If you hire anyone who works in Philadelphia, including remote workers, contractors, and gig workers, your screening process may already be out of compliance.
Here's what changed, and what you need to fix. Philadelphia's amended Fair Chance Hiring Law (Bill No. 250373-A) took effect on January 6, 2026. That isn't a deadline on the horizon, it's a date that has already passed. If you haven't updated your Philadelphia workflow yet, you're already behind.
Three headline changes from the 2025 amendments
- Misdemeanor lookback drops from 7 years to 4 years. Felony lookback stays at 7 years.
- Individualized assessment is now codified. The "specific unacceptable risk" standard and the rehabilitation evidence list are written into the ordinance.
- Enforcement gets sharper teeth. A 90-day rebuttable presumption of retaliation, civil penalties up to $2,000 per violation at the Philadelphia Commission, and a private right of action with liquidated damages in court.
The change most employers will miss
Here's the one that's going to surprise people: the 90-day rebuttable presumption of retaliation. If a covered worker faces an adverse action within 90 days of asserting their Fair Chance rights, retaliation is presumed, and the burden flips to you to prove it wasn't (§9-3511(1)(a)). Most screening processes don't have anything built around that window yet. The full enforcement picture, including the two separate damages tracks, sits further down this guide.
Frequently asked questions
Does Philadelphia's Fair Chance law apply to independent contractors and gig workers? Yes. Core coverage has been in place since the 2021 amendments. The 2025 amendments broadened the scope to cover promotions, raises, terminations, and re-employment.
How does the 4-year misdemeanor lookback work? A misdemeanor counts only if the arrest, or the release from incarceration, falls within the past 4 years, and the later of those two dates governs. Felonies remain at 7 years, while summary offenses are off-limits entirely.
What is the 90-day retaliation presumption? If a covered worker faces an adverse action within 90 days of asserting their rights, retaliation is presumed unless the employer can rebut it.
What are the damages? There are two tracks. At the Philadelphia Commission, civil penalties run up to $2,000 per violation plus liquidated damages equal to the monetary damages awarded. In a private court action, workers can recover liquidated damages of one month maximum salary, capped at $5,000.
A note on gig worker coverage
Coverage of gig workers, independent contractors, and rideshare drivers is sometimes reported as new in 2026. It isn't. The core coverage was added in the 2021 amendments (Bill No. 200479, effective April 1, 2021). What the 2025 bill did do was re-codify the worker definitions and broaden the "employment process" scope to explicitly cover promotions, raises, terminations, and re-employment for those workers.
Who is covered
Any employer with at least one worker in Philadelphia, including remote and field workers operating within city limits. The test is "employed or permitted to work at or for" (§9-3502(4.1)), which catches W-2 employees, 1099 contractors, transportation network drivers, rideshare drivers, and platform-based gig workers. Deactivation or denial of platform access based on criminal history counts as adverse action.
The 4-year misdemeanor lookback
The lookback runs from whichever is later: the date of arrest or the date of release from incarceration (§9-3504(4)(b)). There's no separate subtraction; the later of the two governs.
Example. A candidate was arrested March 2018, convicted October 2018, and incarcerated until March 2023. In 2026, the release date is the later one, so it governs, and the misdemeanor can be considered until March 2027, four years after release.
Summary offenses can't be considered at all (§9-3504(5)), which aligns with CHRIA. Expunged or sealed records are off-limits even if they appear on PennDOT driver records; if one surfaces, give the candidate the chance to present evidence before any adverse action.
Codified individualized assessment
Philadelphia already required individualized assessments. The 2025 amendments tighten the standard and write what counts as rehabilitation evidence into the statute (§9-3504(3)).
The six factors: nature and gravity of the offense, time elapsed, job duties, relevance of the offense to those duties, employment history, and evidence of rehabilitation.
The codified standard: an employer may not reject someone unless a reasonable person would conclude that employing them in that specific role would pose a specific unacceptable risk. The risk has to be tied to the exact record and the exact job, so blanket policies won't satisfy the standard.
Rehabilitation evidence the amendments name: mental health or substance use treatment, job training, GED or post-secondary education, service to the community, work history in a related field since the conviction or incarceration, and active occupational or commercial driver licensure. If a candidate submits any of this, your assessment has to address it.
Pre-adverse action, the 10-day window, and the enforcement teeth
The pre-adverse action notice is a provisional decision, not a final rejection (§9-3504.1(1)). It has to include the specific convictions, a copy of the report, a rights summary, a statement that the employer will consider rehabilitation and error evidence, and clear instructions for submission. Philadelphia then requires a minimum of 10 business days between the pre-adverse and final adverse action notices (§9-3504.1(3)), which is longer than FCRA's default. Build it into your automated adverse action workflow.
Anti-retaliation, with a 90-day presumption. It's unlawful to retaliate against anyone for exercising their Fair Chance rights. The 2025 amendments add a 90-day rebuttable presumption (§9-3511(1)(a)): if an adverse action follows within 90 days of a rights assertion, retaliation is presumed and the employer carries the burden of rebutting it.
Damages, two separate tracks.
- Philadelphia Commission track (§9-3506). Civil penalties up to $2,000 per violation (Class III offense), plus liquidated damages equal to the monetary damages the Commission awards. There's no separate cap on the liquidated damages at this level.
- Private right of action in court (§9-3508(3)(b)). Liquidated damages calculated as one month of the maximum allowable salary for the job, capped at $5,000 total.
The two tracks are separate. The $5,000 cap is court-only, while the $2,000 per-violation figure sits with the Commission. Both can be in play depending on how a worker pursues the claim.
Compliance checklist (the ordinance is in force, use this as an audit)
- Update policies for 4-year misdemeanor / 7-year felony lookback, summary offense suppression, and documented individualized assessments
- Confirm Fair Chance procedures cover gig workers and contractors, including the broadened scope (promotions, raises, terminations, re-employment)
- Revise pre-adverse and final adverse action templates with city-specific content; frame pre-adverse as provisional; observe the 10-business-day window
- Add individualized assessment language to job postings and offer letters that mention background checks
- Build jurisdiction-aware adjudication: 4-year misdemeanor, 7-year felony, summary suppression, later-of-arrest-or-release date
- Train managers on the 90-day retaliation presumption and the two damages tracks
- Update legal-risk modeling for the Commission track and the private right of action
Philadelphia compliance isn't optional, and "close enough" won't cut it when the Commission comes knocking. Get a quote and we'll review your Philadelphia workflow before it becomes a problem.