Which Side Gigs Run a Background Check?

Some gigs run a background check. Outschool, Papa, and Grubhub say they do. Fairfax County Public Schools require new substitutes to complete fingerprinting and a background check. Wyzant says it does not require a check on tutors while registering. But a student or a student’s guardian can buy one, and then the tutor must pass it. A photo ID check is a different step.

A background check is a search of your records, often for crimes. This is not a list of every gig. It covers only the pages we have read. For every rule, cost and time below, we use only what each page says. We read every page on October 7, 2026, and read most of them again on October 18. Pages change, so open the gig page for the latest.

Outschool

Outschool is a site where you teach classes online. Its help page says approved educators must complete an identity check and a criminal background check before they can teach. An identity check proves you are who you say you are.

• Who pays: Outschool says it pays all the fees.
• Does it repeat: educators must renew the check one year after the last one clears.
• What you need: Outschool says you need a national identification number to proceed. An example it gives is an SSN, a Social Security number, for U.S. checks.
• Timing in the U.S.: for educators in the U.S., Outschool says most checks finish within a few business days.
• Timing elsewhere: Outschool has a section for educators in Mexico, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea. There it says to allow at least a month. In its U.K. section it says teachers use a service called Accurate. The check takes about two weeks to a month once Accurate has the documents.
• Who cannot be checked: Outschool says it is unable to perform background checks for applicants residing in U.S. territories. It names Puerto Rico and Guam.

See Teach Classes on Outschool.

Papa

Papa uses the name Pal for the people who do its visits. Its application page lists companionship, meal prep, errands, and house tasks. One task is a lift to the doctor’s office or the bank.

The application page asks you to give consent for a background check. Consent means you say yes to it.

Papa lists a separate ID step. You verify your identity by uploading your driver’s license and taking a quick selfie. Papa lists the ID step and the background check as two steps.

• What it covers: Papa says a Pal must pass an annual background check and motor vehicle report. A motor vehicle report is a record of your driving history.
• Does it repeat: the same page says Papa runs continuous criminal and motor vehicle checks. Papa’s page uses both words, annual and continuous.
• Who pays: Papa says the checks cost Pals nothing. A Papa blog post says Papa pays for the background check.
• Timing: Papa’s blog says it takes 1 to 2 weeks to get approved. The requirements page says check time varies with how many counties you have lived in.

See Visit Older Adults With Papa.

Grubhub

Grubhub is a food delivery app. Its driver FAQ lists a mandatory identity verification and background check. It says Grubhub completes them after you apply.

Grubhub says that once you are approved, you can start earning in as little as a day. That is Grubhub’s claim, not a promise.

A waitlist is a line to get in. If your market is waitlisted, you can always switch to a nearby open market, Grubhub says. That lets you continue with the check.

See Deliver Food With Grubhub.

Wyzant

Wyzant is a site where you tutor students. Its policy page says Wyzant does not require tutors on its website to have a background check.

That is not the whole story. A student or a student’s guardian can buy a check on a tutor at any time. Then the tutor will be required to complete and pass the check.

• Who pays: the person who orders the check is responsible for a $15.99 fee.
• Timing: a company named Checkr sends the request. The tutor must provide an authorization within seven days of the original request.

See Tutor Students on Wyzant.

Substitute teaching

A substitute teacher fills in when the regular teacher is out. The rules come from places, not from one company. These three are examples. Your school district or state may differ.

Fingerprinting means giving a copy of your fingerprints.

Fairfax County Public Schools. The school system says all new applicants must complete fingerprinting and a background check. It lists a negative TB screening, test, or chest x-ray result among items to bring to the fingerprint appointment. TB is tuberculosis. The school system says it does not cover the cost of the TB test.

California. The credentialing page we read says everyone who seeks a California credential must receive fingerprint clearance. The clearance comes from the state Department of Justice and the FBI.

The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing has a leaflet for the Emergency 30-Day Substitute Teaching Permit. It says to complete the fingerprinting process, if not previously submitted to the Commission.

• Cards or scans: California residents do not have the option of submitting fingerprint cards. Live Scan is the automated process, and cards are the manual one. You take the completed form to a Live Scan location. There the scans are sent directly to the agency.
• Who pays: at a Live Scan site, the agency says you will pay a fee at the time of service.
• Cost outside California: its leaflet lists a $49.00 fee for fingerprint cards for applicants who live outside the state.
• Timing: it lists a standard 3-7 days for Live Scan and 10-12 weeks for cards. These count from when the state Department of Justice gets the form. It says these times may be significantly longer.

New Jersey. The state’s substitutes page lists a step to complete the criminal history record check process. The check’s approval date must be within five months of the application date.

See Substitute Teach at Local Schools.

An ID check is not a criminal check

An ID check asks if you are who you say you are. A background check looks at your records. A photo of your ID answers only the first question.

These pages describe an ID step:

• Prolific asks you to take a photo of your ID to verify your account. See Take Paid Studies on Prolific.
• Preply asks tutors to take a photo of a passport or government-issued document. Tutors must verify their identity before they withdraw earnings. See Teach Languages on Preply.
• DataAnnotation asks for a front-facing selfie and then a head turn. It says verification is required to participate. See Rate AI Answers on DataAnnotation.
• Mercari says Instant Pay requires government ID verification. See Sell Your Stuff on Mercari.

We read only the ID step on these pages. This post does not say whether those sites also run a criminal check.

Ask before you apply

Before you start an application, ask the company these questions:

1. Does a check run, and what does it cover?
2. Who pays for it?
3. Does it repeat?
4. How long does it take?
5. Is there a place or group of people it cannot run for?

Save the answers. Then you can plan around the wait and the cost.

Work you set up yourself

This post covers platform and school rules only. It does not say whether a customer of a job you set up yourself asks for a check. One example of that work is Clean Houses on Your Own. Its page lists its own rules and downsides.

The downsides

A check can cost money or time. Fees in this post include $15.99 at Wyzant, paid by whoever orders the check. They also include $49.00 for California fingerprint cards from outside the state.

Waits include a standard 3-7 days for Live Scan processing, or 10-12 weeks for cards. California says both may be significantly longer. Outschool says to allow at least a month in some regions.

A check can also repeat. Outschool asks for a renewal one year after the last check clears. Papa says its checks are continuous. For anything about your own record or your rights, ask a lawyer or the agency itself.

Sources and dates

Each line gives the page and the date we checked it.

• Outschool, educator background checks help article, checked Oct 18, 2026.
• Papa, Pal application page, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• Papa, Pal requirements page, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• Papa, blog on becoming a companion caregiver, checked Oct 18, 2026.
• Grubhub, driver FAQ, checked Oct 18, 2026.
• Wyzant, tutor background check policy, checked Oct 18, 2026.
• Fairfax County Public Schools, new applicants page, checked Oct 18, 2026.
• Fairfax County Public Schools, substitute FAQ, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, fees and fingerprinting page, checked Oct 7 and Oct 18, 2026.
• California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, leaflet CL-659, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, leaflet CL-505p, Emergency 30-Day Substitute Teaching Permit, checked Oct 18, 2026.
• New Jersey, substitute credentials page, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• Prolific, participant help on account verification, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• Preply, identity verification guidelines, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• DataAnnotation, FAQ on identity verification, checked Oct 7, 2026.
• Mercari, help article on getting paid, checked Oct 18, 2026.