Q: When fingerprinted for employment in NYS .How many years they do a CBC

A: I think a more important question might be the type of criminal conviction involved. I understand that you do not and should not post specific details about past criminal acts on line, anywhere, ever.

New York City job applicants are now protected by recent "ban the box" legislation. Any employer in any of the five Burroughs bans the box. They don't ask about prior criminal activity although they have to provide notice to you that you are entitled to and should insist on a copy of any CBC report if you are offered conditional employment (i.e. "we will hire you as long as your CBC is consistent with our business necessity) so that you can rebut or correct it.

All New York State job applicants are covered as follows, per NYS Department of Labor:

https://www.labor.ny.gov/careerservices/ace/employers.shtm

Scan down the first page and note whether there is a "direct relationship" between the prior criminal conviction and the job or position sought by an applicant. For example, if you had a history of passing bad checks (i.e. check kiting) and the CBC revealed those convictions, there is a pretty strong likelihood that no financial institution would hire you for a position where you might have access to customers' personal financial information.

Don't apply for jobs where there is a "direct relationship" with your prior conviction(s) regardless of how old they are and you should be a lot better off in New York than in many other states around the country. If you discover that ancient convictions are affecting your employability then retain a criminal defense counselor at law to attempt sealing or expungement if possible.