The FBI has quietly relaxed several of its hiring standards, allowing some applicants with histories involving prostitution, employer theft or bestiality to receive further consideration rather than being automatically disqualified.
The changes were implemented in June and alter how the bureau evaluates prospective special agents and other employees during background investigations, according to a report from CBS News. Multiple sources briefed on the policy said conduct that once ended an applicant’s chances may now be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
The unusual changes quickly generated reaction on X. Atlantic staff writer Tom Nichols responded to the report by asking, “Who the hell was the constituency for this,” while national security journalist Marcy Wheeler wrote, “Kash Patel’s FBI: Where bestiality is not a deal breaker.”
Under the revised rules, paying for sex does not necessarily prevent someone from joining the bureau.
Applicants can still be automatically disqualified if they engaged in prostitution-related conduct within the previous 10 years, did so three or more times, or engaged in the conduct while occupying a position of trust, according to the Associated Press.
The FBI defines those positions of trust as including jobs in public safety, education, health, social work, finance and law.
The revised policy also allows officials to consider circumstances surrounding the conduct rather than automatically rejecting every applicant.
An FBI official told the Associated Press that the changes were partly designed to account for situations in which prostitution is legal in another country or an applicant was coerced into prostitution as a victim of abuse.
The changes involving bestiality are similarly narrow but have generated considerable attention.
CBS reported that applicants who engaged in bestiality while they were minors are no longer automatically barred from FBI employment. The previous standard treated an admission of bestiality as an automatic disqualifier regardless of age, according to the outlet.
The bureau also reportedly changed its policy involving theft from employers.
Under the previous standard, applicants who admitted stealing from an employer were automatically rejected. The new guidelines allow some cases to be evaluated individually rather than immediately ending the application process.
The FBI has pushed back against the suggestion that it is broadly lowering its hiring standards.
Officials told the Associated Press that criminal sexual conduct remains disqualifying and stressed that prospective employees still undergo extensive background investigations and polygraph examinations.
The revisions come as the bureau attempts to replenish its workforce following a significant wave of departures.
CBS reported that more than 1,000 special agents left the FBI in 2025, with departures coming through firings, retirements and resignations after President Donald Trump returned to office.
Some former officials and critics have questioned whether the new standards reflect difficulty attracting enough qualified applicants.
“How can this not be reflective of a recruiting problem at the FBI if you are lowering your standards on issues like bestiality and prostitution?” national security attorney Mark Zaid told CBS.
Former FBI profiler Julia Cowley also mocked the changes on X, pointing to another requirement prospective agents still must meet.
“But you still have to pass the color vision test,” Cowley wrote.
The policy change comes under FBI Director Kash Patel, who has previously rejected suggestions that the bureau is sacrificing quality to increase its ranks.
“We’re not reducing our standards,” Patel said during a July interview. “We’re actually making it harder.”
The bureau has previously adjusted hiring standards as attitudes and laws changed. The Associated Press noted that the FBI loosened its approach toward past marijuana use several years ago, joining other federal law enforcement agencies that have reconsidered older recruitment restrictions, as Raw Story reported.
The latest revisions, however, involve conduct substantially different from marijuana use and have fueled a new debate over where the FBI should draw the line when assessing an applicant’s past.
For now, the new rules do not mean applicants with histories involving prostitution, theft or certain conduct involving animals are guaranteed jobs.
They do mean, however, that some conduct that previously resulted in immediate rejection can now receive additional consideration during the bureau’s hiring process.
