The Division of Criminal Investigation, DCI, within the Office of the Attorney General, is Wyoming's central repository for criminal history record information under Wyo. Stat. 7-19-107(a), designated by the Criminal History Record Act of 1987. Its Applicant Tracking System unit, ATS, receives fingerprint cards from employers, licensing boards and individuals, enters them, hands them to the Fingerprint Services unit to scan against the arrest database, and sends the result as a form letter saying no record or a previous record with the arrest information attached, to the address written on the card; the unit averages over 2,000 applicant checks a month and the biometric unit about 3,000 applicant and 1,400 arrest cards.
Every non criminal justice search is fingerprint based, because the applicant's prints are compared to the prints in the arrest files and any record released positively matches the person, whatever name is on the card or in the record; with name changes and fraudulent identity documents widely available, the division calls the fingerprint card the only sure method. Wyoming statute also lets any person obtain a voluntary record check on themselves and have it sent to anyone they designate.
- Fees: $15 for the State of Wyoming check, which also covers the Western Identification Network states, an additional $24.00 when an FBI check is allowed by statute and approved by the FBI, $10 for qualified volunteers serving youth or victims of family violence on a Wyoming and WIN check only, and $5 for fingerprinting at DCI.
- Payment: a money order or cashier's, certified or business check for the total, payable to the Office of the Attorney General or DCI; the FAQ header says no cash, personal checks or credit and debit cards, while its payment answer adds that credit cards are also accepted. DCI, Attn: ATS, 208 S. College Dr., Cheyenne, WY 82002.
- Time: generally within two weeks, but five to six weeks depending on monthly volume and print quality; requests are processed first come, first served, and the applicant is responsible for knowing where the results go.
- Contacts: ATS at (307) 777-5368 or 5934, fingerprint appointments at 307-777-7181, the Criminal History Records unit at (307) 777-5614 or 2060 and dci-criminalrecords@wyo.gov.
Written by SearchSystems.net from Wyoming's own systems: the Division of Criminal Investigation Background Checks/Applicant Tracking System page, the division's Applicant Tracking System frequently asked questions, the division's Criminal Records Unit page, the division's Criminal History frequently asked questions, the division's Fingerprint Services page, the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation home page, each read on October 14, 2026 by the SearchSystems editorial team.
The voluntary check on yourself
The ATS FAQ answers the first question with a yes: Wyoming statutes contain a provision for a voluntary record check that enables any person to obtain a criminal record check on themselves from Wyoming and the Western Identification Network states, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington, and to have that record provided to any person they designate. It does not include an FBI check, it requires an applicant fingerprint card, and the fee is set by statute. An FBI check the division has no statutory authority to run is requested from the FBI directly; the ATS page states that FBI regulations do not permit DCI to conduct a nationwide check on individuals for their own use, and sends HAZMAT licensing applicants to an FBI approved channeler because DCI cannot print them.
Fees and how to pay
For most applicants the fee is $15 for the State of Wyoming, which includes the Western Identification Network criminal history check; when an FBI check is performed in addition, allowed by state statute and approved by the FBI, there is an additional fee of $24.00. Fingerprint based checks for qualified volunteers, those volunteering in organizations serving youth or victims of family violence, such as big brothers and big sisters programs and safe houses, cost $10 and cover Wyoming and WIN only. A person fingerprinted at the division pays $5 for the service. Payment, the total of all fees, is by money order or cashier's check payable to the Office of the Attorney General or DCI, sent to DCI, Attn: ATS, 208 S. College Dr., Cheyenne, WY 82002, and must arrive before a check is processed or the cards go back to the applicant or agency; the FAQ states in two places that cash and personal checks are not accepted, its header adds no credit or debit cards and accepts business checks, and its payment answer says credit cards are also accepted. Every fee for a State of Wyoming records check is deposited in the state General Fund.
The card and the instructions
The division's background check instructions, revised October 30, 2024 and linked from the ATS page, set the procedure for non criminal justice requests under Wyo. Stat. 7-19-106(k), and a card that does not follow them is rejected until corrected. The applicant is fingerprinted on the standard FBI 8 by 8 blue applicant card supplied by the division or any law enforcement agency; the top of the card, name, date of birth, reason fingerprinted and descriptive information using the FBI codes printed on the back of the sheet, is completed legibly or typed in black ink with no highlighters, a mailed request includes a telephone number and physical address, the Employer and Address section tells the division where to send the results, the completed card goes with the fee as a certified check or money order to the Office of the Attorney General, and the cards are never folded. Fingerprinting is available at a local law enforcement agency, called first for its days and hours and holding the right cards, or at DCI in Cheyenne by appointment at 307-777-7181, with a current government issued photo ID such as a driver license, state ID or passport presented at the time. The division does not accept electronic submissions for general employment or licensing checks, so an agency buying a Livescan machine from the FBI's certified product list must also buy a printer to produce the FD-258 card.
What the repository holds, and for how long
The Criminal Records Unit explains that Wyoming records are created with the submission of an arrest fingerprint card: all felonies, high misdemeanors and other misdemeanor arrests the division deems necessary are maintained under 7-19-107(c), and an arrest whose card never reached DCI is not on the record at the state or the FBI, since the division cannot create an arrest event from court documents alone. Under 7-19-107(b) every city, county and state law enforcement agency, district court, court of limited jurisdiction, district attorney, the Department of Corrections, juvenile institutions and probation and parole agencies must report at the earliest time possible, which the division's rules define as not exceeding seventy two hours. Adult criminal history is maintained forever, even when charges were dismissed or prosecution was declined, and an adult arrest drops from the record only through expungement; a juvenile's state record is deleted at eighteen unless the person was convicted of a misdemeanor or felony as an adult. The unit stresses that employers, volunteer programs, licensing and even voter registration rely on accurate records.
Correcting and expunging a record
Wyo. Stat. 7-19-109 provides for correcting a criminal history record, for arrests that occurred in Wyoming only; federal arrests and other states' arrests are corrected with that jurisdiction. Under limited circumstances a person may petition the court to expunge an adult arrest record under 7-13-1401, 7-13-1501 and 7-13-1502, and a juvenile record under 14-6-241, and the division advises legal counsel to judge eligibility; an expungement granted by the court still leaves the information available for criminal justice purposes. The Privacy Act statement that comes with every national check tells the applicant their rights: a written FBI Privacy Act Statement at fingerprinting, written notice of the procedures for correcting an FBI record under 28 CFR 16.34, a chance to complete or challenge the record and reasonable time to do so before a job or license is denied, a copy of the FBI record from the agency where its policy permits or from the FBI for a fee, and a challenge sent to the contributing agency or to the FBI, which forwards it. The Criminal History Record Act rules and 7-19-101 through 109 are the governing texts.
Reading a Wyoming result
A Wyoming result is a fingerprint identification against the state's arrest files and the seven WIN states, mailed as a no record letter or the arrest information, to the address the applicant wrote on the card; a name is never the key. The FBI layer attaches only where a statute authorizes the agency, the record never ages off for an adult, and a dismissed charge stays on it until a court expunges it, so a Wyoming no record letter means no fingerprinted arrest in those eight states and nothing more.
Questions about background checks in Wyoming
Related Wyoming records
The DCI record is one of the Wyoming records this site covers: the Wyoming court records guide explains the courts' own case files, the arrest records guide covers what a booking makes public, the sex offender registry guide covers the registry the division's SOR unit keeps, and the Wyoming county pages list each sheriff and clerk of district court.