Bottom Line for Delaware Nonprofits
- ✓Volunteers with regular, unsupervised access to children at any child-serving entity: DSCYF and its contractors, DSCYF-run or contracted residential child care, public and charter schools and the Department of Education, licensed child care, youth camps and summer schools, CCDBG-registered providers and early intervention providers (31 Del. C. § 309(b)(4), (b)(17), (c))
- ✓Private school volunteers with regular direct access to children, including at summer schools and youth camps a private school runs (31 Del. C. § 312, in force July 1, 2026; compliance required by September 1, 2026)
- ✓Members and applicants of Delaware volunteer fire departments, after a state and federal check, with no SBI fee (16 Del. C. § 6647)
- +4 more required roles below
State Laws That Apply to Volunteer Background Checks
Background checks for child-serving entities
31 Del. C. §§ 309, 311Every child-serving entity, including public schools, licensed child care, youth camps and DSCYF programs, must obtain a fingerprint-based SBI and FBI check and a DSCYF Child Protection Registry check for prospective employees, volunteers and contractors; a covered volunteer is one with regular, unsupervised access to children. Noncompliance is a class A misdemeanor with a civil penalty of $1,000 to $5,000 per violation.
Private school background checks
31 Del. C. § 312 (85 Del. Laws c. 197, HS 1 for HB 47, approved Sept. 2, 2025)Since July 1, 2026, with compliance due by Sept. 1, 2026, private schools must obtain the same SBI, FBI and Child Protection Registry check for employees, contractors and volunteers with regular direct access to children, including school-run summer schools and youth camps; the law repealed the name-based and opt-out alternatives private schools and youth camps had used.
Volunteer fire department membership
16 Del. C. § 6647 (84 Del. Laws c. 405, HB 411, approved Sept. 19, 2024)After a state and federal background check, membership must be denied or revoked for listed offenses unless the member proves extraordinary circumstances; applicants pay no SBI fee, and a denied or revoked member may appeal to the State Fire Prevention Commission within 15 days.
DHSS employees, contractors and volunteers serving children
29 Del. C. §§ 7998–7999 (83 Del. Laws c. 491)Department of Health and Social Services volunteers who visit children in their homes or community, or have regular direct access to minors, must obtain a criminal background check, at their own cost; a disqualifying criminal conviction or a Child Protection Registry entry at Level III or IV bars the role (29 Del. C. § 7999(a)–(b), (e)).
Long-term care and home care hiring checks
16 Del. C. §§ 1141, 1145Nursing homes and home care, hospice and personal assistance agencies must obtain a Background Check Center criminal history before hiring; the statutes cover applicants for employment and do not name volunteers.
Who Must Be Screened in Delaware
!Legally Required to Be Screened
- •Volunteers with regular, unsupervised access to children at any child-serving entity: DSCYF and its contractors, DSCYF-run or contracted residential child care, public and charter schools and the Department of Education, licensed child care, youth camps and summer schools, CCDBG-registered providers and early intervention providers (31 Del. C. § 309(b)(4), (b)(17), (c))
- •Private school volunteers with regular direct access to children, including at summer schools and youth camps a private school runs (31 Del. C. § 312, in force July 1, 2026; compliance required by September 1, 2026)
- •Members and applicants of Delaware volunteer fire departments, after a state and federal check, with no SBI fee (16 Del. C. § 6647)
- •Licensed child care center volunteers serving more than five days or 40 hours a year, and all adult volunteers at licensed youth camps, fingerprinted before starting (14 DE Admin. Code 933 § 25.2.4; 938 § 28.2)
- •Department of Health and Social Services volunteers who visit children at home or in the community or have regular direct access to minors (29 Del. C. §§ 7998–7999)
- •Prospective foster, adoptive and respite parents and their adult household members (31 Del. C. § 309(b)(9))
- •Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteers of the Office of the Child Advocate (29 Del. C. § 9010A(1))
Optional — no Delaware statute we found requires a check
- ◦child-welfare organizations not covered by § 309 may opt in to the same SBI, FBI and Child Protection Registry checks at their own expense (31 Del. C. § 309(c)(8))
- ◦we found no statute requiring checks of volunteers at nursing homes, home care agencies, adult day programs or community youth sports leagues
Types of Background Checks Required in Delaware
How to Get Background Checks in Delaware
$5 per check — a national criminal database search, sex offender registries in all 50 states and an SSN trace, with human FCRA review when a record needs it. It never replaces a check Delaware law requires.
Start Free Today →Volunteer Screening in Delaware: What You Need to Know
Delaware routes almost all child-facing checks through one statute, 31 Del. C. § 309, which sets fixed bars for employees and volunteers alike: life for felony physical or sexual assault crimes against a child, an impaired adult or an elderly person, 10 years for such crimes against other adults, and 7 years for other violent felonies and misdemeanors against children, unless the Child Protection Registry rules set a different period (§ 309(d)(1)). An entity that skips the checks commits a class A misdemeanor and faces a $1,000 to $5,000 civil penalty per violation (§ 311). Since August 1, 2024 the State Bureau of Identification has expunged eligible records automatically every month (11 Del. C. § 4373A), and Delaware has no state FCRA analog.
Compliance Tips for Delaware Nonprofits
- 1
Private schools and the summer schools and youth camps they run had to comply with 31 Del. C. § 312 by September 1, 2026; confirm every volunteer with regular direct access has an SBI, FBI and Child Protection Registry result on file.
- 2
Volunteer fire departments must deny or revoke membership for the offenses in 16 Del. C. § 6647(b) after a state and federal check and may not charge applicants an SBI fee; a denied or revoked member may appeal to the State Fire Prevention Commission within 15 days (§ 6647(c), (f)).
- 3
Attach the volunteer’s signed release to your Child Protection Registry request; DSCYF processes the check only when the signed statement is attached (31 Del. C. § 309(c)(2)).
- 4
Treat a volunteer as covered by § 309 when they will have personal, unsupervised contact with children; a covered volunteer may start conditionally while results are pending, subject to setting rules: licensed child care and youth camps fingerprint before starting and keep uncleared volunteers from being alone with children, and public schools must start the check before a provisional placement (31 Del. C. § 309(b)(7), (c)(7); 14 DE Admin. Code 933 § 25.2.4, 938 §§ 22.3.6, 28.2, 745 § 4.5).
- 5
Do not ask volunteers about expunged arrests or convictions; Delaware says a person should not be asked to disclose them (11 Del. C. § 4372(d)).
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Delaware require background checks for my nonprofit’s volunteers?
Only for volunteers in specific roles or settings; no Delaware rule covers every nonprofit. Delaware requires a fingerprint-based SBI and FBI check plus a DSCYF Child Protection Registry check for volunteers with regular, unsupervised access to children at any child-serving entity, including public schools, licensed child care, youth camps and DSCYF programs (31 Del. C. § 309).
How long does a Delaware volunteer background check take?
Official state checks: Not set by statute. We could not verify State Police processing times; a child-serving entity may place a volunteer conditionally while results are pending, subject to setting rules (31 Del. C. § 309(c)(7)). VolunteerBadge's national criminal search returns most results in minutes; a record that needs human FCRA review can take up to about 72 hours.