Governed by a strict and thorough set of professional standards of specified requirements and measurements, the BSOAP has become a widely recognized seal of approval bringing international recognition to background screening-affiliated organization for its commitment to achieving excellence through high professional standards with accountability that results in continued institutional improvement.
BSOAP provides a detailed process for evaluating and improving internal operating procedures from which every consumer reporting agency/organization, and their clients, benefit. Employers who are themselves not qualified to evaluate an organization's processes rely upon the Background Screening Credentialing Council’s (BSCC) audit to show that how an organization complies with industry-set standards.
Accreditation is a substantial step in building value within your organization, offering a roadmap to build the quality that will make the difference in what you have to offer, what you deliver, and the kind of organization you create. Becoming accredited requires you to formally document all your policies and procedures and requires that your processes adhere to those documented policies and procedures. When going through the accreditation process, you may come across items that you are doing today but have not documented and therefore are not doing consistently, items that you had not previously considered, and more. Formally documenting your policies makes it easier for you to train new employees and ensure the uniformity of your processes.
Accreditation strengthens the marketplace perception of a business' commitment to excellence, compliance and consumer protection, a powerful advantage in today's competitive environment.
Tangible benefits include using the BSOAP accreditation logo(s), accreditation status designation in the online directory, and a press release template announcing your accreditation and exposure resulting from PBSA's marketing and public relations efforts.
All eligibility requirements are outlined in the Background Screening Organization Accreditation Program (BSOAP) Policies and Procedures.
Yes. The accreditation programs requires that the organization is currently and regularly engaged in the business of providing employment (for the U.S.) or background (for the General) screening services. If you do not provide all the services in the accreditation standard, you must be able to demonstrate policies and conformance to each clause. All eligibility requirements are outlined in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
Likely, yes. All eligibility requirements are outlined in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
No, neither accreditation program is based on a geographic requirement. Each program is based on what type of work you are conducting and the regional focus of that work. There is no requirement to reside in either the U.S. for the U.S. Employment Screening accreditation or outside the U.S. for the General Background Screening accreditation.
Organizations have six months from the date their Letter of Intent (LOI) is submitted to submit their application and payment. Upon acceptance of the application, the applicant organization has an additional six months to send supporting documentation. (Applicants can submit application, payment and supporting material altogether if preferred). Once the materials, application and payment are received, the information is provided to the auditor who performs a desk audit. This is a review of the submitted materials and is used to determine readiness of the organization to proceed to the onsite/virtual audit stage. There is often back and forth with the desk audit stage to ensure the auditor has the required information. Next, the auditor contacts the organization and arranges a day and time to perform an onsite/virtual audit. Once the onsite/virtual review is complete, the auditor provides the applicant with a copy of findings, recommendations, and any suggested improvements. If applicable, the applicant has the opportunity to modify its processes according to recommendations and respond to the auditor’s report. At the conclusion of the remediation of findings process, the auditor’s full report is provided to the BSCC for final review and approval. Once the BSCC has reviewed the audit findings, the organization will be notified formally if they have been granted or denied (re)accreditation. The full accreditation process must be completed every 5 years and an interim surveillance audit, to ensure ongoing conformity, must be completed three years after the initial accreditation is granted. For more details, view the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
This depends on the state of the organization’s current practices, and how adequately policies are documented and procedures are followed. The period before submission usually takes six months while the audit process usually takes 3-4 months, depending on the organization’s preparedness, auditor’s schedule and when the auditor can coordinate the onsite (virtual) audit with the organization. The entire process and approximate timelines can be found in the appendix of the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
Accreditation is valid for five years, provided the accredited organization successfully completes an Interim Surveillance Audit during its third year of accreditation. At least six months prior to the five-year expiration date, the review process must be repeated which involves submission of an application, fee, supporting self-audit materials, as well as an onsite/virtual audit.
During the review process, the auditor may note non-conformities or opportunities for improvement. The applicant has the opportunity to modify its processes according to the findings and respond to the auditor’s report. After the organization responds to the auditor’s report, the final report must be sent to the BSCC for review and approval or denial of the accreditation. Typically, any deficiencies can be handled and addressed enabling the organization to become accredited. If, however accreditation is denied, and any appeals are not successful, the applicant will be eligible to re-apply for accreditation in one year. Full details are available in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
CyberGuard Compliance is the auditor for both the U.S. and General Accreditation Programs. This auditor is familiar with our requirements and process and has worked with the BSCC for several years.
