Fingerprinting Services in Bogotá for International Background Checks

As someone who’s currently in Bogotá, Colombia, and needs an FBI, RCMP, or other international criminal record check, you'll soon discover that not all fingerprinting services in Bogotá are equipped to handle them.

International background checks rely heavily on fingerprint verification for a simple reason. Names and dates of birth can be duplicated, but fingerprints don't lie. Foreign governments and global corporations run your prints through federal databases to confirm you have a clean record before approving visas, residency applications, employment, professional licenses, and other legal processes.

And these are federal checks, not local police checks. A certificate from a Colombian police station won't work. Your fingerprints must be taken on the correct card required by the destination country, captured by an authorized provider, and submitted to the appropriate agency abroad.

Keep reading to learn where to get fingerprinted in Bogotá, how to choose a reliable agency, the mistakes that get prints rejected, and the simplest way to handle the whole process!

If you're currently in Bogotá, there are several common situations where a fingerprint-based international background check will be strictly required:

• Colombian Long-Term Visa Applications: Almost all long-stay visa categories of Colombia, including digital nomad, marriage, retirement, investment, and business visas.
• Citizenship and Second Passports: If you've lived in Colombia long enough to qualify for Colombian citizenship, or you're an expat applying for a second passport from a country like Spain, Italy, or Portugal.
• Immigration or Permanent Residency in a Third Country: If you're in Bogotá but applying for a long-stay visa, immigration program, or permanent residency elsewhere.
• International Employment: Onboarding process of MNCs, financial institutions, and tech companies based in the USA, Canada, or Europe.
• Professional Licensing Abroad: Medical professionals, lawyers, engineers, and educators who want to apply or maintain a professional license in another country.
• Academic and Research Positions: Highly vetted PhD programs, postdoctoral fellowships, and university positions overseas.

Read All your Questions about Fingerprint Checks Answered

A common mistake people make is going to a local Policía Nacional station in Bogotá assuming they can get their fingerprints rolled for international criminal record checks. Colombian police stations only handle local records, which are tracked entirely via your passport or Cédula number. They do not possess the specific fingerprinting cards, the digital software, or the international authority required to clear you for foreign federal agencies like the FBI or the RCMP.

To avoid getting rejected, you can only use an authorized, professional fingerprinting agency or legal group right here in the city.

How to Choose a Reliable Fingerprinting Agency in Bogotá

Do They Provide Official Card Formats?

You absolutely cannot submit your fingerprints on a standard piece of paper or a random Colombian legal form. International authorities strictly require specific cards, printed on exact, heavyweight cardstock at the correct dimensions. The FBI, for example, only accepts prints on FD-258 or FD-1164 forms. Before booking, ask the agency explicitly whether they stock the official card for your destination country.

Verify Their Identity Verification Process

A reputable fingerprinting agency will always confirm your identity against a valid government-issued ID (passport or cédula) before taking your prints. International agencies expect the fingerprint taker to have verified who you are, and a provider that skips this step signals weak quality standards overall.

Check Whether Mobile Appointments Are Available

For busy professionals, families, and travellers, mobile fingerprinting can be far more convenient than visiting an office. Some agencies offer appointments at homes, offices, hotels, and corporate locations, saving time and making the process easier.

Check How to Prepare for Your Mobile Fingerprinting Appointment?

Choose Accuracy Over the Lowest Price

If your fingerprints get rejected, it can result in additional fees, repeated appointments, and weeks of delay. So, choosing an experienced provider with proper quality standards is always more important than simply finding the cheapest option.

Watch Out for Fake "Express", ‘Faster”, or "Guaranteed" Approvals

When you are in a rush to meet submission deadlines, you can very easily become prime targets for fake agencies claiming they can fast-track background check results in 24 to 48 hours directly from Bogotá. What’s the reality?

The FBI, RCMP, and other bodies set their own processing times, which can stretch due to verification requirements, application volume, backlogs, and public holidays. No one in Bogotá can speed that up.

No agency can legally guarantee your prints will be accepted. Even well-taken prints can occasionally be rejected due to dry skin, worn ridges, or excess ink. What a good agency can guarantee is a free retake if that happens.

Most fingerprinting service providers in Bogotá offer two types of services to the people:

Mobile fingerprinting has been gaining popularity among people in Bogotá due to the obvious reason: convenience. Some popular fingerprinting providers in Bogotá, like Globeia, offer the traditional ink-and-roll method, universally accepted by international authorities, right at the comfort of your home, hotel, or office.

For corporate executives, families with young children, individuals with mobility restrictions, or anyone wanting to bypass Bogotá’s heavy traffic and avoid travelling to a physical office, this is the best possible option available.

There is nothing worse than waiting weeks for your international background check, only to open an email stating your fingerprints have been rejected. When that happens, you may need to start the process again, book another fingerprinting appointment in Bogotá, pay additional fees, and potentially face delays with your visa or application.

