You are cordially invited to attend the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Sterling Check Corp. (“Sterling”), which will be held virtually at 8:30 a.m., Eastern Time, on Wednesday, May 22, 2024. Our Annual Meeting will be a completely “virtual meeting” of stockholders and be conducted exclusively online via live webcast at http://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/STER2024.

The attached Notice of the Annual Meeting of Stockholders and Proxy Statement describe the formal business that we will transact at the Annual Meeting.

The Board of Directors of Sterling has determined that an affirmative vote on each matter that calls for an affirmative vote is in the best interest of Sterling and its stockholders and unanimously recommends a vote “FOR” all such matters considered at the Annual Meeting.

We have elected to take advantage of the rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that allow us to furnish our proxy materials over the Internet. We believe that furnishing these materials over the Internet expedites stockholders’ receipt of the information they need, while lowering costs of printing and delivery and reducing the environmental impact of the Annual Meeting. Accordingly, we are sending a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, rather than a full paper set of the proxy materials, unless you previously requested to receive printed copies. The Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials contains details regarding the date, time and location of the meeting and the business to be conducted, as well as instructions on how to access our proxy materials on the Internet and for voting over the Internet.

Whether or not you plan to virtually attend the Annual Meeting, please vote your shares promptly by following the voting instructions that you have received. Your vote is important regardless of the number of shares you own. Voting by proxy will not prevent you from voting virtually at the Annual Meeting but will assure that your vote is counted if you cannot virtually attend.

On behalf of the Board of Directors and the employees of Sterling, we thank you for your continued support and look forward to seeing you at the Annual Meeting.

The 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”) of Sterling Check Corp. (“Sterling,” the “Company,” “we” or “us”) will be held virtually at 8:30 a.m., Eastern Time, on Wednesday, May 22, 2024, at http://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/STER2024 for the following purposes:

Our Board of Directors recommends you vote (i) “FOR” the election of each of the nominees to the Board of Directors; and (ii) “FOR” the ratification of the appointment of PwC as our independent registered public accounting firm.

Our Board of Directors has fixed March 25, 2024 as the record date for determining stockholders entitled to receive notice of, and to vote at, the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof. Only stockholders of record at the close of business on that date will be entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the Annual Meeting.

A Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials containing instructions on how to access this Proxy Statement and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 (the “2023 Annual Report”) is first being mailed on or about April 9, 2024 to all stockholders entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting.

The Annual Meeting will be a completely “virtual meeting” of stockholders. You are invited to virtually attend the Annual Meeting online via live webcast at http://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/STER2024 to vote on the proposals described in this Proxy Statement. However, you do not need to virtually attend the meeting to vote your shares. Instead, you may simply complete, sign and return the enclosed proxy card if you received paper copies of the proxy materials or follow the instructions below to submit your proxy over the Internet.

The enclosed proxy is solicited by the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Sterling Check Corp. (“Sterling,” the “Company,” “we” or “us”) for use at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”) to be held virtually at 8:30 a.m., Eastern Time, on Wednesday, May 22, 2024, and at any adjournment or postponement thereof. Our Annual Meeting will be conducted exclusively online via live webcast at http://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/STER2024. Our principal offices are located at 6150 Oak Tree Boulevard, Suite 490, Independence, Ohio 44131. This Proxy Statement is first being made available to our stockholders on or about April 9, 2024. You are invited to virtually attend the Annual Meeting to vote on the proposals described in this Proxy Statement. However, you do not need to virtually attend the meeting to vote your shares. Instead, you may simply complete, sign and return the enclosed proxy card if you received paper copies of the proxy materials or follow the instructions below to submit your proxy over the Internet or by telephone.

Stockholders of record at the close of business on March 25, 2024 are entitled to receive notice of and to vote at the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof. Each share of our common stock is entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. As of the record date, we had 97,831,052 shares of common stock outstanding. With respect to all of the matters submitted for vote at the Annual Meeting, each share of common stock is entitled to one vote.

Under our Amended and Restated Bylaws, a quorum will exist at the Annual Meeting if stockholders holding a majority of the outstanding shares entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting are present either virtually or by proxy. Stockholders of record who return a proxy or vote virtually at the meeting will be considered part of the quorum. Abstentions are counted as “present” for determining a quorum. Uninstructed broker votes, also called “broker non-votes,” are also counted as “present” for determining a quorum so long as there is at least one matter that a broker may vote on without specific instructions from a beneficial owner.

We are furnishing proxy materials to some of our stockholders via the Internet by mailing a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, instead of mailing printed copies of those materials. We believe that furnishing these materials via the Internet expedites stockholders’ receipt of the information they need, while lowering costs of printing and delivery and reducing the environmental impact of the Annual Meeting. The Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials directs stockholders to a website where they can access our proxy materials, including this Proxy Statement and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 (the “2023 Annual Report”), and view instructions on how to vote via the Internet or by telephone. If you received a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials and would prefer to receive a paper copy of our proxy materials, please follow the instructions included in the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials. If you elect to receive our future proxy materials electronically, you will receive access to those materials via e-mail unless and until you elect otherwise. The Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials includes a control number that must be entered at the website provided on the notice in order to view the proxy materials. Whether you received the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or paper copies of our proxy materials, the Proxy Statement and 2023 Annual Report are available to you at www.proxyvote.com.

Shares that are properly voted via the Internet or by telephone or for which proxy cards are properly executed and returned will be voted at the Annual Meeting in accordance with the directions given or, in the absence of directions, will be voted in accordance with the Board’s recommendations as follows: “FOR” the election of each of the nominees to the Board named herein and “FOR” the ratification of the appointment of our independent registered public accounting firm. It is not expected that any additional matters will be brought before the Annual Meeting, but if other matters are properly presented, the persons named as proxies in the proxy card or their substitutes will vote in their discretion on such matters.

The manner in which your shares may be voted depends on how your shares are held. If you own shares of record, meaning that your shares are represented by certificates or book entries in your name so that you appear as a stockholder on the records of Equiniti Trust Company, LLC (“Equiniti”), our stock transfer agent, you may vote by proxy, meaning you authorize individuals named in the proxy card to vote your shares. You may provide this authorization by voting via the Internet, by telephone or (if you have received paper copies of our proxy materials) by returning a proxy card. In these circumstances, if you do not vote by proxy or virtually at the Annual Meeting, your shares will not be voted. If you own shares in street name, meaning that your shares are held by a bank, brokerage firm, or other nominee, you may instruct that institution on how to vote your shares. You may provide these instructions by voting via the Internet, by telephone or (if you have received paper copies of proxy materials through your bank, brokerage firm, or other nominee) by returning a voting instruction form received from that institution. In these circumstances, if you do not provide voting instructions, the institution may nevertheless vote your shares on your behalf with respect to the ratification of the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PwC”) as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024, but cannot vote your shares on any other matters being considered at the Annual Meeting.

