First, the one thing to get right
An FBI background check is a federal document. It cannot be apostilled by California or any state — it goes to the US Department of State, Office of Authentications, in Washington DC. Sending it to a state Secretary of State is the single most common mistake, and it costs weeks: the state mails it back unprocessed and you start over. Second most common mistake: getting a state background check (like a California DOJ report) when the employer or visa office requires the FBI report. Confirm which one your receiving office wants before ordering anything.
The process, step by step
- Get fingerprinted. The FBI report requires your fingerprints — this is the one physical step. Options: electronic fingerprinting at participating locations (many UPS stores, print-and-scan services, police departments), or ink fingerprint cards (FD-258) if you're already outside the US — ink cards can be taken abroad, including in China, and mailed in.
- Order your FBI Identity History Summary. Directly from the FBI at edo.fbi.gov (about $18, verify current), or through an FBI-approved "channeler" (roughly $50) which is faster. Electronic submissions typically return the official PDF within days.
- Submit for the federal apostille. The Department of State accepts the printed electronic FBI report. You complete form DS-4194 (stating the destination country), pay the federal fee (about $20 per document, verify current), and mail everything with a prepaid trackable return label. Standard processing has historically run 4–8+ weeks by mail — plan for it, or use an expedited channel (below).
- Translation and delivery. For China, arrange a certified Chinese translation of the report and the apostille page (confirm first whether your receiving office prefers translation done locally in China), then ship with tracking.
Timeline and cost, honestly
DIY: roughly $40–60 in government fees and postage, and typically 5–10 weeks end to end at standard federal processing speed — entirely doable if your deadline is far away and you're comfortable with the forms.
Our standard service: we handle fingerprinting coordination, the FBI order, DS-4194, submission, tracking, and status updates — same government timeline, none of the pitfalls.
Our expedited service: approximately 5–10 business days for the apostille step via our Washington DC channel instead of 4–8+ weeks — for when the job start date is real and close.
Going to China for work? You almost certainly also need your degree apostilled. Our China Work Visa Package covers the FBI check, degree, and professional certificate together — one order, one FedEx to China.
Where DIY attempts actually fail
- Sending the FBI report to a state office instead of the Department of State (weeks lost).
- Ordering a state background check when the FBI one was required — or vice versa.
- Rejected fingerprints (smudged ink cards are common from abroad) — resubmission restarts the clock.
- Report goes stale during the 4–8 week federal queue and misses the receiving office's 6-month window.
- Translation done by someone the receiving office won't accept.
None of these is hard to avoid — if you know they exist. That's essentially what you're paying a service for.
Want it handled? 需要代办？
Send us a WeChat or email with your situation — where you're located, whether you have the FBI report yet, your deadline, and which office in China (or elsewhere) will receive it. Free quote in 30 minutes. 微信或邮件告知情况，30分钟内免费报价。