Short answer
Every driver onboarding to Amazon Relay must meet standardized background check requirements before hauling Relay loads. Amazon's approved provider runs the check from the driver's Relay app and looks for past criminal or motor vehicle record violations.
How does a driver get onboarded to Amazon Relay?
By invitation. Amazon's Relay FAQ says: "A carrier needs to invite their drivers to create a profile in the Relay app." Amazon's driver eligibility post adds that drivers can't share their accounts.
The driver downloads the Relay app on iOS or Android and logs in to an Amazon account, or creates one. Then they enter their commercial driver's license and contact details. Two checks follow: an identity check and a background check. Our dispatcher guide covers the invite steps from the dispatch side.
If you're a driver looking for a way in, start with Amazon Relay for drivers.
What does the identity check involve?
A license and a selfie. The FAQ says drivers "complete identity verification by submitting a selfie and a photo of their driver's license." The driver eligibility post says Amazon verifies the license front and back, and that "Amazon typically reviews the information within 48 hours."
Only drivers who pass the identity check can haul Relay loads.
What does the Amazon Relay background check look at?
The FAQ says "all drivers onboarding to Relay must meet standardized background check requirements before hauling Amazon Relay loads."
Here's what Amazon says about how it works:
- It starts in the app. The background check kicks off during onboarding in the driver's Relay app.
- Amazon picks the provider. "Amazon works with our approved background check provider to look for past criminal or motor vehicle record violations."
- Outside checks don't count. "We won't approve checks supplied by other providers."
Amazon doesn't name the provider on its public pages.
How long does the Amazon Relay background check take?
Amazon doesn't say. The only time it publishes is the 48-hour review for the identity check. Nothing on relay.amazon.com gives a time for the background check itself.
Amazon also doesn't explain the statuses drivers search for, like "in review," "overdue" or "verification due." So give yourself room. Invite a new driver well before you plan to put them on a load.
Can you do Amazon Relay with a felony?
Amazon doesn't publish an answer. It says the check looks for "past criminal or motor vehicle record violations," but it doesn't list which offenses disqualify a driver or how far back the check goes.
Anyone who gives you a firm yes or no isn't quoting Amazon. The honest path is to have the driver go through onboarding and see the result.
Why does the Relay app ask drivers for selfies during loads?
To confirm the right driver is on the load. The driver eligibility post says Relay uses facial recognition at specific times during loads. The app requests periodic selfies, "for example, at pickup and/or drop-off," and matches them to the selfie from onboarding.
What Amazon says happens next:
- "Amazon manually reviews unsuccessful selfie checks."
- "Multiple failed selfie checks can impact a driver's and carrier's access to Relay."
- Drivers can decline, but "this will prevent them from hauling Relay loads."
Amazon's secure freight page says facilities use "driver's license validation and real-time photo verification" so only authorized drivers get in.
Can you dispute a failed selfie or background check?
Amazon publishes no dispute route for either. Manual review of failed selfie checks is the only step it describes. Our Amazon Relay disputes guide lists the routes Amazon does publish.
If a hold-up at the gate turns into a late arrival hit on your scorecard, that's an on-time issue, and Amazon does let carriers dispute on-time impacts. Our free Relay dispute letter tool lets you tick what's true and copy a letter to submit. Amazon decides.
What if a driver's license photo keeps getting rejected?
Amazon doesn't publish its photo rules or why a photo fails. Here's what it does say:
- Drivers submit "a selfie and a photo of their driver's license," and Amazon checks the license front and back.
- "Amazon typically reviews the information within 48 hours."
- Amazon's FAQ points account security issues to the Support Center "when logged into your Relay account," and it's Relay's support route for onboarded carriers. There's no phone line.
So stop resubmitting the same photo. Open a Support Center ticket from the carrier's Relay account, attach a screenshot of each rejection and ask Amazon to name what fails. Amazon doesn't publish how many retries a driver gets.
What is the carrier responsible for?
More than Amazon's checks. The driver eligibility post says "Relay-approved carriers are independent contractors, not Amazon employees. Carriers are responsible for their own drivers."
Amazon lists what that covers: carriers manage "drug and alcohol screening, hours of service (HOS) compliance, medical certification," plus regular license checks and ongoing driver qualification.
And one rule to put in writing for your dispatch desk: "Carriers should only assign Amazon loads to drivers who have successfully passed background checks and drug screenings" that meet or exceed federal rules.
Do carrier owners get verified too?
Yes, through a separate check. The FAQ says carrier identity verification confirms "your business entity and the identity of all beneficial owners (anyone with more than 25% ownership)."
In its answer about carrier owners, the FAQ says Amazon may keep Facial Recognition Information for up to 30 days after it's generated, or longer for fraud detection or investigation, but not more than one year.
Amazon's get started page points owners to the Persona Privacy Policy for details on how Persona processes their information.
What doesn't Amazon publish about background checks?
- The background check provider's name
- How far back the check goes
- Which offenses disqualify a driver
- How long the background check takes
- An appeal or dispute process for a failed check
- What statuses like "verification due" or "asset verification" mean
Where does NudoIQ fit?
NudoIQ has no part in driver checks. Those stay between your drivers and Amazon. It's an independent Chrome extension for the Relay load board, not affiliated with Amazon, that shows net and net per mile under the price on every load card and drafts scorecard dispute letters you check and submit. It's free for 7 days with no card needed to start, then $49.99 a month.