With respect to the election of directors (Item 1), a nominee for director shall be elected to the Board by a plurality of the votes cast in respect of the shares of common stock present virtually or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting and entitled to vote on the election of directors. A plurality vote requirement means that the director nominees with the greatest number of affirmative votes cast, even if less than a majority, will be elected. You may vote “FOR” or “WITHHOLD” with respect to each nominee. Votes that are withheld will be excluded entirely from the vote with respect to the nominee from which they are withheld and will have the same effect as abstentions. Withhold votes, abstentions, and broker non-votes will have no effect on the outcome of the election of directors. Broker non-votes occur when a person holding shares in street name, such as through a brokerage firm, does not provide instructions as to how to vote those shares and the broker lacks the authority to vote uninstructed shares at its discretion. Under current Nasdaq Global Select Market (“Nasdaq”) interpretations that govern broker non-votes, Item 1 is considered a non-discretionary matter, and a broker will lack the authority to vote uninstructed shares at its discretion on such proposal. Item 2 is considered a discretionary matter, and a broker will be permitted to exercise its discretion to vote uninstructed shares on the proposal.

With respect to the ratification of the appointment of PwC as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024 (Item 2), the affirmative vote of a majority of the voting power of common stock present virtually or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the matter is required to approve the matter. With respect to Item 2 you may vote “FOR,” “AGAINST,” or “ABSTAIN.” For this matter, abstentions are not counted as affirmative votes on a matter but are counted as present at the Annual Meeting and entitled to vote and will have the effect of a vote “against” the matter.

We encourage you to record your vote via Internet or by telephone. Voting via the Internet or by telephone is convenient, helps save money by reducing postage and proxy tabulation costs, and reduces the environmental impact of the Annual Meeting. However, if you choose to vote by mail, you may mark, sign and date your proxy card and return it to Sterling Check Corp., Vote Processing, c/o Broadridge, 51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, NY 11717.

We encourage you to register to receive all future stockholder communications electronically, instead of in print. This means that, after you register, access to the 2023 Annual Report, Proxy Statement, and other correspondence will be delivered to you via e-mail.

If you own common stock of record, you may virtually attend the Annual Meeting and vote, regardless of whether you have previously voted by proxy card, via the Internet, or by telephone. If you own common stock in street name, you may virtually attend the Annual Meeting, but in order to vote your shares at the Annual Meeting you must obtain a “legal proxy” from the bank, brokerage firm, or other nominee that holds your shares. You should contact your bank or brokerage account representative to learn how to obtain a legal proxy. We encourage you to vote your shares in advance of the Annual Meeting by one of the methods described above, even if you plan to virtually attend the Annual Meeting. If you have already voted prior to the Annual Meeting, you may nevertheless change or revoke your vote at the Annual Meeting as described below. Only stockholders as of the record date (March 25, 2024) are entitled to virtually attend the Annual Meeting. Each stockholder may appoint only one proxyholder or representative to virtually attend on the stockholder’s behalf.

If you own common stock of record, you may revoke your proxy or change your voting instructions at any time before your shares are voted at the Annual Meeting by delivering to the Secretary of the Company a written notice of revocation or a duly executed proxy (via the Internet or telephone or by returning a proxy card) bearing a later date or by virtually attending the Annual Meeting and voting. A stockholder owning common stock in street name may revoke or change voting instructions by contacting the bank, brokerage firm, or other nominee holding the shares or by obtaining a legal proxy from such institution and voting virtually at the Annual Meeting.

Our Board currently has ten seats, divided into three classes: Class I, Class II and Class III. Each class consists, as nearly as possible, of one-third of the total number of directors.

The Board proposes that Messrs. Grebe, Peirez and Sutherland be re-elected to Class III for a new term of three years. Each nominee for director will, if elected, continue in office until the 2027 Annual Meeting and until the director’s successor has been duly elected and qualified, or until the earlier of the director’s death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal. The proxy holders named on the proxy card intend to vote the proxy for the election of each of these nominees, unless you indicate on the proxy card that your vote should be withheld from any of the nominees. Under Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) rules, proxies cannot be voted for a greater number of persons than the number of nominees named.

Each nominee has consented to be named as a nominee in this Proxy Statement and to serve if elected. If any nominee is not able to serve, proxies will be voted in favor of the other nominee and may be voted for a substitute nominee, unless the Board chooses to reduce the number of directors serving on the Board.

The principal occupations and certain other information about our director nominees and our continuing directors (including the skills and qualifications that led to the conclusion that they should serve as directors) are set forth below. The age shown below for each director is as of May 22, 2024, which is the date of the Annual Meeting.

The Board has nominated three directors to be elected at the Annual Meeting to serve for three-year terms ending with the 2027 Annual Meeting of Stockholders and until a successor is duly elected and qualified, or until the earlier of the director’s death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal. Each nominee is currently a director of the Company and each nominee has agreed to serve if elected.

Our Board has affirmatively determined that Mr. Grebe, Mr. Jennings, Ms. Johnsen, Mr. Kapoor, Ms. Larsen, Mr. Narula and Mr. Sutherland are independent directors under the rules of Nasdaq and are independent directors as such term is defined in Rule 10A-3(b)(1) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Mr. Peirez, our Chief Executive Officer, is not independent because of his position as an executive officer. Our remaining directors, Messrs. Jones and Villon, are not independent due to their affiliation with our Sponsor (defined below), which, together with its affiliates, as of the date of filing this Proxy Statement, indirectly holds more than 50% of our common stock. Mr. Jones was elected to our Board in accordance with the stockholders’ agreement that we entered into with our stockholders, including certain affiliates of our Sponsor in effect prior to our initial public offering on September 23, 2021 (the “IPO”). Upon completion of the IPO, our Sponsor’s designation rights terminated. See “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions—Related Party Transactions Entered into in Connection with the IPO—Stockholders’ Agreement). Mr. Villon was elected to our Board at the 2023 Annual Stockholders Meeting. Mr. Chen was also a member of our Board and was not independent due to his affiliation with our Sponsor. Mr. Chen resigned from the Board effective March 8, 2023. Mr. Rubado was also a member of our Board. Previously, he was not independent due to his affiliation with our Sponsor. However, as of March 10, 2023, Mr. Rubado was no longer an employee of CDPQ and as a result, our Board determined that Mr. Rubado was an independent director. Mr. Rubado was not nominated for re-election at the 2023 Annual Meeting and retired from the Board at the expiration of his term on June 1, 2023.

