J-7 eQip Brochure.pdf

ELECTRONIC QUESTIONNAIRES

FOR INVESTIGATIONS PROCESSING

eQIP

Version 1.06

QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE FOR

THE APPLICANT

U.S. Department of Transportation

Federal Aviation Administration

Office of Security

Technical questions? Call:

1-888-584-8334

All other questions, call

202-493-5440

Developed and Sponsored by:

Office of Personnel Management

697DCK-22-R-00093

Attachment J-7

DTFASA-17-R-00953

Attachment J-4

Getting Started

1. Read this entire brochure.

2. Turn on your computer and allow Windows to load.

3. Start internet browser and enter the following URL:

www.opm.gov/e-QIP/

4. The eQIP Gateway Page will appear. Click the link that says "eQIP Applicant Site."

5. A "browser checker" utility will appear and test your computer for eQIP compatibility. Click the "continue" button to proceed to the application.

6. A Security Alert box will appear, ending with "Do you want to proceed?" Click the "Yes" button with the mouse, or type <CTRL Y> to continue.

7. The eQIP Welcome Screen will appear. Enter your Social Security Number in the text entry boxes, and click the "Submit" button to logon to the eQIP site.

8. Answer the three (3) default Golden Questions and then create new Golden Questions and Answers according to the instructions printed inside this brochure.

Click the highlighted link that says "Enter Your Data."

10. Complete the SF 86 questions and save as instructed.

11. Validation of your data will occur after every screen save.

12. Be sure to Certify/Submit your form when form is complete and print out your release forms and certification.

13. In the event that your form is rejected by the reviewing agency, you will have a menu option to Display Previous Rejection Comments.

Choosing Your Golden Questions/Answers

It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to provide Golden Questions to uniquely identify you.

Golden Questions help the eQIP system verify your identity. By creating a combination of Golden Questions that ONLY YOU can possibly know all of the correct answers to, you are assured that no one (including parents, spouses, and close friends) can impersonate you on the eQIP system. Please carefully consider who else may possibly know the answer to each Golden Question you enter. We suggest creating questions concerning different time periods in your life. PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IT MAY BE 4 OR 5 YEARS BEFORE YOU RETURN TO THE eQIP SYSTEM!

Make sure you create questions you can still answer in the distant future.

Entering Your Golden Questions/Answers

After you have selected your set of Golden Questions/Answers, enter each Question under a "Question" header and enter the corresponding Answer under the "Answer" header directly under that question. You must provide a non-blank answer for each question you provide, and vice versa. You must provide three Golden Questions.

It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to protect the answers to your Golden Questions.

Golden Answers are your "password" to the eQIP system. The text entry fields for Golden Answers are NOT password protected, to allow more accurate entry of your answers. Asterisks automatically mask Golden Answers, but if you choose, you can view your answers by clicking the "Allow me to see my Golden Answers" checkbox. Do not allow someone to see your computer screen while your answers are on the screen. If someone acquires your answers, they will be able to logon to the eQIP system under your identity, allowing them to see and change your personal data.

Entering Your Data

First Time Data Entry: Prior to entering data for the first time, read the instructions on the "Form Completion Instructions" screen. Indicate that you have read and understand the document by clicking the corresponding button.

You will then be shown a disclaimer screen that provides additional instructions required by Executive Order 12968.

You will need to indicate that you have read and understand the additional instructions by clicking the corresponding button.

Question Navigation: You may use the Navigation pull-down menu to go to any question, in any order. The navigation menu is located in the top, right-hand corner of the screen.

Errors and Warnings: After clicking SAVE, if the system displays the same screen with "Validation Results" listed at the top, you must correct the data you have just entered. You will only get validation messages if you have not answered a question appropriately.

For validation "Error" messages, you may correct your data by scrolling to the appropriate field and editing. After making corrections, click the SAVE button at the bottom of this page to save your changes.

For validation "Warning" messages, you may either provide the requested information or click the EXPLAIN button next to the message to explain why the information cannot be supplied. Upon clicking EXPLAIN you may provide an explanation in the text field or check the box labeled "I do not know the requested information."

After choosing an action, click the SAVE button to save your changes.

