OPM/GOVT-5, Recruiting, Examining and Placement Records

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OPM/GOVT-5, Recruiting, Examining and Placement Records
79 FR 16834 (3/26/2014), 86 FR 68291 (12/1/2021), 87 FR 5874 (2/2/2022)
This unofficial consolidation of OPM/GOVT-5 is from the U.S. Office of
Personnel Management Privacy Website at https://www.opm.gov/privacy.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
Unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
Human Resources Solutions, Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW, Washington, DC
20415, has government-wide responsibility for the records in this system of records. Individual
agencies have responsibility for the records pertaining to their applicants.
SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
Associate Director, Human Resources Solutions, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street
NW, Room 6H31, Washington, DC 20415.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
a. Persons who have applied to the Office or agencies for Federal employment and current and
former Federal employees submitting applications for other positions in the Federal service.
b. Applicants for Federal employment believed or found to be unsuitable for employment on medical
grounds.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
In general, all records in this system contain identifying information including name, date of birth,
Social Security Number, and home address. These records pertain to assembled and unassembled
examining procedures and contain information on both competitive examinations and on certain
noncompetitive actions, such as determinations of time-in-grade restriction waivers, waiver of
qualification requirement determinations, and variations in regulatory requirements in individual
cases.
This system includes such records as:
a. Applications for employment that contain information on work and education, military
service, convictions for offenses against the law, military service, and indications of
specialized training or receipt of awards or honors. These records may also include copies of
correspondence between the applicant and the Office or agency.
b. Results of written exams and indications of how information in the application was rated.
These records also contain information on the ranking of an applicant, his or her placement
on a list of eligibles, what certificates applicant's names appeared on, an agency's request for
Office approval of the agency's objection to an eligible's qualifications and the Office's decision
in the matter, an agency's request for Office approval for the agency to pass over an eligible
and the Office's decision in the matter, and an agency's decision to object/pass over an eligible
when the agency has authority to make such decisions under agreement with the Office.
c. Records regarding the Office's final decision on an agency's decision to object/pass over an
eligible for suitability or medical reasons or when the objection/pass over decision applies to a
compensable preference eligible with 30 percent or more disability. (Does not include a rating

of ineligibility for employment because of a confirmed positive test result under Executive
Order 12564.)
d. Responses to and results of approved personality or similar tests administered by the Office or
agency.
e. Records relating to rating appeals filed with the Office or agency.
f. Registration sheets, control cards, and related documents regarding Federal employees
requesting placement assistance in view of pending or realized displacement because of
reduction in force, transfer or discontinuance of function, or reorganization.
g. Records concerning non-competitive action cases referred to the Office for decision. These
files include such records as waiver of time-in-grade requirements, decisions on superior
qualification appointments, temporary appointments outside a register, and employee status
determinations. Authority for making decisions on many of these actions has also been
delegated to agencies. The records retained by the Office on such actions and copies of such
files retained by the agency submitting the request to the Office, along with records that
agencies maintain as a result of the Office's delegations of authorities, are considered part of
this system of records.
h. Records retained to support Schedule A appointments of severely physically handicapped
individuals, retained both by the Office and agencies acting under the Office delegated
authorities, are part of this system.
i. Agency applicant supply file systems (when the agency retains applications, resumes, and
other related records for hard-to-fill or unique positions, for future consideration), along with
any pre-employment vouchers obtained in connection with an agency's processing of an
application, are included in this system.
j. Records derived from the Office-developed or agency-developed assessment center exercises.
k. Case files related to medical suitability determinations and appeals.
l. Records related to an applicant's examination for use of illegal drugs under provisions of
Executive Order 12564. Such records may be retained by the agency (e.g., evidence of
confirmed positive test results) or by a contractor laboratory (e.g., the record of the testing of
an applicant, whether negative, or confirmed or unconfirmed positive test result).
m. Records collected or generated in the process of onboarding an applicant selected to fill a
vacant position, to include, for example, vaccination records, proof of citizenship, and agencyspecific documentation necessary for the onboarding process.
Note 1: Only Routine Use `p' identified for this system of records is applicable to records relating to
drug testing under Executive Order 12564. Further, such records shall be disclosed only to a very
limited number of officials within the agency, generally only to the agency Medical Review Official
(MRO), the administrator of the agency Employee Assistance Program, and any supervisory or
management official within the employee's agency having authority to take the adverse personnel
action against the employee.
Note 2: OPM does not intend that records created by agencies in connection with the agency's Merit
Promotion Plan program be included in the term `Applicant Supply File' as used within this notice. It
is OPM's position that Merit Promotion Plan records are not a system of records within the meaning
of the Privacy Act as such records are usually filed by a vacancy announcement number or some
other key that is not a unique personnel identifier. Agencies may choose to consider such records as
within the meaning of a system of records as used in the Privacy Act, but if they do so, they are solely

