The Guide to Employment Background Checks in Albania
Everyday, Veremark carries out background screening all over the world for companies who need checked and verified employees. If you’re looking for background checks in Albania, here’s some information that might help.
As Albania’s economy continues to grow, the need for thorough and compliant employment background checks has become crucial for businesses aiming to hire the best talent. In this guide, we will explore the legal framework, common types of background checks, privacy considerations, and best practices that employers should follow when conducting background screenings in Albania.
Introduction to Albania's Growing Economy and Workforce
Albania has experienced significant economic growth in recent years, with key sectors such as tourism, agriculture, and telecommunications expanding rapidly. As more companies establish operations in the country, the demand for skilled employees has surged. To ensure that businesses hire trustworthy and qualified candidates, background checks have become an integral part of the recruitment process. Conducting these checks helps mitigate risks, maintain a safe working environment, and protect companies from potential liabilities.
Legal Framework and Data Protection
Albania’s background check process is governed by the Law on Protection of Personal Data (Law No. 9887), which regulates how personal information can be collected, processed, and stored. Employers must obtain the explicit consent of candidates before conducting any background checks. The law ensures that personal data is used fairly, lawfully, and only for legitimate purposes related to employment.
Employers must ensure that all collected information is relevant to the job role and comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which influences Albania's data protection laws as the country seeks to align with European Union standards .
Common Background Checks in Albania
There are several types of background checks commonly conducted in Albania to verify the suitability of candidates for employment. These checks vary based on the industry and the specific role but typically include the following:
A criminal record check is one of the most common background screenings in Albania. It helps employers determine whether a candidate has any criminal convictions that could pose a risk to the company or its clients. Employers can request criminal background information through local police or authorised services, but this must always be done with the candidate's consent .
Employment verification checks involve confirming the candidate’s previous employment history, including job titles, tenure, and responsibilities. This step ensures that the information provided by the candidate matches their actual work experience, preventing any misrepresentation that could affect job performance.
Employers often verify academic qualifications, particularly for positions that require specific degrees or certifications. This involves checking the authenticity of diplomas and certificates obtained by the candidate to ensure they have the necessary skills for the role.
Global watchlist screenings are essential for companies, especially multinational organisations. These checks ensure that candidates are not listed on any international sanctions lists, terrorist watchlists, or other government-issued watchlists that could pose risks to the business .
Seamless integration with existing hiring software
Plug our award-winning background screening software into your existing hiring workflows with Veremark's super-fast RESTful API.
Privacy and Data Security
Data privacy is a critical consideration when conducting background checks in Albania. Employers must handle all personal information with care, in compliance with the country’s Personal Data Protection Law. This means ensuring that personal data is stored securely, accessed only by authorised personnel, and used strictly for legitimate employment purposes. Once the background check is complete, companies must also have processes in place for safely disposing of any unnecessary or outdated information .
Turnaround times
Industries benefitting from background checks in Albania
Financial Services
Given the regulatory requirements and the sensitive nature of financial data, criminal and employment verification checks are critical for reducing fraud and ensuring compliance.
Healthcare
In this sector, verifying qualifications and conducting criminal background checks helps protect vulnerable patients and maintain high standards of care.
Tourism
As one of the largest and fastest-growing industries in Albania, the tourism sector relies on background checks to ensure safety and trustworthiness in roles that involve close interaction with international clients.
Best Practices for Employers
To conduct effective background checks in Albania, employers should follow these best practices:
- Obtain Candidate Consent: Always ensure that you have the candidate’s written consent before beginning any background check. Transparency about the process is key to building trust.
- Ensure Relevance: Only conduct background checks that are directly relevant to the job. For instance, a criminal record check may be necessary for a role in finance but not for an entry-level retail position.
- Comply with Local and International Laws: Be sure to follow Albania’s data protection laws and GDPR regulations, ensuring that personal data is collected, processed, and stored responsibly.
- Partner with Trusted Screening Providers: Work with reputable background check providers who have experience conducting screenings in Albania and understand the local regulations
How it works
Data protection by design
Vault-like security with ISO and SOC2 certification
%20(1)%20(2)%20(2)%20(1).jpg)
%20(1).webp)
FAQs
This depends on the industry and type of role you are recruiting for. To determine whether you need reference checks, identity checks, bankruptcy checks, civil background checks, credit checks for employment or any of the other background checks we offer, chat to our team of dedicated account managers.
Many industries have compliance-related employment check requirements. And even if your industry doesn’t, remember that your staff have access to assets and data that must be protected. When you employ a new staff member you need to be certain that they have the best interests of your business at heart. Carrying out comprehensive background checking helps mitigate risk and ensures a safer hiring decision.
Again, this depends on the type of checks you need. Simple identity checks can be carried out in as little as a few hours but a worldwide criminal background check for instance might take several weeks. A simple pre-employment check package takes around a week. Our account managers are specialists and can provide detailed information into which checks you need and how long they will take.
All Veremark checks are carried out online and digitally. This eliminates the need to collect, store and manage paper documents and information making the process faster, more efficient and ensures complete safety of candidate data and documents.
In a competitive marketplace, making the right hiring decisions is key to the success of your company. Employment background checks enables you to understand more about your candidates before making crucial decisions which can have either beneficial or catastrophic effects on your business.
Background checks not only provide useful insights into a candidate’s work history, skills and education, but they can also offer richer detail into someone’s personality and character traits. This gives you a huge advantage when considering who to hire. Background checking also ensures that candidates are legally allowed to carry out certain roles, failed criminal and credit checks could prevent them from working with vulnerable people or in a financial function.
Transform your hiring process
Request a discovery session with one of our background screening experts today.