Certain affiliates of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (“Goldman Sachs”) and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (“CDPQ” and, together with Goldman Sachs, our “Sponsor”) are the owners of a majority of our common stock. CDPQ owns its equity interest in us indirectly through a limited partnership controlled by Goldman Sachs. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the corporate governance standards of Nasdaq. Under these corporate governance standards, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, a group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements of Nasdaq, including:

At this time, we do not rely on the exemptions listed above. Our Board consists of a majority of independent directors and our nominating and corporate governance committee and compensation committee consist entirely of independent directors. However, we may elect to rely on one or all of these exemptions at any time. Accordingly, should we choose to rely on any of these exemptions, you would not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of Nasdaq.

We seek directors with diverse experience, qualifications and skills that enhance the Board’s effectiveness and result in the Board having a broad range of skills, expertise and industry knowledge relevant to the Company’s business. Our Board recognizes the benefits of having a diverse Board to enhance the quality of its performance. In designing the Board’s composition, Board diversity is considered from a number of aspects, including gender, age, race, ethnicity, nationality, LGBTQ+ status, cultural and educational background, professional experience, skills, knowledge and length of service.

Our Board directs and oversees the management of the business and affairs of the Company in a manner consistent with the best interests of the Company. The Board’s responsibility is one of oversight, and in performing its oversight role, the Board serves as the ultimate decision-making body of the Company, except for those matters reserved to or shared with our stockholders.

Our Board separates the roles of Chief Executive Officer and Chairperson. Joshua Peirez is our Chief Executive Officer and Michael Grebe is our non-executive Chairperson. We believe this leadership structure is appropriate for our Company due to the differences between the two roles. The Chief Executive Officer is responsible for setting our strategic direction, providing day-to-day leadership and managing our business, while the Chairperson provides guidance to the Chief Executive Officer, chairs meetings of the Board, and sets the agendas for meetings of our Board as well as provides information to the members of our Board in advance of such meetings. In addition, we believe separating the roles of Chief Executive Officer and Chairperson allows the Chairperson to provide oversight of our management.

The nominating and corporate governance committee periodically reviews the Board’s leadership structure and, when appropriate, recommends changes to the Board’s leadership structure, taking into consideration the needs of the Board and the Company at that time.

The non-management directors meet in executive session with no members of management present at every regularly scheduled meeting of the Board and, if the non-management directors include directors who have not been determined to be independent, the independent directors meet separately in private sessions periodically, at least twice a year, that exclude management and directors who have not been determined to be independent. The Chairperson of the Board (or, if the Chairperson is a management director or is not an independent director, a non-management, independent director designated by the non-management or independent directors, as applicable) presides at the executive sessions of the Board.

Stockholders and other interested parties may communicate with the Board by writing to the Secretary of the Company at Sterling Check Corp., 6150 Oak Tree Boulevard, Suite 490, Independence, Ohio 44131. Written communications may be addressed to the Chairperson of the Board, the chairperson of any of the audit, nominating and corporate governance, and compensation committees, or to the non-management or independent directors as a group. The Secretary of the Company will forward such communications to the appropriate party.

Please visit the “Corporate Governance” section of our investor relations website at https://investor.sterlingcheck.com/corporate-governance/documents-and-charters for additional information on our corporate governance, including:

The Board meets regularly during the year and holds special meetings and acts by unanimous written consent whenever circumstances require. In accordance with our Corporate Governance Guidelines, all directors are expected to make every effort to attend all meetings of the Board, meetings of the committees of which they are members and any meetings of stockholders. During 2023, there were seven meetings of the Board and each director, except for Mr. Kapoor, attended at least 75% of the total number of meetings of the Board (held during the period for which he or she was a director) and the total number of meetings held by all committees on which he or she served (during the periods that he or she served). Due to unforeseen conflicts, during 2023, Mr. Kapoor was unable to attend three of the ten Audit Committee meetings.

The Board has established an audit committee, a compensation committee, and a nominating and corporate governance committee (collectively, the “Committees”). The Committees keep the Board informed of their actions and provide assistance to the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibility to stockholders. The table below provides current membership information and the number of meetings for the last fiscal year.

The functions performed by these Committees, which are set forth in more detail in their charters, are summarized below.

The members of the audit committee are Mr. Sutherland, as Chairperson, Ms. Johnsen, Mr. Kapoor and Mr. Narula. The audit committee is responsible for, among other things:

Mr. Sutherland and Mr. Narula qualify as our “audit committee financial experts” within the meaning of regulations adopted by the SEC. Our Board has also determined that each of Mr. Sutherland, Ms. Johnsen, Mr. Kapoor and Mr. Narula are “independent” as defined under Nasdaq rules and the Exchange Act and rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

The audit committee recommends the annual appointment and reviews the independence of auditors and reviews the scope of audit and non-audit assignments and related fees, the results of the annual audit, accounting principles used in financial reporting, internal auditing procedures, the adequacy of our internal control procedures, related party transactions and investigations into matters related to audit functions. The audit committee is also responsible for overseeing risk management on behalf of our Board.

The members of the compensation committee are Ms. Larsen, as Chairperson, Mr. Grebe and Mr. Jennings. The principal responsibilities of the compensation committee are to review and approve matters involving executive and director compensation, recommend changes in employee benefit programs, authorize equity and other incentive arrangements and authorize our Company to enter into employment and other employee-related agreements. The compensation committee is responsible for, among other things:

None of our executive officers serves, or in the past year has served, as a member of the Board or compensation committee (or other committee performing equivalent functions) of any entity that has one or more executive officers serving on our Board or compensation committee. No interlocking relationship exists between any member of the compensation committee (or other committee performing equivalent functions) and any executive, member of the Board or member of the compensation committee (or other committee performing equivalent functions) of any other company.