responsible for implementing Privacy Act requirements, including establishment and notice of a
system of records pertaining to such records.
Note 3: To the extent that an agency utilizes an automated medium in connection with maintenance
of records in this system, the automated versions of these records are considered covered by this
system of records.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
5 U.S.C. 1302, 3109, 3301, 3302, 3304, 3305, 3306, 3307, 309, 3313, 3317, 3318, 3319, 3326, 4103, 4723,
5532, and 5533, and Executive Order 9397.
PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
The records are used in considering individuals who have applied for positions in the Federal service
by making determinations of qualifications including medical qualifications, for positions applied
for, and to rate and rank applicants applying for the same or similar positions. They are also used to
refer candidates to Federal agencies for employment consideration, including appointment, transfer,
reinstatement, reassignment, or promotion. Records derived from the Office-developed or agencydeveloped assessment center exercises may be used to determine training needs of participants.
These records may also be used to locate individuals for personnel research.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS
AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
Note 4: With the exception of Routine Use `p,' none of the Other Routine Uses identified for this
system of records are applicable to records relating to drug testing under Executive Order 12564.
Further, such records shall be disclosed only to a very limited number of officials within that agency,
generally only to the agency Medical Review Officer (MRO), the administrator of the agency's
Employee Assistance Program, and the management official empowered to recommend or take
adverse action affecting the individual.
a. To refer applicants, including current and former Federal employees to Federal agencies for
consideration for employment, transfer, reassignment, reinstatement, or promotion.
b. With the permission of the applicant, to refer applicants to State and local governments,
congressional offices, international organizations, and other public offices for employment
consideration.
c. To disclose pertinent information to the appropriate Federal, State, or local agency
responsible for investigating, prosecuting, enforcing, or implementing a statute, rule,
regulation, or order, when the disclosing agency becomes aware of an indication of a violation
or potential violation of civil or criminal law or regulation.
d. To disclose information to any source from which additional information is requested (to the
extent necessary to identify the individual, inform the source of the purposes of the request,
and to identify the type of information requested), when necessary to obtain information
relevant to an agency decision concerning hiring or retaining an employee, issuing a security
clearance, conducting a security or suitability investigation of an individual, classifying
positions, letting a contract, or issuing a license, grant or other benefit.
e. To disclose information to a Federal agency, in response to its request, in connection with
hiring or retaining an employee, issuing a security clearance, conducting a security or
suitability investigation of an individual, classifying positions, letting a contract, or issuing a

