GDPR-compliant screening across 60+ European markets. Criminal records, identity verification, education, and employment checks, with country-specific workflows built in.
Criminal record checks across 60+ European countries. Court records, government registries, and police databases searched and returned in a standardized format.
⏱️ Same-day to 15 business days (varies by country)
Biometric matching against government-issued documents including passports, national ID cards, and driver's licenses. Fully remote, GDPR-compliant process
⏱️ Instant to 1 business day
Verify degrees, diplomas, certifications, and attendance records at European universities and institutions. Coverage across EU, EEA, and broader European countries.
⏱️ 1–9 business days
Confirm employment history with European employers. Dates, job titles, and separation reasons verified where permissible under local law and GDPR.
⏱️ 1–9 business days
Credit history, insolvency records, and company directorship searches available in select European countries. Availability varies by jurisdiction and local regulations.
⏱️ 2–10 business days (select countries)
Screen against OFAC, EU sanctions lists, PEP databases, Interpol, global terrorist registries, and national sex offender registries. All in a single check.
⏱️ Under 15 minutes
Point-in-time or continuous monitoring across European and international news sources, public records, and media databases for adverse coverage.
⏱️ 2–3 business days
Confirm professional credentials and licenses across medical, legal, financial, engineering, and other regulated fields within European jurisdictions.regulated activity.
⏱️ Varies by licensing body
GDPR Deep Dive. What Employers Need to Know.
Only data necessary for the specific screening purpose may be collected and processed; no broader profiling
Required for any cross-border data transfers outside the EEA; Turn maintains SCCs as part of all European data processing agreements
Germany's BDSG imposes additional restrictions on employee data; France's CNIL enforces strict consent requirements; the Netherlands, Spain, and Italy each layer their own rules on top of GDPR
Explicit consent or legitimate interest must be established before processing candidate data for background screening purposes
Right to access, right to erasure (right to be forgotten), and right to data portability must be honored throughout the screening lifecycle
Organizations processing data at scale or handling sensitive categories are required to appoint a DPO under GDPR
GDPR violations can result in fines of up to 4% of annual worldwide turnover or €20 million, whichever is greater
SOC 3 (publicly available) alongside SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001-aligned workflows, encrypted data at rest and in transit, with complete audit trails for every screening order.
Candidate data can be stored in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, or Australia to meet your organization's data localization requirements
Independently audited
Aligned workflows
Publicly available
EU & UK compliant
Start a European background check from Turn's dashboard, your connected ATS, or via our API. Select the candidate's country, choose the check types you need, and launch in seconds.
Your candidate receives a secure, encrypted link via email or SMS. GDPR-compliant consent is collected automatically with jurisdiction-specific language. Typically completed in under 10 minutes.
Results from every check across any European country are consolidated into a single, standardized report. Adjudication tools and adverse action workflows are ready to use.
Background screening across 60+ European countries. From EU and EEA member states to Switzerland, the Balkans, and beyond. One platform, one vendor, continent-wide reach.
Run domestic and international checks from a single dashboard. Consolidated reports, unified billing, and standardized workflows. No separate portals or vendor contracts.
Standard Contractual Clauses, consent management, right to erasure, and data minimization are built into every European screening workflow. Country-specific DPA requirements are handled automatically.
Pre-built integrations with Fountain, Lever, Greenhouse, Rippling, iCIMS, and more. European checks flow through the same integration your team already uses. Learn more
GDPR applies to all background screening involving candidates in EU and EEA member states. Non-EU European countries such as Switzerland have their own equivalent frameworks (Switzerland's FADP). The UK operates under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, which closely mirrors the EU regulation. In practice, GDPR-level compliance is the effective baseline for screening across nearly all of Europe.
While GDPR establishes the baseline, each EU member state implements its own national Data Protection Authority (DPA) rules. Germany's BDSG imposes particularly strict restrictions on employee data processing. France's CNIL enforces specific consent requirements and limits on what criminal record information employers can access. The Netherlands, Spain, and Italy each layer additional rules on top of GDPR. Turn's workflows are configured per country to account for these variations automatically.
Turnaround times vary significantly by country and check type. Identity verification is typically instant. Global watchlist and sanctions screening completes in under 15 minutes. Criminal record checks range from same-day to 15 business days depending on the country's database accessibility. Employment and education verifications typically take 1–9 business days. Financial checks in select countries take 2–10 business days.
Standard Contractual Clauses are required for any transfer of personal data outside the EEA to countries without an EU adequacy decision. Turn maintains SCCs as part of all European data processing agreements, ensuring that candidate data transferred for screening purposes meets GDPR requirements for cross-border data flows.
Turn supports configurable data residency across four regions: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia. For organizations with data localization requirements under GDPR or local DPA rules, candidate data can be stored in the jurisdiction that meets your compliance needs. All transfers are governed by Standard Contractual Clauses where required.
Yes. Turn's European coverage extends beyond EU and EEA member states to include Switzerland, the Balkans, Turkey, and other non-EU European countries. Each country has its own data protection framework. Switzerland's FADP, Turkey's KVKK, Serbia's LPDP, for example, and Turn's workflows are configured to comply with each. Note that the United Kingdom has its own dedicated page covering DBS-specific content and UK GDPR requirements.
Turn holds SOC 2 Type II (independently audited) and SOC 3 (publicly available) certifications. Our screening workflows are aligned with ISO 27001 information security management standards. Turn maintains full compliance with GDPR (EU and UK), FCRA, PIPEDA, CCPA, and other applicable data protection frameworks. All data is encrypted at rest and in transit.
Disclaimer: The resources provided here are for educational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. We advise you to consult your own legal counsel for questions related to your specific practices and compliance with applicable laws.
Hire in 200+ countries without juggling vendors, compliance headaches, or slow turnaround times. Turn brings international background screening into the platform you use today. Request a free demo to see how.
CPIC criminal checks, MVR, education, employment verification, credit
DBS Basic / Standard / Enhanced, Right-to-Work, directorship, financial checks
AFP criminal checks, education, employment verification, credit checks Results in 2-12 days
Criminal checks, identity verification, employment & education verification
Screen candidates anywhere in the world from a single dashboard, your ATS, or our API.
