Security Clearance Upgrade Process
Please read and follow the instructions below to complete the process successfully.
You will need to complete a drug screen, a separate e-mail from designated Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) medical personnel will be sent to provide details on how and where to complete the drug screen.
Steps 1 and 2, Enrollment and Submitting Information in National Background Investigation Services (NBIS) eApp, and your drug test; can be completed concurrently. However do not complete Step 3, Certify and Release NBIS eApp, until you have completed your drug screen and enrollment. Communicate any delays in being able to complete any step to the Clearance Office and, with your supervisor. Additionally, NBIS eApp automatically times out 30 calendar days after the ORNL Clearance Office initiated your NBIS eApp access. If you do not complete it within that 30-calendar day, with no notices given ORNL CLearance Office personnel must take additional action to reinitiate access. After two NBIS eApp packages automatically time out, notices will be sent to multiple levels of your management to ensure the timely completion of the next reinitiated NBIS eApp submission.
Once you enter the NBIS eApp system, pay close attention to what you are required to report to the Clearance Office via x10clearance@ornl.gov after you submit your information.
STEP 1: Enrollment
Please do not start your NBIS eApp as soon you receive your NBIS code. You will need to go to the ORNL Badge Office (Visitor Center in Building 5200) to complete your enrollment as soon as possible. This will include a photo, fingerprints, and verification of identification. No appointment is necessary. The Badge Office hours are Monday – Friday, 7:00am - 4:00 pm. Monday mornings are new-hire days and are very busy.
Provide a driver’s license AND one of the following documents for proof of citizenship:
• Birth Certificate with original raised seal or certified copy
• US Passport (current and not expired)
• Naturalization Certificate or Proof of Birth
Note: If the full names on your documents do not match exactly (including all spelling, suffixes, etc.), a linking document must also be provided to show when and why the name changed. An acceptable linking document could be a court document or marriage certificate. Additional questions regarding acceptable enrollment documents can be directed to x10badging@ornl.gov.
If you are not local to the Oak Ridge area, you may need to complete your enrollment elsewhere. If you have not yet moved to East Tennessee and do not have an upcoming trip to the area planned, please reach out to x10clearance@ornl.gov to locate an enrollment location closer to you. Please note that all East Tennessee will be considered “local” for this requirement.
STEP 2: Submitting Information in NBIS eApp
The US Department of Energy (DOE) requires specific information to be submitted into the NBIS eApp questionnaire that will then be used for your subsequent investigation. Please complete and submit your NBIS eApp application (https://eapp.nbis.mil/) once you have completed your enrollment with the Badge Office.
The Defense Counterintelligence Security Agency (DCSA) processes all of DOE’s clearance investigations, and their NBIS eApp website (https://www.dcsa.mil/is/eqip/) provides detailed instructions on how to access NBIS eApp, and complete your online questionnaire.
When accessing NBIS eApp for the first time, go to the website and enter your user ID that was sent to your email from the NBIS system. If you forgot your user ID, click the Forgot User ID, and then you should receive another email in your inbox that contains a temporary password and your username. Then the NBIS eApp system will ask for personal information. Once you are logged in, start filling out your NBIS eApp.
The investigating agencies are very particular about the information that is submitted into NBIS eApp, and some things that will result in your NBIS eApp submission being returned to you for corrections are not flagged by the NBIS eApp system. You can minimize the number of times your submission has to be returned to you by closely following those directions in the NBIS eApp system. Clearance Office personnel cannot submit an NBIS eApp package to DOE for processing until it meets agency standards.
STEP 3: Certify and Release NBIS eApp
Several signature pages are required that are completed electronically in NBIS eApp. Failure to complete all required digital signature pages within NBIS eApp will require you to sign the form as physical “wet ink” signature, and either deliver or email it to the ORNL Clearance Office.
Disregard the note at the end of the NBIS eApp process asking you to upload attachments; this statement only applies only to Clearance Office personnel.
The final steps in NBIS eApp are to certify and release your NBIS eApp package. This action will put your submission into the queue for ORNL Clearance Office personnel to review. If no corrections are required, Clearance Office personnel will submit your request to DOE for further processing.