Fees are determined by the auditor and staff based on the responses provided by the applicant organization on their application form and in discussions the auditor may have with the organization related to the structure of their operations. Typically, the organization’s primary operating location is the location that will be audited. However, if specific areas of the operations that woud be subject to the audit are conducted in several locations, or the structure of the organization is unique, it may be determined that the audit is more complex than the standard, and additional fees may apply.
The Background Screening Credentialing Council (BSCC) is made up of PBSA members and community members selected for their expertise in compliance, technology, operations, and other areas to oversee the accreditation programs. The BSCC reports to the PBSA Board of Directors. Specifics on the nomination and approval process for members may be found in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
The role of the BSCC members can be found in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures and is summarized as follows:
Regional Councils – APAC, Canada, Europe, and U.S. – are not directly involved in the audit or accreditation process. They were, however, involved in the creation of the accreditation programs, are participants in the public comment and reviews of the programs and have provided valuable feedback and guidance in the expansion of our programs over the years. Each Council may also have members on the BSCC.
The entire audit process is “blind” to all BSCC and Board members. Upon receipt at the PBSA office, each application is assigned a unique identifying number used on all subsequent audit letters, votes, discussions, or other matters presented to the BSCC or Board. This means that each organization is only referred to by a number, and the specifics of who the entity is are known only to PBSA Staff and the auditor. The Board and BSCC will only review general information related to the audit and will not be privy to the organization name, or individuals, involved in the audit process.
Organizations providing services under the BSOAP United States Employment Screening Services can apply for accreditation regardless of its physical operating location(s). The organization will be subject to the same audit expectations outlined in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures. For additional details, please see the Physical Location of Agency Applying for US Accreditation Opinion Letter.
Aside from some minor updates to improve the auditability of the program and ensure it addresses the evolution of technology, and in particular security standards, on a few clauses, the U.S. program will remain the same.
The new program will be called the General Background Screening accreditation.
There are a number of benefits organizations realize when they achieve accreditation, including but not limited to:
As we have seen with the U.S. program, end-users/clients regard an organization's accreditation status positively and often seek out accredited organizations as potential partners.
All audits will be conducted in English.
CyberGuard Compliance is the auditor for both accreditation programs. This auditor is familiar with our requirements and process and has worked with the BSCC for several years. Additionally, they were involved in the review of the General Standard and the discussions around audit requirements. Given this experience, we felt they were best suited to act as the auditor for our expansion program.
The pricing for the General and the U.S. accreditation programs will be the same. The price is not predicated on the type of accreditation being sought. There may be variables that impact the pricing, and all details can be found in the appendix of the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
Per the BSOAP Policies and Procedures, the General Background Screening accreditation program will be overseen by the existing Background Screening Credentialing Council. The BSCC will be responsible for all accreditation programs and will ensure the consistent and compliant administration of the policies and program. The BSCC is comprised of a cross-section of PBSA members and represents both geographic and member diversity. The BSCC is not affiliated with any specific geographic Council and reports directly to the PBSA Board of Directors.
The General Background Screening accreditation program is the first expansion program beyond the existing U.S. Employment Screening accreditation program. It is meant to meet the needs of those PBSA members who deliver screening services outside the U.S. To make the most impact and get a program to the greatest number of members as efficiently as possible, the decision was made to create a more generic program to address global screening and compliance.
As a result, the General program is based on the Fair Information Privacy Principles (FIPPs), the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) Privacy Principles, and APEC Privacy Framework, which endorsed the Cross- Border Privacy Rules (CPBR) System. Together, these approaches embody the requirements for organizations to demonstrate compliance with internationally recognized data privacy standards, and it is upon these same principles many country- specific privacy programs were based. If an organization is compliant with GDPR, for example, it should be able to meet the requirements of the General Background Screening accreditation program.
This approach also ensured that no geographic Council would be required to create its own program to have something to offer its members. This general approach also creates the opportunity for future geographic-specific programs to be created, much like the U.S. Employment Screening standard, that will allow a demonstration of a specialized area of expertise.
