FBI Background Check in Medellín: Everything You Need to Know to Apply Successfully

An FBI background check isn’t something most people plan for when they move to Medellín. It’s usually a sudden request from an employer, a visa office, or a residency application. The requirements are the same as anywhere else outside the United States. What takes most effort is securing FBI-compliant ink fingerprints and coordinating document courier from Colombia.

Received a request for an FBI background check in Medellín? Here's what happens next.

You're being asked for an FBI background check in Medellín because Migración Colombia, a foreign embassy, an employer, or a licensing board requires your official criminal history record from the United States.

It usually happens in these situations:

• Colombian visa or residency applications
• Third-country visa applications (Spain, Canada, Australia, etc.)
• Employment screening by global companies or remote employers with U.S. ties
• Teaching positions at international schools and language institutes
• Professional licensing in regulated fields like finance, healthcare, or law
• International adoption dossiers
• Residency applications abroad

Which Colombian Visas May Require an FBI Background Check?

If a Colombian visa requires a criminal record certificate from your country of nationality or last residence, and that country is the United States, the document expected is the FBI Identity History Summary.

Note: Immigration requirements can change. Always verify the exact documents required for your visa category using the official Cancillería visa guidance or consult the current text of Resolution 5477 before submitting your application.

Can You Get an FBI Background Check Without Leaving Medellín?

Yes. The FBI accepts ink fingerprint cards from applicants anywhere in the world. There is no requirement to travel to the United States or visit the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá. The entire process, from fingerprinting to FBI submission, can be completed remotely while you stay in Medellín.

What you don't need

• A flight to the United States.
• An appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá.
• A local Colombian police certificate as a substitute.
• Electronic fingerprint scanning equipment.

What you do need

• A properly rolled ink fingerprint card (FD-258 or FD-1164).
• A reliable courier service that ships from Medellín to the United States.
• Enough time. Processing may take weeks or months.
• An apostille, if the requesting authority requires one.
• Before Applying for FBI Background Check in Medellín: Confirm These 4 Things

Confirming these will help you create a roadmap before you start the process and avoid last-minute surprises.

Who wants this document?

An employer, Migración Colombia, a third-country embassy, or a licensing board. The recipient determines whether an apostille is needed and what format to submit.

Do you need an apostille?

Not every request demands one. Colombian immigration authorities often do. A foreign employer might not. Confirm in writing before you spend time and money on apostille processing.

How recent must the report be?

Some authorities want a report issued within 90 days. Others may allow up to 180 days. Some don't specify at all. Ask the requesting office for their validity window. It will give you a direction when you should start.

Will you need a translation?

Colombian agencies sometimes require a certified Spanish translation of the FBI report. If the request mentions translation, arrange it after the apostille is attached, not before.

Fingerprinting is the most location-dependent step. The FBI requires ink prints on a physical card, not a digital file. You can download and print the FD-258 or FD-1164 card from the FBI's website on standard white paper.

Tip: It's often easier to obtain a card from a fingerprinting provider that already stocks them.

Your Options for Fingerprinting in Medellín

1. Mobile Fingerprinting Services

A handful of providers like Globeia Medellín offer mobile fingerprinting appointments at your home, office, or hotel. A trained associate arrives with official FBI fingerprint cards, captures your rolled ink fingerprints, and reviews the completed card before it is shipped to the United States.

2, Private Fingerprinting Providers

Some private fingerprinting providers in Medellín are familiar with FBI requirements and can capture rolled ink fingerprints. Before booking, confirm that they use or will complete an FBI-compliant fingerprint card.

3. National Police

The Colombian National Police can take ink fingerprints, but applicants should bring an FD-258 or FD-1164 card and confirm the technician is willing to complete it. Fingerprints taken on Colombian police forms are not accepted by the FBI.

What doesn't work for Medellín Applicants

• U.S. Embassy in Bogotá: The embassy does not provide fingerprinting services for FBI Identity History Summary requests. Don’t make the trip.
• Local Colombian fingerprint forms: The FBI only accepts fingerprints submitted on an approved FD-258 card. Colombian police fingerprint forms cannot be substituted.

Check Fingerprinting Services in Medellín

With the completed card in hand, you have three options to get it to the FBI's CJIS Division in Clarksburg, West Virginia.

Method 1: Mail the Card and Application Yourself

• Download and complete the FBI Identity History Summary Request Form
• Include your payment - currently $18 USD. The fee changes occasionally; check the FBI website. Pay by money order or credit card form (no cash).

