF for educational clinical placements). Bring a valid government-issued photo ID to your appointment.

Where to go: Fingerprinting is available at SBI offices across Delaware's three counties:

• New Castle County (Bear) — appointment required
• Kent County (Dover) — walk-ins accepted
• Sussex County (Georgetown) — appointment required

The Kent County Dover office is the only location that accepts walk-in applicants. If you're in New Castle or Sussex County, schedule your appointment early — slots fill up fast during the June–September hiring season.

Fees: $38 to $85 depending on the check type. Most educator applicants need the combined state and federal background check.

Processing time: 2 to 4 weeks. Plan accordingly if you're targeting a fall start date.

Part 2: Child Protection Registry Check

Separate from the criminal background check, Delaware requires a Child Protection Registry (CPR) check through the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families (DSCYF). This screens for histories of child abuse or neglect.

How to complete it: Register through the DSCYF online portal, execute a release authorization, and pay the $14 processing fee. In many cases, the hiring school district or your university clinical placement coordinator initiates the check on your behalf.

The CPR check is valid for 12 months. If your certification process extends beyond a year, you'll need to renew it.

Part 3: TB Test

You must have a negative Tuberculin (TB) PPD skin test administered by a licensed medical professional within the 12 months before your first classroom assignment. This is submitted directly during district onboarding — it doesn't go through DEEDS.

The cost varies by provider. Check with your primary care physician or a local health clinic for current pricing.

Background Check Sharing Between Districts

Recent regulatory proposals seek to reduce the financial burden of repeat screenings. Under the proposals, school districts and charter schools could share completed criminal background check results if you sign a formal disclosure release form. You would be considered "continuously employed" — and exempt from repeating clearances — if you worked for compensation in the same district during the prior school year. The proposal would also cover substitute teachers and student teachers seeking employment in the district where they completed their clinical placement.

Volunteer Clearances

If you're volunteering in Delaware public schools before securing a teaching position, approved volunteers are now integrated into the state's continuous "Rap Back" monitoring system. Background checks completed for one school are valid at any other public school in the state, and the state bears all screening costs for approved volunteers.

For a complete timeline that maps background clearance deadlines against the rest of the certification process, the Delaware Teacher Certification Guide includes a clearance timeline planner that coordinates all three checks so nothing expires before your application clears DEEDS.

See more Delaware guides →