The members of the nominating and corporate governance committee are Mr. Grebe, as Chairperson, Ms. Johnsen, Ms. Larsen and Mr. Sutherland. The nominating and corporate governance committee assists our Board in identifying individuals qualified to become board members, makes recommendations for nominees for committees and develops, recommends to the Board and reviews our corporate governance principles. The nominating and corporate governance committee is responsible for, among other things:

The nominating and corporate governance committee identifies individuals believed to be qualified as candidates to serve on the Board and selects, or recommends that the Board select, the nominees for all directorships to be filled by the Board or by our stockholders at an annual or special meeting. In identifying candidates for membership on the Board, the nominating and corporate governance committee takes into account all factors it considers appropriate, which may include (a) minimum individual qualifications, including strength of character, mature judgment, familiarity with the Company’s business and industry, independence of thought and an ability to work collegially and (b) all other factors the committee considers appropriate, which may include age, diversity of background, existing commitments to other businesses, potential conflicts of interest with other pursuits, legal considerations such as antitrust issues, corporate governance background, various and relevant career experience, relevant technical skills, relevant business or government acumen, financial and accounting background, technology background, executive compensation background and the size, composition and combined expertise of the existing Board. The nominating and corporate governance committee monitors the mix of specific experience, qualifications and skills of its directors in order to ensure that the Board, as a whole, has the necessary tools to perform its oversight function effectively in light of the Company’s business and structure. The nominating and corporate governance committee also may consider the extent to which a candidate would fill a present need on the Board. When evaluating whether to re-nominate existing directors, the Committee considers matters relating to the retirement of members of the Board, including term limits or age limits, as well as the performance of such directors.

The nominating and corporate governance committee evaluates director candidates recommended by stockholders on a substantially similar basis as it considers other nominees. Any recommendation submitted to the Secretary of the Company should be in writing and should include any supporting material the stockholder considers appropriate in support of that recommendation but must include information that would be required under the rules of the SEC to be included in a proxy statement soliciting proxies for the election of such candidate and the written consent of the candidate to serve as one of our directors if elected. Stockholders wishing to propose a candidate for consideration may do so by submitting the above information to the attention of the Secretary of the Company at Sterling Check Corp., 6150 Oak Tree Boulevard, Suite 490, Independence, Ohio 44131. All recommendations for

nomination received by the Secretary of the Company that satisfy the requirements of our Bylaws relating to such director nominations will be presented to the nominating and corporate governance committee for its consideration. For information regarding the advance notice provisions applicable to stockholder director nominations, please refer to Article II, Section 2.03(A)(2) and (A)(3) of our Bylaws.

At Sterling, we are committed to diversity and inclusion by championing and accepting individual uniqueness and cultivating a safe culture of belonging so that everyone can perform at their best in support of our clients, candidates and communities we serve. Our multi-year D&I strategic focus is to enhance diversity throughout our global workforce; energize our inclusive workplace culture; and partner to strengthen outcomes in the global marketplace. We do this in many ways including through our global Employee Resource Groups, training courses and focused communication to encourage difficult conversations, while providing employees with the tools and knowledge required to be an ally and an advocate for our diverse workforce. We are proud that women represent more than half of our global employee workforce as well as half of our senior leadership team.

Our award-winning culture enables us to attract and retain diverse talent from a variety of industries and innovative companies. Our mission is to provide the foundation of trust and safety that our clients need to create great environments for their most essential resource—people. We believe everyone has the right to feel safe. As an organization, we strive to build a culture around four core values:

We are a virtual-first company with more than 96 percent of our global employees working remotely. We believe this approach allows us to attract talent wherever people choose to live and allows us to better support our employees as they strive to balance the needs of their work and personal lives. We believe strongly in investing in the learning and development of our employees and in ensuring we have an inclusive environment that contributes to our high-performing teams globally.

In the past fiscal year, we have continued to implement our ESG strategy based on the ESG materiality assessment that adhered to GRI standards. We identified key ESG metrics for year-over-year tracking to help us measure our progress.

Through the CDP Climate Survey, we reported Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, achieving a 15 percent year-over-year reduction in absolute GHG emissions, underscoring the sustainability benefits of our virtual-first operating model. We also completed an initial Scope 3 screening during 2023.

Additionally, we mapped our ESG actions to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and completed a comprehensive EcoVadis submission to further our ESG reporting with multiple global clients.

We have adopted a Code of Conduct and Ethics applicable to all of our directors, officers (including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer and principal accounting officer) and all global employees. Our Code of Conduct and Ethics is a “code of ethics,” as defined in Item 406(b) of Regulation S-K. Our Code of Conduct and Ethics is available on the “Corporate Governance” section of our investor relations website at https://investor.sterlingcheck.com/corporate-governance/documents-and-charters. See “Corporate Governance — Corporate Governance Documents” for additional information. In the event that we amend or waive certain provisions of our Code of Conduct and Ethics applicable to our principal executive officer, principal financial officer or principal accounting officer and the amendment or waiver requires disclosure under applicable SEC rules, we intend to disclose the same on our website. The information contained on, or accessible from, our website is not part of this Proxy Statement by reference or otherwise.

As part of our Securities Trading Policy, (i) directors, officers or employees and certain other covered persons (as identified in the Securities Trading Policy), whether or not they possess material non-public information, may not trade in options, warrants, puts, calls or similar instruments on the Company’s securities or engage in short sales, (ii) no directors, officers or employees may engage in any transactions (including variable forward contracts, equity swaps, collars and exchange funds) that are designed to hedge or offset any decrease in the market value of the Company’s equity securities and (iii) no directors, officers or employees and certain other covered persons (as identified in the Securities Trading Policy), whether or not in possession of material non-public information, may purchase the Company’s securities on margin, or borrow against any account in which the Company’s securities are held, or pledge the Company’s securities as collateral for a loan, without first obtaining pre-clearance.

Under the rules and regulations of the SEC, Nasdaq and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the “PCAOB”), the audit committee is directly responsible for the appointment, compensation, retention, and oversight of our independent registered public accounting firm. In addition, the audit committee considers the independence of our independent registered public accounting firm and participates in the selection of the independent registered public accounting firm’s lead engagement partner. The audit committee has appointed, and, as a matter of good corporate governance, is requesting ratification by our stockholders of the appointment of, the registered public accounting firm of PwC to serve as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. PwC has served as our independent registered public accounting firm since 2010.

The Board and the audit committee believe that the continued retention of PwC as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders. If stockholders do not ratify the selection of PwC, the audit committee will evaluate the stockholder vote when considering the selection of a registered public accounting firm for the audit engagement for the 2025 fiscal year. In addition, even if stockholders ratify the selection of PwC as our independent registered public accounting firm, the audit committee may nevertheless periodically request proposals from the major registered public accounting firms and, as a result of such process, may select PwC or another registered public accounting firm as our independent registered public accounting firm.

A representative of PwC is expected to attend the Annual Meeting to respond to appropriate questions from stockholders and make a statement should they desire to do so.

Consistent with SEC and PCAOB requirements regarding auditor independence, the audit committee has responsibility for appointing, setting compensation for and overseeing the work of the independent registered public accounting firm. In recognition of this responsibility, the audit committee has established a policy to pre-approve all audit and permissible non-audit services provided by the independent registered public accounting firm.

