This article is based on years of field experience performing mobile ink and electronic fingerprinting appointments throughout Los Angeles. One of the most useful lessons we have learned is that a successful appointment depends on more than bringing the correct fingerprint card. It also depends on knowing whether the requesting organization has a separate form that the fingerprint technician must complete.
We see this surprisingly often: the fingerprints were taken correctly, the cards were signed, and the appointment was completed. Then, several days later, the applicant calls and says, “My agency gave me another form that the fingerprint technician was supposed to sign.”
That extra document may be an identity-verification affidavit, a certification form, or another agency-specific statement. It is not part of the standard fingerprint card, and it is not something a mobile fingerprint technician can reliably bring for every applicant.
The simplest rule is this: we can provide a standard FD-258 fingerprint card, but the applicant must provide any form created by the requesting agency.
The Fingerprint Card and the Affidavit Do Different Jobs
For many ink fingerprinting appointments, the physical card is an FD-258 applicant fingerprint card. Some organizations send the correct cards to the applicant in advance. Others tell the applicant to obtain fingerprints on an FD-258 without supplying the cards.
When a client needs common FD-258 cards, an experienced mobile technician may already carry them. That is one reason an appointment usually does not fail simply because the applicant was not mailed a blank card. Applicants who need cards for licensing, employment, an out-of-state agency, or another manual submission can also arrange a professional fingerprint card service.
But the card is only the fingerprint record. It contains the applicant’s prints, personal information, the applicant’s signature, the date, and the signature of the official who took the fingerprints. It may also require agency-controlled information such as an ORI, OCA, employer, or reason fingerprinted.
The technician should not guess at those agency fields. The organization requesting the fingerprints needs to tell the applicant what information belongs there.
A separate affidavit serves a different purpose. It may ask the technician to state that the applicant presented a particular form of identification and that the person who appeared for fingerprinting matched that identification. The form may require the identification type, document number, issuing authority, expiration date, technician’s printed name, signature, and appointment date.
Those requirements are created by the receiving organization. They are not standardized across every board, employer, licensing agency, or government office. The receiving organization will have its own form and there is no unofrm standard.
Why the Standard Card May Not Be Enough for an Agency
The current FD-258 includes a line for the signature of the person fingerprinted and a separate line for the signature of the official taking the fingerprints. Those signatures document who signed the card and who took the prints.
What the card does not contain is a universal sworn statement with detailed language saying which identification document was presented and how the applicant’s identity was verified. Some receiving organizations want that additional assurance, so they issue their own affidavit or certification.
This is especially important when the completed card will be mailed to an out-of-state licensing board or another organization that never meets the applicant in person. The affidavit gives that organization an additional written record of what occurred at the fingerprint appointment.
By comparison, California Live Scan fingerprinting follows an electronic submission workflow in which the applicant’s identification is reviewed as part of the transaction. Ink cards can be used in many different manual workflows, so the receiving agency may add its own identity-verification document.
To understand the broader reason identification matters, read our explanation of why we verify identification during mobile fingerprinting.
Why the Technician Cannot Supply Your Agency’s Affidavit
A technician can carry blank FD-258 cards because the FD-258 is a recognized fingerprint card format. An agency affidavit is different. There is no single affidavit that works for every organization.
One licensing board may require its own letterhead and exact certification language. Another may ask for the technician’s credential or business information. A third may use a form with a case number or applicant number already assigned. Some organizations require only a signature; others require several identification fields.
Even if a technician has seen a similar form before, substituting that form would be risky. The receiving agency decides what it will accept. The fingerprint technician cannot recreate the agency’s language, choose its required fields, or promise that a generic document will satisfy the submission.
That is why the applicant or the person coordinating the appointment must obtain the correct version directly from the requesting organization.
Ask One Question Before Scheduling
Before a mobile ink fingerprinting appointment, contact the organization that requested the fingerprints and ask:
“Besides the fingerprint card, is there any affidavit, identity-verification form, certification, or other document that the fingerprint technician must complete or sign?”
That one question prevents many avoidable problems. Ask the organization to send the complete instructions, not only the page that shows where the fingerprints go. If the instructions refer to an attachment, certification, or technician section, make sure that page is included.
Also confirm the following:
- Which fingerprint card is required, such as an FD-258 or an agency-specific card
- How many completed cards must be submitted
- Which card fields must be completed and what agency information belongs in them
- Which forms of identification the organization accepts
- Whether the technician must record identification details on a separate form
- Whether the agency requires any technician credential information
- Who is responsible for mailing the completed packet and where it must be sent
Do not assume that an email saying “bring two fingerprint cards” describes the entire packet. Review every attachment and every page before the appointment.
