Bottom Line for Maryland Nonprofits
- ✓Every volunteer (13 or older) at a licensed child care center — must pass a fingerprint check and a CPS clearance before being assigned to a group or given access to a child (COMAR 13A.16.02.01I)
- ✓Every youth camp volunteer in a “sensitive position” — any role with access to campers — needs a national and State fingerprint check and a CPS clearance response on file (COMAR 10.16.06.21)
- ✓Every volunteer at a registered family child care home — the provider must ensure a federal and State criminal background check has been applied for before duties begin, and a provider, substitute or additional adult must accompany the volunteer around unrelated children (COMAR 13A.15.06.05)
- +1 more required roles below
State Laws That Apply to Volunteer Background Checks
Childcare Criminal History Records Check
Md. Code, Family Law §§ 5-550 to 5-557Paid employees and employers at child care centers, family child care homes, public and private schools, foster homes, camps and recreation programs primarily serving minors must apply for national and State fingerprint checks through the DPSCS Central Repository on or before the first day. The statute makes volunteer checks optional — a facility may require them — and a volunteer in a Maryland Mentoring Partnership program then pays only the FBI fee. The statute does not itself require registry searches.
School Personnel Background Check
Md. Code, Family Law § 5-551(a)(6)–(7); Education § 6-113Public and private schools must run national and State fingerprint checks on paid employees under Family Law § 5-551. Education § 6-113 bars county boards from hiring or keeping anyone convicted of child sexual abuse, certain sex offenses or a crime of violence. We found no Maryland statute requiring school volunteer checks; a school may require them under Family Law § 5-551(c), so it is local policy.
Healthcare Personnel Background Check
Md. Code, Health-General Article § 19-1901 et seq.Adult dependent care programs — assisted living, adult day care, home health, hospice, group homes and related institutions — must run a State criminal history records check or a licensed private-agency background check on each paid employee with routine, direct access to dependent adults, plus a prior-employer reference. We found no provision requiring volunteer checks.
Youth Camp Criminal Background Investigations
COMAR 10.16.06.21 (amended effective April 14, 2025)Maryland Department of Health youth camp rule: every person in a “sensitive position” — a role with access to campers, defined to include volunteers — needs a completed national and State criminal history records check through DPSCS and a Child Protective Services clearance on file, and MDH decides whether anyone with a non-listed offense may serve. Amended by emergency action January 6, 2025 and permanently April 14, 2025.
Who Must Be Screened in Maryland
!Legally Required to Be Screened
- •Every volunteer (13 or older) at a licensed child care center — must pass a fingerprint check and a CPS clearance before being assigned to a group or given access to a child (COMAR 13A.16.02.01I)
- •Every youth camp volunteer in a “sensitive position” — any role with access to campers — needs a national and State fingerprint check and a CPS clearance response on file (COMAR 10.16.06.21)
- •Every volunteer at a registered family child care home — the provider must ensure a federal and State criminal background check has been applied for before duties begin, and a provider, substitute or additional adult must accompany the volunteer around unrelated children (COMAR 13A.15.06.05)
- •Volunteers at schools, recreation programs and other Family Law § 5-551(a) facilities — only if the facility chooses to require a check (§ 5-551(c)); the statute mandates checks for paid staff and employers only
Optional — no Maryland statute we found requires a check
- ◦mentors in programs registered with the Maryland Mentoring Partnership — if the program chooses a Part V check, the volunteer pays only the FBI processing fee (Family Law § 5-551(g)(2))
Types of Background Checks Required in Maryland
How to Get Background Checks in Maryland
$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 Maryland law requires.
Start Free Today →Volunteer Screening in Maryland: What You Need to Know
Maryland’s core background-check statute was renumbered: the law long cited as Family Law § 5-561 now sits at §§ 5-550 to 5-557, and it mandates checks for paid staff while leaving volunteer checks to each organization. Licensing rules fill the gap for child care and youth camps. Maryland’s record-shielding law keeps shielded convictions fully accessible to “a person that uses volunteers who care for or supervise children” (Criminal Procedure § 10-302(b)(7)). Volunteers in Maryland Mentoring Partnership programs pay only the FBI fee for a fingerprint check (§ 5-551(g)(2)). Electronic live-scan fingerprinting has been required for in-state applicants since October 1, 2020.
Compliance Tips for Maryland Nonprofits
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Fingerprints for in-state employment and licensing checks must be taken by live scan — DPSCS has required it since October 1, 2020. Budget for the FBI fee rising from $12 to $15 on October 1, 2026, which adds $3 to every State-plus-FBI check.
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We found no Maryland rule setting a fixed recheck cycle for child care volunteers. Instead DPSCS updates each Part V check and issues an updated records check (Family Law § 5-555(c)), sent to the individual and the licensing agency rather than the facility (§ 5-555(b)(3), (d)); DPSCS rules also require employers to periodically verify each volunteer’s continuing assignment (§ 5-554) — ask your licensing agency how updates reach you.
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If your nonprofit mentors youth through a program registered with the Maryland Mentoring Partnership, the volunteer pays only the FBI processing fee for the fingerprint check (Family Law § 5-551(g)(2)); DPSCS lists its Maryland Mentor rate as $15 with a certification card.
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Maryland’s Criminal Record Screening Practices Act (Labor and Employment § 3-1501 et seq.) bars employers with 15 or more full-time employees from asking about criminal records before the first in-person interview — but it covers paid work, not volunteering, and does not apply to organizations that provide programs, services or direct care to minors or vulnerable adults. Federal FCRA steps still apply whenever you use a consumer reporting agency.
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If you use volunteers who care for or supervise children, Maryland keeps even shielded convictions accessible to you (Criminal Procedure § 10-302(b)(7)) — but you may not pass that information to anyone who is not authorized to see it (§ 10-306(a)).
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Maryland require background checks for my nonprofit’s volunteers?
Only for volunteers in specific roles or settings; no Maryland rule covers every nonprofit. Maryland has no law requiring every nonprofit to screen volunteers. Its core statute, Family Law §§ 5-550 to 5-557, requires national and State fingerprint checks for paid staff and employers at child care facilities, public and private schools, camps, foster homes and recreation programs primarily serving minors, and lets those organizations require volunteer checks.
How long does a Maryland volunteer background check take?
Official state checks: DPSCS State check: in most cases results are mailed in under 10 working days; CPS Background Clearance: 1–2 weeks through the MyMDBenefits portal, 4–6 weeks by mail. VolunteerBadge's national criminal search returns most results in minutes; a record that needs human FCRA review can take up to about 72 hours.