The short answer
- ORI: Originating Agency Identifier, usually nine characters (a state abbreviation followed by digits) naming the agency authorized to receive your results.
- Who issues it: the agency requiring the check. We cannot assign or invent one.
- Not the same as: the “reason fingerprinted” (OCA) code. Many applications need both.
What does ORI stand for?
Originating Agency Identifier. Think of it as the mailing address for your results: without it, prints can be captured but have nowhere to go.
ORI vs. “reason fingerprinted”, the confusion that trips people up
- Two fields, two jobsBring both
ORI
Who receives your results.
Reason fingerprinted (OCA or reference field)
Why you are being printed and how the agency files your record.
Bringing both to your appointment is the single best way to avoid a data rejection.
Why it matters for your appointment
With Live Scan fingerprinting, the ORI routes your record to the approved agency: a licensing board, an employer’s regulator, a state program. Under the wrong ORI the same prints go to the wrong place or are rejected outright, so we confirm it before we submit.
Where to find your ORI number
- The instruction letter or email from your employer, licensing board or agency
- Your license or registration application packet
- The state program’s fingerprinting webpage (many publish the ORI and reason-fingerprinted code together)
Can’t find it? The requesting agency can give it to you in one phone call.
When you don’t need an ORI
A personal FBI background check (Identity History Summary) uses a different process and no employer ORI. A Florida Live Scan submission uses Florida’s ORI, which your Florida agency provides.
Right ORI in hand? Book your appointment. Not sure? Send us your requirements or bring your paperwork and we’ll check it before you’re printed.