license, grant, or other benefit by the requesting agency, to the extent that the information is
relevant and necessary to the requesting agency's decision in the matter.
f. To disclose information to the Office of Management and Budget at any stage in the legislative
coordination and clearance process in connection with private relief legislation as set forth in
OMB Circular No. A-19.
g. To provide information to a congressional office from the record of an individual in response
to an inquiry from that congressional office made at the request of that individual.
h. To disclose information to another Federal agency, to a court, or a party in litigation before a
court or in an administrative proceeding being conducted by a Federal agency, when the
Government is a party to a judicial or administrative proceeding.
i. To disclose information to the Department of Justice, or in a proceeding before a court,
adjudicative body, or other administrative body before which the agency is authorized to
appear, when:
1. The agency, or any component thereof; or
2. Any employee of the agency in his or her official capacity; or
3. Any employee of the agency in his or her individual capacity where the Department of
Justice or the agency has agreed to represent the employee; or
4. The United States, when the agency determines that litigation is likely to affect the
agency or any of its components, is a party to litigation or has an interest in such
litigation, and the use of such records by the Department of Justice or the agency is
deemed by the agency to be relevant and necessary to the litigation, provided, however,
that in each case it has been determined that the disclosure is compatible with the
purpose for which the records were collected.
j. By the National Archives and Records Administration in records management inspections and
its role as Archivist.
k. By the agency maintaining the records or by the Office to locate individuals for personnel
research or survey response or in producing summary descriptive statistics and analytical
studies in support of the function for which the records are collected and maintained, or for
related workforce studies. While published statistics and studies do not contain individual
identifiers, in some instances the selection of elements of data included in the study may be
structured in such a way as to make the data individually identifiable by inference.
l. To disclose information to the Merit Systems Protection Board or the Office of the Special
Counsel in connection with appeals, special studies of the civil service and other merit
systems, review of Office rules and rules and regulations, investigations of alleged or possible
prohibited personnel practices, and such other functions; e.g., as prescribed in 5 U.S.C.
chapter 12, or as may be authorized by law.
m. To disclose information to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission when requested
in connection with investigations into alleged or possible discrimination practices in the
Federal sector, examination of Federal affirmative employment programs, compliance by
Federal agencies with the Uniform Guidelines or Employee Selection Procedures, or other
functions vested in the Commission.
n. To disclose information to the Federal Labor Relations Authority or its General Counsel when
requested in connection with investigations of allegations of unfair labor practices or matters
before the Federal Service Impasses Panel.
o. To disclose, in response to a request for discovery or for an appearance of a witness,
information that is relevant to the subject matter involved in a pending judicial or
administrative proceeding.

p. To disclose the results of a drug test of a Federal employee pursuant to an order of a court of
competent jurisdiction where required by the United States Government to defend against any
challenge against any adverse personnel action.
q. To disclose information to Federal, State, local, and professional licensing boards, Boards of
Medical Examiners, or to the Federation of State Medical Boards or a similar non-government
entity which maintains records concerning the issuance, retention, or revocation of licenses,
certifications, or registration necessary to practice an occupation, profession, or specialty, in
order to obtain information relevant to an agency decision concerning the hiring, retention,
or termination of an employee or to inform a Federal agency or licensing board or the
appropriate non-government entity about the health care practice of a terminated, resigned,
or retired health care employee whose professional health care activity so significantly failed
to conform to generally accepted standards of professional medical practice as to raise
reasonable concern for the health and safety of patients in the private sector or from another
Federal agency.
r. To disclose information to contractors, grantees, or volunteers performing or working on a
contract, service, grant, cooperative agreement, or job for the Federal Government.
• To appropriate agencies, entities and persons when (1) OPM suspects or has confirmed that
there has been a breach of the system of records, (2) OPM has determined that as a result of
the suspected or confirmed breach there is a risk of harm to individuals, OPM (including its
information systems, programs and operations), the Federal Government, or national
security; and (3) the disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and persons is reasonably
necessary to assist in connection with OPM's efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed
breach or to prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm.
• To another Federal agency or Federal entity, when OPM determines that information from this
system of records is reasonably necessary to assist the recipient agency or entity in (1)
responding to a suspected or confirmed breach or (2) preventing, minimizing, or remedying
the risk of harm to individuals, the recipient agency or entity (including its information
systems, programs and operations), the Federal Government, or national security, resulting
from a suspected or confirmed breach.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
Records are maintained on magnetic tapes, disk, punched cards, microfiche, cards, lists, and forms.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
Records are retrieved by the name, date of birth, social security number, and/or identification
number assigned to the individual on whom they are maintained.
ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
Records are maintained in a secured area or automated media with access limited to authorized
personnel whose duties require access.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
Records in this system are retained for varying lengths of time, ranging from a few months to 5 years,
e.g., applicant records that are part of medical determination case files or medical suitability appeal
files are retained for 3 years from completion of action on the case. Most records are retained for a
period of 1 to 2 years. Some records, such as individual applications, become part of the person's
permanent official records when hired, while some records (e.g., non-competitive action case files),

