Electronic Live Scan for California DOJ and FBI background checks, and FD-258 ink fingerprint cards for out-of-state and FBI requests. Walk in any day of the week or book a time, in English or Spanish.
Open 7 days, walk-ins welcome.
Mon to Fri 9am to 5pm · Sat and Sun 10am to 2pm
14545 Friar St Ste 100, Van Nuys, CA 91411
Live Scan records your fingerprints on a glass scanner, with no ink, and sends them electronically to the California Department of Justice. The DOJ also forwards them to the FBI when the agency asking for them requires a federal check.
The employer, school or licensing agency asking for your fingerprints gives you a Request for Live Scan Service form, BCIA 8016. Their section tells the DOJ who receives your results.
Fill in your own section before you come if you can. Bring a current, unexpired government photo ID. Walk in or book a time.
We check your ID against the form, scan all ten fingers and send them to the DOJ. You leave with your ATI number, which identifies your submission.
The DOJ sends the result straight to the agency on your form, not to you or to us. Plan on 1 to 2 weeks from your visit.
Your agency completes the top of the form. Check that these parts are filled in before you arrive, because the DOJ can delay or reject a request with missing information:
Your own section asks for your name, date of birth, address, physical description and signature. Filling it in at home makes your visit quicker. If your agency gave you only a code or a job title rather than a full form, call us before you come and we will tell you what you need.
A California driver's license or DMV ID card is the simplest. An out-of-state driver's license also works. If you plan to use a passport or another type of ID, call us first, because the DOJ may require supporting documents with it. The name and date of birth on your ID must match your form.
Without a billing number, you pay the government processing fees at your visit along with our rolling fee. See what Live Scan costs below.
Your agency's instructions say which one you need. If they ask for a BCIA 8016 form, you need Live Scan. If they send you an FD-258 card or say "fingerprint card", you need ink.
Digital fingerprints submitted electronically to the California Department of Justice. The standard requirement for California employment, professional licensing and state background checks.
Used for teachers and school staff, healthcare workers, caregivers, real estate and insurance licenses, notary applicants, security guards, CCW permits and many other California jobs and licenses.
Traditional ink fingerprint cards for the FBI, professional licensing, employment, immigration, and other national and international processes that cannot be completed electronically.
We roll your prints and hand you the completed card the same visit. You then send it to the FBI or the agency that asked for it, using the address and payment method on their instructions. Because the card goes in with your own application, their timelines and status updates come directly from them.
Plan on 1 to 2 weeks from your visit. The California DOJ reports that most electronic fingerprint checks are completed within three business days. Your agency then receives the result and reviews it on its own schedule.
Once your prints are submitted, the processing time is set by the Department of Justice and cannot be rushed, by us or by anyone else.
You can check whether the DOJ has processed your Live Scan on the DOJ applicant status page, using your ATI number and date of birth. The status page does not show a hiring or licensing decision. For your result, contact the agency that requested your fingerprints, since the DOJ sends results to them and not to us.
This timeline covers California DOJ Live Scan only. FD-258 ink cards go in with your own application, so the FBI or the receiving agency sets that timeline.
A Live Scan has two separate charges.
Many employers and licensing agencies pay the government fees for you through a billing number on the form. Call us with your form in hand and we will tell you the total for your application before you come in.
When you cannot come to the office, we bring Live Scan and ink fingerprinting to you, within roughly 40 miles of Van Nuys and sometimes further. Same-day and emergency visits are welcome.
We travel to hospitals, nursing homes, correctional facilities and private homes. A mobile quote depends on the distance, the time, the day and the location, so call us with the details and we will give you yours.
No. Walk in any day we are open: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, Saturday and Sunday 10am to 2pm. You can also book a time online if you would rather have one reserved.
Yes. We are open Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 2pm, and walk-ins are welcome on both days.
BCIA 8016 is the California DOJ Request for Live Scan Service. The agency asking for your fingerprints fills in its section, including its ORI code and the type of application. You fill in your personal details, and we complete the last section when we take your prints. What each part means.
An ORI is a code the California DOJ assigns to each agency that is authorized to receive fingerprint results. It tells the DOJ where to send yours. Your employer or licensing agency provides it on the BCIA 8016 form.
ATI stands for Applicant Transaction Identifier. It is the number that identifies your Live Scan, and you receive it at the end of your visit. Keep it: you need it to check your status online and to resubmit if your prints are ever rejected.
Plan on 1 to 2 weeks from your visit. The California DOJ reports that most electronic checks are completed within three business days, and your agency then receives and reviews the result. Once your prints are submitted, the timing is set by the DOJ and cannot be sped up.
Use the California DOJ applicant status page with your ATI number and date of birth. For the result itself, contact the agency that requested your fingerprints, because the DOJ sends results to them directly, not to you or to us.
Usually not. Results go only to the agency named on your form, so a new employer or licensing agency will normally ask you to complete a new Live Scan with their own form.
Your agency will let you know. Come back with the rejection notice and your original ATI number, which goes on the new form so the resubmission is not charged as a new application. If prints are rejected twice for quality, the DOJ checks your record by name instead.
Yes. The California Secretary of State requires notary applicants to be fingerprinted through Live Scan within one year of their exam date. Otherwise you have to retake the exam.
When the agency is outside California, when you are requesting your own FBI record, or when your instructions ask for a paper FD-258 card. We roll your prints on the card and hand it to you the same visit, and you send it to the FBI or the agency yourself.
Yes. We are bilingual and can take you through the form and the process in English or Spanish. Esta página en español.
A short drive from Sherman Oaks, North Hollywood, Encino and Panorama City.