What to Have Ready for the Mobile Appointment
For a typical mobile ink card appointment, prepare a small packet before the technician travels to you:
- A valid, acceptable government-issued photo ID. Bring the physical identification document, not only a photo stored on a phone.
- The requesting organization’s instructions. These tell the applicant and technician what the receiving agency expects.
- Any agency-issued card or card data. If the agency supplied a card, use that card. If it did not, confirm the exact card type and obtain the information needed for its agency fields.
- Every separate affidavit or certification. Print the form if a handwritten signature is required. Do not wait until after the prints are taken to look for it.
- A suitable workspace. Ink fingerprinting needs a stable surface, enough room to roll each finger properly, and a setting where the technician can review the paperwork carefully.
If someone else scheduled the appointment—an employer, assistant, family member, or agency coordinator—make sure the actual applicant receives the complete packet and knows where it is before the technician arrives.
What Happens When We Arrive Onsite
At the appointment, the technician reviews the identification and the documents that were provided. The applicant completes and signs the portions assigned to the applicant. The technician captures the fingerprints, checks the impressions for quality, and completes the technician sections that apply.
On a standard card, that normally includes the date and the signature of the official taking the fingerprints. If the agency supplied a separate affidavit, the technician reviews its language, records the requested identification details that can properly be verified, and signs the appropriate section.
The technician should not invent missing agency information or sign a statement that cannot be verified. If a form asks for something unusual, it is better to clarify the requirement with the requesting organization before the appointment begins.
This document review is part of what to expect during a mobile fingerprinting appointment. The fingerprint capture may take only a short time; confirming that the packet is complete is what helps the finished cards move to the next stage without an unnecessary delay.
Why Preparation Matters Even More for Mobile Fingerprinting
At a mobile appointment, the technician has traveled to a home, office, hospital, hotel, or other location with the equipment and supplies needed to perform the fingerprints onsite. The convenience is that the applicant does not have to reorganize the day around a fingerprinting office.
That convenience works best when the applicant-controlled paperwork is already there. A forgotten agency affidavit cannot be replaced by an extra blank FD-258 card. Finding the document after the appointment may lead to phone calls, mailing delays, or another meeting just to complete a signature that could have been handled onsite.
One lesson we have learned from mobile work is that “Do you have the cards?” is not the only preparation question. The better question is: “Do you have every document the receiving agency expects the technician to touch?”
Arrange Mobile Ink Fingerprinting With the Complete Packet
If you need ink fingerprint cards at your home, office, or another Los Angeles location, tell the provider which card format the agency requires, how many cards you need, and whether there is a separate affidavit. Sending the agency’s instructions in advance gives the provider an opportunity to identify an obvious paperwork issue before travel begins.
A mobile technician may be able to supply common fingerprint cards and bring the equipment needed to capture the prints. The requesting organization must supply its own requirements. When both sides prepare their part, the appointment is efficient and the applicant leaves with a more complete submission packet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a mobile fingerprint technician provide FD-258 cards?
Often, yes. Many professional ink fingerprint providers carry blank FD-258 cards. Applicants should still confirm that the FD-258 is the format their receiving organization requires and how many cards are needed.
Can the technician provide the fingerprint affidavit?
No. A fingerprint or identity-verification affidavit is typically created by the organization requesting the fingerprints. Because its language and fields are agency-specific, the applicant should obtain the exact form directly from that organization.
What information might a fingerprint affidavit request?
Depending on the organization, it may request the applicant’s name, identification type, document number, issuing authority, expiration date, appointment date, and the technician’s printed name and signature. Requirements vary, so use the organization’s own form.
What if I receive the affidavit after my fingerprints are taken?
No. A fingerprint technician cannot make a statement that he/she knows to be untrue. That is why it is important to make sure the affidavit is obtained prior to and signed at the fingerprinting appointment.
Who should fill out the agency information on an FD-258 card?
The applicant needs to complete personal biographical fields. The requesting organization should provide any agency-controlled information, such as the correct ORI, OCA, employer, or reason fingerprinted. The applicant should not guess what the receiving agency wants entered and it is not the technician’s job to do so.
The Best Time to Find the Affidavit Is Before the Appointment
A blank fingerprint card is a supply. An agency affidavit is a requirement. Those are not interchangeable.
Before your mobile ink fingerprinting appointment, confirm the card type, gather the agency’s filing information, bring valid identification, and ask whether the technician must sign any separate document. That small amount of preparation can prevent a correctly completed fingerprint appointment from turning into an incomplete submission.
This article is part of Forms, Fees and Rejections, where we cover the problems that surface days after an appointment everyone thought had gone fine.
Also in this section: Why One Provider Quotes $30 and Another $79 and What Causes Rejections During Live Scan.