are retained for 5 years. Some records are destroyed by shredding or burning while magnetic tapes
or disks are erased.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
Individuals wishing to inquire whether this system of records contains information about them
should contact the agency or OPM where application was made or examination was taken.
Individuals must provide the following information for their records to be located and identified:
a. Name.
b. Date of birth.
c. Social Security Number.
d. Identification number (if known).
e. Approximate date of record.
f. Title of examination or announcement with which concerned.
g. Geographic area in which consideration was requested.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
Specific materials in this system have been exempted from Privacy Act provisions at 5 U.S.C. (c)(3)
and (d), regarding access to records.
The section of this notice titled “Systems Exempted from Certain Provisions of the Act” indicates the
kind of material exempted and the reasons for exempting them from access. Individuals wishing to
request access to their non-exempt records should contact the agency or the OPM where application
was made or examination was taken. Individuals must provide the following information for their
records to be located and identified:
a. Name.
b. Date of birth.
c. Social Security Number.
d. Identification number (if known).
e. Approximate date of record.
f. Title of examination or announcement with which concerned.
g. Geographic area in which consideration was requested.
Individuals requesting access must also comply with the OPM's Privacy Act regulations on
verification of identity and access to records (5 CFR part 297).
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
Specific materials in this system have been exempted from Privacy Act provisions at 5 U.S.C. 552a(d),
regarding amendment of records. The section of this notice titled `Systems Exempted from Certain
Provisions of the Act' indicates the kinds of material exempted and the reasons for exempting them
from amendment. An individual may contact the agency or the Office where the application is filed
at any time to update qualifications, education, experience, or other data maintained in the system.
Such regular administrative updating of records should not be requested under the provisions of the
Privacy Act. However, individuals wishing to request amendment of other records under the
provisions of the Privacy Act should contact the agency or the OPM where the application was made
or the examination was taken. Individuals must provide the following information for their records
to be located and identified:
a. Name.
b. Date of birth.
c. Social Security Number.
d. Identification number (if known).

e. Approximate date of record.
f. Title of examination or announcement with which concerned.
g. Geographic area in which consideration was requested.
Individuals requesting amendment must also comply with the OPM's Privacy Act regulations on
verification of identity and amendment of records (5 CFR part 297).
Note 5: In responding to an inquiry or a request for access or amendment, resource specialists may
contact the OPM's area office that provides examining and rating assistance for help in processing
the request.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
Information in this system of records comes from the individual to whom it applies or is derived
from information the individual supplied, reports from medical personnel on physical qualifications,
results of examinations that are made known to applicants, agencies, and OPM records, and
vouchers supplied by references or other sources that the applicant lists or that are developed.
SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE ACT:
This system contains investigative materials that are used solely to determine the appropriateness of
a request for approval of an objection to an eligible's qualifications for Federal civilian employment
or vouchers received during the processing of an application. The Privacy Act, at 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5),
permits an agency to exempt such investigative material from certain provisions of the Act, to the
extent that release of the material to the individual whom the information is about would—
a. Reveal the identity of a source who furnished information to the Government under an
express promise (granted on or after September 27, 1975) that the identity of the source would
be held in confidence; or
b. Reveal the identity of a source who, prior to September 27, 1975, furnished information to the
Government under an implied promise that the identity of the source would be held in
confidence.
This system contains testing and examination materials used solely to determine individual
qualifications for appointment or promotion in the Federal service. The Privacy Act, at 5 U.S.C.
552a(k)(6), permits an agency to exempt all such testing or examination material and information
from certain provisions of the Act, when disclosure of the material would compromise the objectivity
or fairness of the testing or examination process. OPM has claimed exemptions from the
requirements of 5 U.S.C. 552a(d), which relate to access to and amendment of records.
The specific material exempted include, but are not limited to, the following
a. Answer keys.
b. Assessment center exercises.
c. Assessment center exercise reports.
d. Assessor guidance material.
e. Assessment center observation reports.
f. Assessment center summary reports.
g. Other applicant appraisal methods, such as performance tests, work samples and simulations,
miniature training and evaluation exercises, structured interviews, and their associated
evaluation guides and reports.
h. Item analyses and similar data that contain test keys and item response data.
i. Ratings given for validating examinations.

j. Rating schedules, including crediting plans and scoring formulas for other selection
procedures.
k. Rating sheets.
l. Test booklets, including the written instructions for their preparation and automated versions
of tests and related selection materials and their complete documentation.
m. Test item files.
n. Test answer sheets.