Prior to engagement of the independent registered public accounting firm for the next year’s audit, management will submit to the audit committee for approval a list of services and related fees expected to be rendered during that year within each of the following four categories of services:

Prior to engagement, the audit committee pre-approves independent registered public accounting firm services within each category and the fees of each category are budgeted. The audit committee requires the independent registered public accounting firm and management to report actual fees versus the budget periodically throughout the year by category of service. During the year, circumstances may arise when it may become necessary to engage the independent registered public accounting firm for additional services not contemplated in the original pre-approval categories. In those instances, the audit committee requires specific pre-approval before engaging the independent registered public accounting firm.

The audit committee has delegated pre-approval authority to Mr. Sutherland. Mr. Sutherland must report, for informational purposes only, any pre-approval decisions to the audit committee at its next scheduled meeting. All of the services in the table below were pre-approved either by Mr. Sutherland or by the audit committee.

The following is a description of the professional services performed and the fees billed by PwC for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2023.

The audit committee reviews the Company’s financial reporting process on behalf of the Board. Management has the primary responsibility for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, for preparing the financial statements, and for the reporting process. The audit committee members do not serve as professional accountants or auditors, and their functions are not intended to duplicate or to certify the activities of management and our independent registered public accounting firm. The Company’s independent registered public accounting firm is engaged to audit and report on the conformity of the Company’s financial statements to accounting principles generally accepted in the United States.

In this context, the audit committee reviewed and discussed with management and our independent registered public accounting firm the audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2023 (the “Audited Financial Statements”). The audit committee has discussed with our independent registered public accounting firm the matters required to be discussed by the applicable requirements of the PCAOB and SEC, including PCAOB Auditing Standard No. 1301, Communications with Audit Committees. In addition, the audit committee has received the written disclosures and the letter from our independent registered public accounting firm required by applicable requirements of the PCAOB regarding our independent registered public accounting firm’s communications with the audit committee concerning independence and has discussed with our independent registered public accounting firm its independence.

Based upon the reviews and discussions referred to above, the audit committee recommended to the Board that the Audited Financial Statements be included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, for filing with the SEC.

The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of March 25, 2024 for:

The number of shares beneficially owned by each stockholder is determined under rules issued by the SEC and includes voting or investment power with respect to securities. Under these rules, beneficial ownership includes any shares as to which the individual or entity has sole or shared voting power or investment power. In computing the number of shares beneficially owned by an individual or entity and the percentage ownership of that person, shares of common stock subject to options, or other rights, held by such person that have vested or will vest within 60 days of March 25, 2024 are considered outstanding, although these shares are not considered outstanding for purposes of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. Unless otherwise indicated, the address of all listed stockholders is c/o Sterling Check Corp., 6150 Oak Tree Boulevard, Suite 490, Independence, Ohio 44131. Each of the stockholders listed has sole voting and investment power with respect to the shares beneficially owned by the stockholder unless noted otherwise, subject to community property laws where applicable.

As an emerging growth company under the JOBS Act, Sterling has opted to comply with the executive compensation rules applicable to “smaller reporting companies,” as such term is defined under the Securities Act. Those rules require compensation disclosure only for Sterling’s principal executive officer and its next two most highly compensated executive officers.

The tabular disclosure and discussion that follow describe Sterling’s executive compensation program during the fiscal years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 with respect to Sterling’s named executive officers: Joshua Peirez, Sterling’s Chief Executive Officer; Lou Paglia, Sterling’s President and Chief Operating Officer, Steven Barnett, Sterling’s Executive Vice President, Secretary and Chief Legal & Risk Officer, and Peter Walker, Sterling’s former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (collectively, the “named executive officers”).

The following table sets forth the portion of compensation paid to the named executive officers (“NEOs”) that is attributable to services performed during fiscal years 2023 and 2022.

In fiscal years 2023 and 2022, we compensated our NEOs through a combination of base salary, cash incentives, long-term equity incentives in the form of stock options and restricted stock, and other benefits as described below.

Our executive compensation philosophy is centered on two key tenets: Build long-term value for stockholders and drive employee engagement and retention. In support of those tenets our program is guided by the following principles that underpin the critical connections between performance, long-term value creation, talent management and compensation governance:

Our compensation philosophy is supported by the following principal elements of pay:

Mr. Peirez is party to an amended and restated employment agreement Mr. Paglia is party to an offer letter and letter amendment, as well as a severance agreement, and Mr. Barnett is party to a severance agreement, in each case, with the Company’s wholly-owned indirect subsidiary Sterling Infosystems, Inc. (“Sterling Infosystems”), summarized below (collectively, the “Employment Agreements”).

Sterling Infosystems was party to an employment agreement with Mr. Peirez (the “Prior CEO Employment Agreement”) dated as of July 19, 2018, pursuant to which Mr. Peirez served as CEO. The Prior CEO Employment Agreement provided for a base salary of $650,000 per year and eligibility for an annual cash bonus, with an annual target bonus opportunity of $850,000, with achievement based on the attainment of certain performance goals set annually by the board of directors, with 50% of the bonus based on company performance criteria and 50% at the discretion of the board.

In connection with the Company’s IPO, the Prior CEO Employment Agreement was amended and restated pursuant to an amended and restated employment agreement entered into as of August 5, 2021, which became effective as of the date on which the registration statement for the Company’s IPO became effective (the “A&R CEO Employment Agreement”). Pursuant to the A&R CEO Employment Agreement, Mr. Peirez serves as CEO and a member of our Board and the Sterling Infosystems board of directors, and reports directly to our Board. The A&R CEO Employment Agreement may be terminated by Sterling Infosystems or Mr. Peirez upon 15 days’ prior notice (other than a termination for cause). The A&R CEO Employment Agreement provides for a base salary of $650,000 per year, subject to annual review and adjustment upward (but not downward) in our Board’s discretion. Mr. Peirez is also eligible for an annual cash bonus with an annual target bonus opportunity of at least 100% of base salary commencing in calendar year 2022, with achievement based on the attainment of certain performance goals set annually by our Board. Mr. Peirez is also entitled to participate in Sterling Infosystems’ employee benefit plans in effect from time to time on the same basis as other senior executives of Sterling Infosystems, provided Mr. Peirez is entitled to the maximum level of vacation under the Company’s vacation policy, regardless of his years of service. Mr. Peirez is entitled to travel in business class on all flights or, if business class is unavailable, first class.

Pursuant to the A&R CEO Employment Agreement, subject to attainment by the Company of the 2022 revenue and Adjusted EBITDA goals as established by our Board, the Company was obligated to grant to Mr. Peirez, in the first quarter of calendar year 2023, one or more equity incentive awards under the 2021 Equity Plan having an estimated aggregate grant date fair value, as determined in good faith by our Board, of at least the lesser of $5 million or the median value for chief executive officers in the Company’s peer group. For subsequent years, equity incentive awards will be determined by our Board in its sole discretion.