If you are prepping for an appointment in Bogotá, keep an eye out for some of these common pitfalls:

Smudged or Over-Inked Prints

The single most common rejection reason. Too much ink fills in the ridge detail; too little leaves gaps. This is almost always a technician problem, not a hands problem. Which is why an experienced fingerprint taker matters more than anything else on this list.

Usage of Wrong Ink Color

Using blue, red, or purple ink pads common in some local Colombian notary offices will cause the automated scanners at the FBI or RCMP to trigger an automatic rejection. You need to make sure that the technician in Bogotá uses strictly black ink. 

Wrong Fingerprint Card or Paper Stock

Prints submitted on photocopied cards, regular printer paper, or local Colombian forms are rejected automatically, no matter how perfect the prints themselves are.

Errors in the Personal Information Fields

Even small mistakes can cause problems. A misspelled name, missing signature, a date format the destination country doesn't use (DD/MM vs MM/DD), a missing signature, or visibly crossed-out information may lead to your fingerprint card being rejected. Always make sure the details on the card match your passport exactly. 

Folding or Damaging the Card in Transit

Fingerprint cards must arrive flat and undamaged. Cards folded into a standard envelope, water-damaged, or creased during international shipping can be refused on arrival. Use a rigid mailer or, better, an agency that handles the courier process for you.

What if your prints are rejected anyway? Agencies like the FBI will send a rejection notice with a reason code. You'll need a fresh set of prints in that case, because most authorities won't accept a resubmission of the same card.

The good news is that every single mistake listed above is avoidable. None of them are within your control as the applicant, except choosing who takes your prints. Wrong ink, wrong fingerprint cards, sloppy rolls, damaged cards in transit, these are all process failures, and they disappear when the process is handled by specialists from start to finish.

That's exactly how Globeia's mobile fingerprinting service in Bogotá is designed and here's what the process looks like:

Step 1: Book Your Appointment Online

Fill out the SmartForm with your legal details exactly as they appear on your government documents, choose the background check you require, and select the time and location of your fingerprint appointment in Bogotá. You can choose Globeia’s fingerprinting service for multiple background checks, including, but not limited to:

• FBI Background Check
• RCMP Criminal Record Checks
• Hong Kong Criminal Record Checks
• Singapore Certificate of Clearance
• Australian Police Check, and more.

Before your appointment is confirmed, you'll be prompted to complete a secure Face ID verification, linking the application directly to you.

Step 2: Prepare Your Essential Documents

Keep two valid government-issued IDs handy, at least one with a photo. A current Passport is highly recommended for international applicants, paired with your Cédula de Extranjería or national identity card. Globeia's fingerprint associate will verify your identity on-site against these documents before any prints are taken.

Step 3: Fingerprint Capture in Bogotá

The trained associate will capture and roll your fingerprints using black ink. They will bring the official fingerprint cards with them, such as C216C or equivalent for RCMP criminal record checks, FD-258 or FD-1164 forms for the FBI background check, COC form for Singapore certificate of clearance, etc.

Each finger will be rolled smoothly from nail-edge to nail-edge across the designated boxes on the official cardstock. Flat impressions of the four fingers together and thumbs will also be taken at the bottom.

Step 4: On-the-Spot Quality Control

The associate will then inspect the prints immediately. The most common reasons for international rejection are smudging, light ink coverage, or missing the ridge details. If any print is blurred or incomplete, it's redone on a fresh card within the same appointment, at no extra charge.

Step 5: Letter of Identity Verification

Globeia provides an exclusive, tamper-proof Letter of Identity Verification containing an encrypted QR code at the end of each appointment. This acts as professional proof that your prints were handled under stringent identity protocols.

Step 6: Secure Submission Coordination

After the physical ink cards are correctly filled out, you do not need to mail them to the FBI or RCMP yourself. Globeia’s team in Bogotá couriers your physical ink fingerprint cards securely to their designated processing hubs. Example:

• For RCMP Criminal Record Checks: The cards are sent to Globeia Incorporated in Toronto, Canada (the RCMP-accredited entity). There, the physical ink cards are converted to digital files before submitting them electronically directly to the RCMP’s CCRTIS system.
• For FBI Background Checks: The cards are couriered directly to Globeia Inc. in the United States, where fingerprints are processed and submitted to the FBI CJIS on your behalf.

They have coordination teams across the USA, UK, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and 100+ countries, for the submission of your fingerprints to the relevant international authorities.

Step 7: Track and Receive Your Results

You can track the internal status of your shipment and submission via Globeia’s SmartPortal. Once the RCMP or FBI completes processing and issues the background checks, your results are delivered according to the option you selected during your application.

Globeia Bogotá Fingerprinting vs Local Options

As we've covered, most rejections after fingerprinting in Bogotá have nothing to do with your fingers and everything to do with who takes your prints and how they're submitted.

So the real decision isn't whether to get fingerprinted. Your visa, PR application, job offer, or license already decided that. It's whether to piece the process together yourself or hand it to a team that handles international submissions every day. With Globeia, the entire journey of your fingerprints runs through one system, with one point of accountability.

Book your fingerprinting appointment in Bogotá with Globeia today, and turn the most stressful step of your application into the easiest one.