Courier everything to:

FBI CJIS Division - Summary Request

1000 Custer Hollow Road

Clarksburg, WV 26306

Use DHL, FedEx, or UPS from Medellín. 4-72 is usually slower and less trackable for time-sensitive international documents.

Method 2: Electronic Departmental Order (eDO)

Go to the FBI eDO website (http://www.edo.cjis.gov/), submit your application and payment online, receive a confirmation number, and then mail only the fingerprint card with that number to the FBI. This removes the paper application form.

Method 3: Use a Submission Coordinator

A third-party submission coordinator will submit the application electronically on your behalf, and track progress. You still mail the physical card to their U.S. office (from Medellín).

This adds a service fee (typically $100–$250 USD depending on what's bundled) but reduces the probability of rework.

Depending on how you applied, your completed FBI Identity History Summary will be delivered as:

• A secure PDF, if you submitted an eligible Electronic Departmental Order (eDO) request and selected electronic delivery.
• A printed copy by U.S. First-Class Mail for mailed applications or where electronic delivery is unavailable.

The completed report includes an FBI watermark and the signature of an authorized FBI official.

If Migración Colombia, an employer, or another authority requires an apostille, you can't skip it. The apostille is issued only by the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. — no office in Colombia can provide it.

1. Gather the documents

Your original FBI Identity History Summary (printed, with FBI seal and signature).

2. Courier everything to:

U.S. Department of State

Office of Authentications

600 19th Street NW

Washington, DC 20006

3. Include a prepaid return courier label (FedEx, DHL, or UPS) addressed to yourself in Medellín. Create an account with the courier online, generate a return label, and put it in the envelope. The State Department won't arrange return shipping for you.

4. Keep the package intact. Do not remove the staple that attaches the apostille to the FBI report — it's the physical authentication bond. Scan the full document before sending, for your records.

Important: Only the federal Office of Authentications can apostille an FBI report. A state-level apostille (e.g., from California) will be rejected by Colombian authorities. Don't make that mistake.

Here's a breakdown for a self-managed application with apostille:

Add extra days for weekends, Colombian holidays, or any rejection rework.

Note: These timelines are illustrative estimates only. Actual processing times are determined entirely by the FBI and the U.S. Department of State and may vary significantly based on application volume, fingerprint quality, and individual circumstances. 

By the time you've reached this point, you've seen that an FBI background check from Medellín involves more than one application. It's a chain of steps handled by different organizations in two countries.

If you manage the process yourself, you'll coordinate each stage independently. Globeia combines those stages into a single workflow.

Here's how it works:

1. Mobile Ink Fingerprinting in Medellín: A trained associate meets you at your home, office, or a nearby location. Official FD-258 or FD-1164 cards are provided, and print quality is checked on the spot.
2. FBI submission: Globeia's U.S. office receives your completed card and submits the application electronically to the FBI on your behalf.
3. Processing and tracking: The application's progress is monitored, and you're notified when the FBI issues your Identity History Summary. Real-time updates are accessible through our SmartPortal.
4. Apostille coordination (if required): Once the FBI report is ready, Globeia mails it to the U.S. Department of State for apostille authentication. No separate forms or return couriers to arrange.
5. Delivery to Medellín: The apostilled FBI report is couriered back to you. What you receive is submission-ready for Migración Colombia, an employer, or a visa office.

You still appear in person for the fingerprints. Everything after that moves forward without you having to track multiple agencies, time zones, or waybills. This is one option for applicants who prefer a single point of contact throughout the process rather than managing each stage independently.

DIY vs Coordinated Service

How Early Should You Start?

• Deadline is 3+ months away: Ideal. Start now, use an express or tracked courier, and you'll likely have enough time to complete the FBI background check and, if required, obtain a U.S. Department of State apostille before your deadline.
• Deadline is around 2 months away: Tight but still possible. Submit your fingerprints as early as possible, use express courier services, and avoid delays by carefully reviewing your application before mailing it. If you also need an apostille, allow additional time for processing.
• Deadline is less than 30 days away: Meeting your deadline may be difficult, particularly if you need both an FBI background check and an apostille. Contact the requesting authority as soon as possible to ask whether an extension is available or whether you can submit proof that your application is already in progress.

Nobody moves to Medellín thinking about ink cards and federal apostilles. But when the request arrives, the path forward is clearer than it first seems: fingerprints, FBI submission, and sometimes an apostille. The timeline is rigid, but manageable if you start early.

The trick isn't doing everything perfectly. It's understanding which parts take time, which parts can go wrong, and which decisions you can make now to avoid a panic later. Work backward from your deadline, confirm the four things before you begin, and the process becomes a sequence you can actually control, even from Medellín.