The A&R CEO Employment Agreement includes restrictive covenants providing for non-competition, non-solicitation and non-hire of employees, and non-solicitation and non-interference with current and prospective customers and business relationships, in each case, during employment and for 18 months thereafter, as well as perpetual nondisclosure of confidential information.

The A&R CEO Employment Agreement also provides for severance upon certain terminations of employment, as described below under “—Additional Narrative Disclosures—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control—Severance Under Employment Agreements—Mr. Peirez.”

If any payments or benefits to which Mr. Peirez would be entitled to receive pursuant to the terms of the A&R CEO Employment Agreement or otherwise in connection with a change in the ownership or effective control of the Company would result in all or a portion of such payments or benefits being deemed “parachute payments” under Section 280G of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”) and the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code, such payments and benefits will be reduced to the minimum extent necessary so that they would not result in the imposition of an excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code, provided that no reduction will be made if Mr. Peirez would receive a greater net after-tax amount absent such reduction.

Sterling Infosystems is party to an offer letter with Mr. Paglia dated as of January 28, 2016, which was amended pursuant to a letter agreement dated December 17, 2018 entered into when Mr. Paglia was promoted to the position of President, effective December 1, 2018 (together with the offer letter, the “Paglia Offer Letter”). Mr. Paglia was named Chief Operating Officer of Sterling Infosystems effective as of March 8, 2021. Mr. Paglia’s current annual base salary is $450,000 and his annual target cash bonus opportunity is 100% of his then-current annual base salary.

Under the Paglia Offer Letter, Mr. Paglia is entitled to participate in Sterling Infosystems’ standard employee benefit plans. The Paglia Offer Letter also provides for severance upon certain terminations of employment. However, in connection with the Company’s IPO, on August 19, 2021, Mr. Paglia entered into a severance agreement, which became effective as of the date on which the registration statement for the Company’s IPO became effective (the “Paglia Severance Agreement”), which replaced the severance entitlements under the Paglia Offer Letter and provides for severance upon certain terminations of employment, all as described further below under “—Additional Narrative Disclosures—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control—Severance Under Employment Agreements—Messrs. Paglia and Barnett.”

The Paglia Severance Agreement includes restrictive covenants providing for (i) non-competition during employment and for a period of 12 months thereafter, (ii) non-solicitation and non-hire of employees, and non-solicitation and non-interference with current and prospective customers and business relationships, in each case, during employment and for 18 months thereafter, and (iii) the perpetual nondisclosure of confidential information and non-disparagement covenants.

If any payments or benefits to which Mr. Paglia would be entitled to receive pursuant to the terms of the Paglia Severance Agreement or otherwise in connection with a change in the ownership or effective control of the Company would result in all or a portion of such payments or benefits being deemed “parachute payments” under Section 280G of the Code and the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code, such payments and benefits will be reduced to the minimum extent necessary so that they would not result in the imposition of an excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code, provided that no reduction will be made if Mr. Paglia would receive a greater net after-tax amount absent such reduction.

Mr. Barnett joined Sterling Infosystems in January 2016 as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. Mr. Barnett was named Chief Legal & Risk Officer in March 2020. Mr. Barnett is entitled to participate in Sterling Infosystem’s standard employee benefit plans. Mr. Barnett’s current base salary is $453,816 and his annual target cash bonus opportunity is 100% of his then-current annual base salary.

Sterling Infosystems is party to a severance agreement with Mr. Barnett dated as of November 30, 2015 (the “Original Barnett Severance Agreement”). In connection with the Company’s IPO, on August 19, 2021, Mr. Barnett entered into an amendment to the Original Barnett Severance Agreement, which became effective as of the date on which the registration statement for the Company’s IPO became effective (the “Barnett Severance Agreement Amendment”, together with the Original Barnett Service Agreement, the “Barnett Severance Agreement”), which amended the severance entitlements under the Original Severance Agreement and provides for severance upon certain terminations of employment, all as described further below under “—Additional Narrative Disclosures—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control—Severance Under Employment Agreements—Messrs. Paglia and Barnett.”

The Barnett Severance Agreement includes restrictive covenants providing for (i) non-competition during employment and for a period of 12 months thereafter, (ii) non-solicitation and non-hire of employees, and non-solicitation and non-interference with current and prospective customers and business relationships, in each case, during employment and for 18 months thereafter, and (iii) the perpetual nondisclosure of confidential information and non-disparagement covenants.

If any payments or benefits to which Mr. Barnett would be entitled to receive pursuant to the terms of the Barnett Severance Agreement or otherwise in connection with a change in the ownership or effective control of the Company would result in all or a portion of such payments or benefits being deemed “parachute payments” under Section 280G of the Code and the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code, such payments and benefits will be reduced to the minimum extent necessary so that they would not result in the imposition of an excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code, provided that no reduction will be made if Mr. Barnett would receive a greater net after-tax amount absent such reduction.

The Company’s annual incentive plan and associated bonus pool is formulaically established each year based on Company performance against pre-established goals approved by the compensation committee. The compensation committee approves the goals and determines the annual bonus, if any, for the NEOs taking into account multiple considerations, including financial and individual performance. An NEO may receive no bonus, partial bonus, full bonus or overachievement of bonus based on bonus pool funding and as determined by the compensation committee. For 2023 the bonus pool funding was based 80% upon achievement of financial goals and 20% on achievement of strategic development goals. The financial goals were based on revenue and Adjusted EBITDA metrics and the strategic development goals directly aligned with supporting employee experience, employee engagement, employee development and M&A integration. Based on both Company and individual performance, Messrs. Peirez, Paglia and Barnett were awarded annual bonuses in the amount of $518,500, $180,000 and $276,828, respectively.

Our Board adopted the Sterling Ultimate Parent Corp. 2015 Long-Term Equity Incentive Plan (the “2015 LTIP”), pursuant to which the Company may grant awards of options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, restricted stock units, performance units, and performance shares. Each of our NEOs has previously been granted options to acquire shares under the 2015 LTIP.

Our Board adopted the Sterling Check Corp. 2021 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2021 Equity Plan”), pursuant to which the Company may grant incentive stock options (or “ISOs”) and nonqualified stock options; stock appreciation rights (or “SARs”); restricted stock; restricted stock units (or “RSUs”); Performance Awards (as defined in the 2021 Equity Plan); Cash-Based Awards (as defined in the 2021 Equity Plan); and other share-based awards.