For validation "Error" and "Warning" messages, you may also choose to click the SAVE/ CONTINUE button. If you click SAVE/CONTINUE, you may advance to the next question screen and correct the information at a later time prior to the final submission of your form.

If you make a mistake and want to start over on a given screen, click on the RESET THIS SCREEN button at any time prior to clicking the SAVE button.

When you are finished and ready to proceed, click the SAVE button. Upon clicking SAVE, your information will be submitted and you will proceed to the next screen.

Displaying Your Data

When you are ready to display and/or print your SF 86 information that has been entered into eQIP, select the "Display" command from the top banner (located in the upper left-hand corner).

By selecting "Display", a new browser window will appear using Adobe Acrobat Reader. This window will generate a PDF file which will display on the screen all the data that has been entered up to that point. If desired, you can print the displayed data by first selecting "File," then "Print" from the new browser window.

You can also save a copy of the displayed data to your own floppy disk. To do so, click the "save" icon (floppy disk) from the new browser window.

Validating Your Data

Although the eQIP system will automatically validate your data after every screen save, you may also do a manual validation. To do so, go to the navigation pull-down menu and select "Validate, Review, and Certify."

The "validation results" show errors that need to be corrected. Read the validation results and the associated errors.

Close the window. To correct your answers, use the navigation pull-down menu to go to the question that needs to be edited

Listing Expected Attachments

You should create a list of attachments that you expect to provide to your employing agency. Everyone will have a standard set of attachments such as the SF 86 General Release form, resume, OF 306, etc. There may be additional attachments depending on what position you are applying for. Ask your agency if you are not sure what attachments you are required to provide.

To create your list of expected attachments, go to the navigation pull-down menu and select "Expected Attachments."

Then select "Go" and the system will take you to that screen. (You will be shown this automatically if you complete your SF 86 form in sequence. If you choose to skip from question to question, you will need to select this command manually.)

This screen allows you to create, delete and edit a list of expected attachments that you will send with your request.

Please write your Social Security Number on every piece of paper that you plan to give to your employing agency.

You may either mail, hand walk, or FAX your attachments to your agency.

Certifying Your Data

When you have completed all the questions on the SF 86 and are ready to submit, select the "Certify That My Answers Are True" command from the Navigation Bar.

Ensure that you have completely entered your data, validated your data for errors, and reviewed your data for correctness. Follow the instructions on the Certify screen.

Certify that the answers you provided on the questionnaire are correct and accurate. After certification, your answers to the questionnaire will be locked and unavailable for editing. Select "Display" (in the upper left-hand corner of the screen) to generate a .PDF (printable) copy of your SF 86 data, release forms, and certification statement.

You are required to print the release form(s) and the certification statement. If you do not have a printer, you should consult your agency and ask for assistance.

After printing copies of the release form and certification statement, please sign them in ink and return the originals to your agency.

After you have successfully certified your form and released it to your agency, you cannot change your data.

However, the next time you need access to eQIP, most of your data will repopulate the eQIP form. This will eliminate the need to start over from the beginning.

Web Browser Requirements

If using Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE), you must have version 5.5 or later, with Service Pack 2. Internet Options for IE should be set as follows:

• Enable JavaScript

• Enable Cookies

• Enable TLS 1.0

• Enable Scripting

If using Mozilla, you must have version 0.9.4 or newer. Although security settings may already be defaulted to the proper values, you should verify by doing the following in this order:

• Select "Edit"

• Select "Preferences"

• Select "Privacy and Security"

• Select "SSL"

• Under SSL Protocol Versions, enable "SSL Version 2," "SSL Version 3," and "TLS"

Mozilla users must also verify that they are enabled to use cookies. To do so, go to your browser's toolbar and verify in the following order:

• Select "Edit"

• Select "Preferences"

• Select "Privacy and Security"

• Select "Cookies"

• Ensure that either "Enable cookies for the originating website only" or "Enable all cookies" is checked. eQIP uses one session cookie.

eQIP is also compatible with Netscape Navigator, 6.1 and newer. If using JAWS screen-reading software, please note that JAWS requires the use of Internet Explorer, version 5.5 or newer.