The existing U.S. Employment Screening Standard focuses on requirements related to U.S. employment screening, specifically meeting requirements for compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the Driver Privacy Protection Act (DPPA).
The General Background Screening Standard is made up of clauses related to the delivery of background screening services outside of the United States with a more general approach to privacy principles and global compliance. Because “employment screening” is not a commonly used phrase around the globe we have not used it in the General Standard. Like the U.S. Employment Screening Standard however, the General Background Screening Standard does not apply to tenant screening or drug screening/testing.
Yes, the process will be the same. The only distinction between the programs is the clauses being audited. All audits have moved to a virtual format and will use the same online platform for materials submission, and all audits will include the application, desk audit, virtual onsite review of conformance to the Standard and a 3-year Interim Surveillance Audit.
This will be a business choice for your organization based on which areas of your business you wish to demonstrate compliance. If most of your operations involve U.S. Employment Screening, the General accreditation may not be as beneficial for you. Likewise, if most of your operations focus on background screening outside of the U.S., you may choose to bypass U.S. accreditation and pursue the General Background Screening accreditation instead.
Yes. If they are done simultaneously, there is even a financial benefit in doing so as PBSA offers a reduced fee for bundling both programs into one accreditation process. There is a significant overlap in the requirements between the two Standards (approximately 85% overlap). Both Standards have roughly the same number of clauses, and each has 5 or so clauses that are specific to their topic area (either U.S. or more general non-U.S. privacy and data handling requirements). In order to receive the reduced (i.e., bundled) pricing an organization must have both the US and General audits scheduled on the same timeline. PBSA staff can work with you on this.
Yes. The organization will be required to submit the required materials for both programs, but the time the audit will take is significantly reduced if they are done simultaneously. As a result, there is also a reduced fee for bundling both programs into one accreditation process.
The most obvious benefit is the continued external validation of your business and operational processes which demonstrate compliance to the Standards. The current U.S. Standard is seen as the gold star confirming the quality of U.S. operations, and the General Standard will now do the same for services delivered outside the U.S. If your organization delivers services both inside and outside of the U.S., accreditation to both Standards may be a valuable tool.
No, both programs are separate and stand alone as individual valid accreditation programs. Since there is an overlap in many clauses between the program, if you are accredited to one program, much of the work and process should already be in place if you wish to apply for accreditation to the second program. There is a financial benefit when completing both programs at the same time, but an organization does not need to complete one to achieve the other, and the programs do not “build” on each other in any way.
An organization can choose to let one accreditation lapse and seek compliance with the other accreditation, but they cannot change between the two accreditations without being subjected to the full audit process.
All pricing is listed on the Fee Schedule in the BSOAP Policies and Procedures. These prices took effect on April 20, 2022 for all new applicants.
The pricing for the General and the U.S. accreditation programs will be the same. The price is not predicated on the type of accreditation being sought. There may be variables that impact the pricing, and all details can be found in the appendix of the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
The bundled pricing option is available for any organization seeking accreditation to both Standards simultaneously. Due to the overlap in many of the clauses between both programs, there is considerable time savings and effort for both the organization and the auditor if these are done simultaneously, and that savings is passed on to the applicant organization. The pricing and all details can be found in the appendix of the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
No. The fees were amended per the agreement with our auditor and several years of experience with the program and the various increasing costs of conducting business. It should be noted that all audits have been moved to a virtual format, and as such, organizations will no longer have to pay the previous travel, lodging, and food expenses that were associated with an audit. As a result, many will find the fees have decreased from previous audits.
The pricing for the General and the U.S. accreditation programs will be the same. The price is not predicated on the type of accreditation being sought. There may be a fee difference based on location is if operations need to be audited in more than one location, in which case an additional fee may be levied. There may be variables that impact the pricing, and all details can be found in the appendix of the BSOAP Policies and Procedures.
These fees are determined by the auditor and staff based on the responses provided by the applicant organization on their application and in discussions the auditor may have with the organization related to the structure of their operations. Typically, the primary operations location is the location that will be audited. However, if operations are conducted in several locations or the structure of the organization is unique, it may be determined that the audit is more complex than the standard, and additional fees may apply.
I have more questions; who can I talk to?
Any questions should be directed to our staff at accreditation@thepbsa.org. No questions should be posed to the auditor, BSCC members directly or to the Board of Directors.