In March 2023, the Company made long term incentive grants under the 2021 Equity Plan to certain members of its senior management team (including the NEOs) (the “2023 LTI Grants” and together with prior grants pursuant to the 2021 Equity Plan, the “LTI Grants”). The 2023 LTI Grants to each of the NEOs consisted of both a nonqualified stock option grant (the “2023 LTI Options” and together with prior nonqualified stock option grants made pursuant to the 2021 Equity Plan, the “LTI Options”) and a restricted stock grant (the “2023 LTI Stock Awards” and together with prior restricted stock grants made pursuant to the 2021 Equity Plan, the “LTI Stock Awards”)). Each of Messrs. Peirez, Paglia, Barnett and Walker were granted 2023 LTI Options to purchase 403,112, 148,515, 84,866 and 148,515 shares, respectively, and grants of 2023 LTI Stock Awards covering 519,938, 191,556, 109,461 and 191,556 shares, respectively. In determining the equity vehicle mix, the compensation committee determined that a mix that was weighted 30% stock options and 70% restricted stock provided alignment with stockholders and ensured that the management team was focused on future value appreciation.

The 2023 LTI Options were granted with a 10-year term and an exercise price equal to $12.79 per share (which was the close of day stock price on the grant date). The 2023 LTI Options and the 2023 LTI Stock Awards vest 25%, 25%, 25% and 25% on the respective first four annual anniversaries of the date of grant, subject to the executive’s continued employment with the Company (except as noted below under “—Additional Narrative Disclosures—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control—Severance Under Employment Agreements—Executive Equity Incentive Awards”). The approved vesting frameworks for the 2023 LTI Grants were designed to focus on long-term retention.

The 2023 LTI Grants include restrictive covenants providing for: (i) perpetual nondisclosure of confidential information, (ii) a non-competition covenant that applies for the duration of employment and for twelve (12) months thereafter, (iii) customer and employee non-solicitation covenants that apply for the duration of employment and for two (2) years thereafter, and (iv) a perpetual non-disparagement covenant.

Mr. Walker voluntarily separated from Sterling, with his employment ending on November 10, 2023. Mr. Walker was paid his current salary up until his last day of employment. All unvested equity as of his last date of employment was forfeited. Pursuant to the Clawback provisions of the letter agreement outlining his 2022 cash retention bonus, Mr. Walker repaid $200,000 of such cash retention bonus upon leaving Sterling.

The following table summarizes the number of shares underlying the equity awards outstanding under the 2015 LTIP and the 2021 Equity Plan for Messrs. Peirez, Paglia, Barnett and Walker as of December 31, 2023.

The Company maintains a tax-qualified defined contribution plan (the “401(k) plan”) that provides retirement benefits to employees, including matching contributions. The NEOs are eligible to participate in the 401(k) plan on the same terms as other participating employees.

Each of our NEOs is entitled to receive certain payments in connection with certain termination events.

The A&R CEO Employment Agreement provides that, in the event that Mr. Peirez’s employment is terminated by Sterling Infosystems without cause or by Mr. Peirez for good reason (as such terms are defined in the A&R CEO Employment Agreement) during the employment term, subject to his execution of a release of claims and continued compliance with the restrictive covenants in the A&R CEO Employment Agreement, Mr. Peirez is entitled to (i) payment of an amount equal to one and one-half times the sum of

his then-current base salary plus his target annual bonus opportunity for the year in which termination occurs, payable over 18 months, (ii) continuation of family healthcare benefits including, but not limited to, hospital, major medical, pharmaceutical, vision and dental benefits (paid for by Sterling Infosystems with Mr. Peirez retaining the responsibility for the employee portion of the premium) for 18 months post-termination (or, if earlier, until Mr. Peirez is eligible to receive substantially equivalent healthcare benefits from a subsequent employer), if and to the extent such coverage would not subject Sterling Infosystems or any of its affiliates or subsidiaries to any tax or other penalty under The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or other applicable law (the “Benefit Continuation”), provided that if such coverage cannot be provided for any reason Sterling Infosystems will instead pay Mr. Peirez monthly during the Benefit Continuation period an amount equal to the amount Sterling Infosystems would have paid had the Benefit Continuation been provided for the family healthcare benefits in which Mr. Peirez was participating as of his termination date, (iii) the annual bonus for the calendar year preceding the year in which termination occurs, if and only to the extent earned based solely upon Sterling Infosystem’s performance criteria (with any personal performance criteria being deemed to be met at 100%) but unpaid as of the termination date, (iv) a prorated portion of his target annual bonus for the calendar year in which termination occurs, (or, in the event of a CIC Termination (defined below), the greater of his target annual bonus opportunity for such year and his average annual bonus paid over the preceding 2 completed years) (the “Pro Rata Bonus” and, together with the bonus described in subclause (iii) above, the “Accrued Bonuses”), and (v) accelerated vesting of equity incentive awards as described further below under “—Additional Narrative Disclosures—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control—Executive Equity Incentive Awards.” For purposes of the foregoing, a “CIC Termination” means a termination without cause or resignation for good reason that occurs within 3 months prior to or 24 months following a Change in Control (as defined in the 2021 Equity Plan).

Pursuant to the A&R CEO Employment Agreement, upon a termination due to death or Disability (as defined in the A&R CEO Employment Agreement), Mr. Peirez (or his estate) will be entitled to the Benefit Continuation, Accrued Bonuses, and the same equity acceleration due in respect of a termination without cause that is not a CIC Termination.

Pursuant to the terms of the Paglia Severance Agreement and the Barnett Severance Agreement, if Mr. Paglia or Mr. Barnett’s employment is terminated by Sterling Infosystems without cause or by the executive for good reason (as such terms are defined in the Paglia Severance Agreement and the Barnett Severance Agreement, as applicable) during the employment term, subject to the executive’s execution of a release of claims and continued compliance with any restrictive covenants to which the executive is bound, the executive will be entitled to (i) an amount equal to the executive’s annual base salary (plus, in the event of a CIC Termination, his target annual bonus opportunity for the year of termination) payable over the 12 months following termination, (ii) healthcare benefits (with the executive retaining the responsibility for the employee portion of the premium) continuation for 12 months following his termination (or, if earlier, until the executive is eligible to receive healthcare benefits from a subsequent employer), if and to the extent such coverage would not subject Sterling Infosystems or any of its affiliates or subsidiaries to any tax or other penalty under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or other applicable law, (iii) any earned but unpaid annual bonus for the year prior to termination, (iv) a pro-rated portion of the executive’s target annual incentive bonus opportunity for the year in which termination occurs (or, in the event of a CIC Termination, a pro-rated portion of the greater of his target annual bonus opportunity for such year and his average annual bonus paid over the preceding 2 completed years), and (v) accelerated vesting of equity incentive awards as described further below under “—Additional Narrative Disclosures—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control—Executive Equity Incentive Awards.” For purposes of the foregoing, a “CIC Termination” has the same meaning as in the A&R CEO Employment Agreement, except that references to “cause” and “good reason” have the meanings provided in the Paglia Severance Agreement and the Barnett Severance Agreement, as applicable.

