25-Apr-2024 | Ghulam Asghar
Background Check for International Hires: Ensuring compliance and quality
“Employees are a company's greatest asset - they are your competitive advantage. You want to attract and retain the best; provide them with encouragement, stimulus, and make them feel that they are an integral part of the company's mission.”
- Anne M. Mulcahy former Vice President for Human Resources at Xerox Corporation
In Ms. Mulchay’s words, an expert in dealing with employees across borders, an employee is the greatest asset of any organization. Finding an employee who is trustworthy and aligns with your company’s vision is like finding a gold mine.
An employee background check is your key to finding ‘the right employee’. It helps to recruit candidates who are in line with the company’s mission and helps it grow. As the world shrinks, employers not only seek candidates in their own country but across the globe. You may have a firm established in Europe seeking candidates from as far as South Asia!! When you desire to hire talent from different countries, the need for comprehensive background checks becomes more crucial than ever before.
However, the question is how do we ensure that this person is as compliant as their CV suggests? Are their credentials valid? Are their qualifications true? These questions jeopardize talent acquisition, especially from across borders. To combat such doubts and discrepancies, an organization must conduct a thorough international employment background check.
What is an international background check?
An international employee background check searches an applicant’s credentials and criminal records background in other countries. This type of check is conducted when considering candidates who either are from another country or have lived or worked abroad. Moreover, international employee verification checks might also be requested by recruiters who are ambitious to expand overseas.
International employee verification is a very nuanced topic. It has many layers and deals with multiple complexities. Conducting an international background check presents itself with various legal conditions, and cultural and language barriers which are difficult to navigate.
Understand local regulations
One of the foremost challenges while dealing with international screening is to comply with diverse international laws and regulations. Each country has its own set of laws governing data protection, privacy, and employment practices. This makes it critical for organizations to understand and comply.
When conducting international employee verification, it is imperative to understand the legal technicalities of the country where the individual resides. For example, GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) sets strict rules for the collecting, storing, and processing of personal data for the European Union. The same cannot apply in the U.S.A. where IRCA (Immigration Reform and Control Act) says that you not only need to obtain written consent from an individual before processing a background check but, also alert them of your intent to run a background check in writing before beginning the process.
Hence, it is important to partner with legal experts or a team of professionals who specialize in international screenings. These professionals can guide organizations through the intricacies of compliance, ensuring that the screening process meets the requirements of each country.
Use reliable sources
As important as it is to comply with diverse international rules and regulations, it is equally important to be sure about the source of your information. Now that data is available at a touch, and AI is ruling the internet, it is essential to have correct facts and figures. Also, different countries handle information differently. Some have searchable databases; others still conduct manual searches.
A good way to avoid being misled can be to partner with local experts, such as employment law attorneys or human resources professionals in the country of interest. This basic practice can be invaluable in helping extract authentic information, as it can guide the specific requirements for background checks and help ensure that the screening process complies with local laws.
Verify identity and legal status
A major step in completing an international employment verification process is to ensure that the candidate is exactly who they say they are. Also, employees should confirm candidates’ work permits and legal status. This means confirming their citizenship or checking to make sure they have a valid working visa. If you employ someone who does not have a right to work in the country, you could face fines and legal action.
It's common for background checks to include disclosure agreements and authorization forms so that government and financial agencies are given express written consent from individuals for this information to be shared. Typically, if you partner with a third-party company to conduct an international background check, they will provide you and your prospective employees with the necessary documentation.
Conduct criminal background checks
A very important step in adopting the best practice for international background checks is to conduct a thorough criminal record check. What might appear on an international criminal screening might vary based on the country in which the search is conducted. Some countries have more stringent data privacy laws and narrow lists of jobs for which criminal offence information can be processed.
In some countries, a criminal records check might result in a certificate showing an applicant’s conviction, offence date, and sentence information. Others might only report serious criminal offences that would be just a year of imprisonment in another country.
Verification of credentials and references
Last but not least, when recruiting foreign candidates, employers must diligently hire the right candidate. An education verification check can help authenticate a candidate's educational qualifications. It confirms an applicant’s degrees, diplomas, and educational institutions attended abroad.
Moreover, employment verification also allows to verification of a candidate’s past work experiences. This also permits us to get to know their work ethics and professional behaviour. However, the available information will depend on the data privacy protection laws in the country. Along with these verifications, getting to know the ‘real person’ behind the CV is also essential. Hence, it is important to cross-check professional references provided by the applicant.
Conclusion
Taking everything into account, an employee is your most treasured resource. As you broaden your horizon and dive into new markets to seek and hire talent from different countries, the need for comprehensive international background checks becomes essential. By ensuring this you not only have the best hire on board but also end up building a team that leads your business in the direction you want.
FAQs
- What type of background check I can run on my off-shore employee?
You can run identity verification, legal status, criminal records checks, education checks, and employment checks on your off-shore employees. - How long does international verification take?
International background verification can take a few days to several weeks, depending on the complexity of the checks and the country's data protection laws. - How far do most companies go on background check?
Most companies verify identity, legal status, criminal records, education, employment history, and sometimes professional references. - Do I need to pay authorities for background verification?
In some countries, you may need to pay fees to access certain records or information from official sources.