Except as described further below, if any of the NEOs experiences a termination of service, other than for “cause” (as defined in the applicable award agreement), (i) the unvested portion of the Stock Grants will be forfeited, (ii) the NEO will retain the vested portion of his LTI Grants , and (iii) the vested portion of the NEO’s LTI Options will remain exercisable for 30 days (90 days in the case of a termination due to death or disability), unless during such period (the “Post-Termination Exercise Period”) the NEO is restricted from selling shares by reason of the Company’s trading policy or otherwise, the Post-Termination Exercise Period will be automatically extended for six months, but in no event beyond the expiration date of the LTI Options. In the event of a termination for cause, the NEO will forfeit all of his LTI Grants (vested and unvested).

Pursuant to the A&R CEO Employment Agreement, Paglia Severance Agreement, and Barnett Severance Agreement, if the NEO experiences a termination of employment without cause or resignation for good reason (as defined in the respective agreement), then, (i) with respect to each nonqualified stock option and other equity incentive award of the Company then issued and outstanding to the NEO (each, an “Executive Equity Incentive Award”), the NEO will be entitled to accelerated vesting of the portion (if any) of such Equity Incentive Award scheduled to vest by its terms during the one year period following his termination date (subject, in the case of awards subject to performance-based vesting, to satisfaction of the applicable performance-vesting requirements (solely with respect to Company attainment, for Mr. Peirez) during such one year period), provided that if such termination occurs within 3 months prior to or 24 months following a Change in Control (as defined in the 2021 Equity Plan), all of the Executive Equity Incentive Awards shall fully vest (subject, in the case of awards subject to performance-based vesting, to actual performance attainment through the termination date (solely with respect to Company attainment, for Mr. Peirez), as determined in good faith by our Board in its sole discretion). The A&R CEO Employment Agreement further provides that, in certain circumstances, if Mr. Peirez’s employment is terminated in connection with his willful and material violation of a material Sterling Infosystems policy, Mr. Peirez will not be entitled to accelerated vesting of his Executive Equity Incentive Awards, even if his termination is treated as a termination without cause.

The following table summarizes the compensation of the directors who served on our Board during the year ended December 31, 2023, except for Mr. Peirez, whose compensation is summarized above in the table entitled “Summary Compensation Table.”

We maintain an annual compensation policy covering each of our non-employee directors. In 2023, under this policy, each of our non-employee directors (excluding those employed by Goldman Sachs and CDPQ) receives an annual cash retainer of $50,000 (which may be taken in the form of equity), and an annual equity award consisting of a restricted stock having a grant date fair value of $200,000, as determined in good faith by our Board, with a one-year vesting period. Our non-executive chair receives an additional $35,000 annual retainer, which may be taken in the form of cash or equity. Excluding non-employee directors employed by Goldman Sachs and CDPQ, our audit committee chair and audit committee members also receive an additional retainer of $20,000 and $10,000, respectively; our compensation committee chair and compensation committee members also receive an additional retainer of $15,000 and $7,500, respectively, and our nominating and corporate governance committee chair and nominating and corporate governance committee members receive an additional retainer of $10,000 and $5,000, respectively. Each non-employee director (excluding those employed by Goldman Sachs and CDPQ) who is initially elected or appointed to the Board is also granted, on the effective date of such non-employee director’s initial election or appointment, an award consisting of options with a grant date fair value of $250,000, which vests one-third on each of the first through third anniversaries of the grant date or, if earlier and the date of grant was the date of an Annual Meeting, the date which is the business day immediately preceding the date of the Annual Meeting preceding such anniversary date. Effective January 1, 2024, the compensation committee approved certain changes to the Non-Employee Director Compensation Policy, including increasing the annual cash retainer for non-employee directors (excluding those employed by Goldman and CDPQ) to $55,000 and the additional annual retainer for our non-executive chair to $55,000.

We also reimburse reasonable expenses incurred by our non-employee directors in connection with attendance at Board or committee meetings.

We recently adopted a Clawback policy that allows the Company to recoup incentive compensation earned by executive officers in the event of a material restatement of the Company’s financial statements. In addition, the compensation committee adopted the Sterling Check Corp. Executive Officer & Non-Employee Director Stock Ownership Guidelines (the “Stock Ownership Guidelines”). The Stock Ownership Guidelines require executive officers and each non-employee independent director (“Non-Employee Directors”) (collectively, the “Covered Population”) to accumulate and hold a meaningful level of shares of the Company’s common stock to establish commonality of interest with stockholders and to be aligned with corporate governance best practice. The Stock Ownership Guidelines require the Covered Population to maintain the required ownership level of as set forth below (the “Required Ownership Level”). Each member of the Covered Population is expected to satisfy the applicable Required Ownership Level within five years after the later of (x) September 22, 2021, or (y) such person’s appointment as an

executive officer or appointment to the Board, as applicable. The compensation committee is authorized to waive the Required Ownership Level Requirement in the event it would place a hardship on a member of the Covered Population or prevent the individual from complying with a court order.

The following forms of equity interest in Sterling are included for the purpose of determining the Required Ownership Level: (a) directly owned shares of common stock; (b) unvested time-based restricted stock; and (c) unvested time-based restricted stock units (collectively, “Eligible Shares”). Eligible Shares owned jointly by a member of the Covered population and his or her spouse and Eligible Shares in trust for the benefit of such person, such person’s spouse and/or children are treated as directly owned shares of common stock. Eligible Shares do not include unexercised stock options or performance based restricted stock. If a member of the Covered Population falls below the Required Ownership Level due solely to a decline in the value of the Eligible Shares, such person will not be required to acquire additional shares to meet the applicable multiple but will be required to retain all Eligible Shares then held until such time as the applicable Required Ownership Level is re-established and maintained.

Under the Stock Ownership Guidelines, the compensation committee annually at the meeting corresponding to or after the Annual Meeting calculates the number of Eligible Shares each member of the Covered Population is required to own, based on their then-current annual salary/annual retainer and an average of the closing stock prices of the Company’s common stock for the prior 20 trading dates from the Annual Meeting. This number of Eligible Shares will be the Required Ownership Level for each member of the Covered population until the next annual calculation. Annually, each member of the Covered Population must review and confirm their individual statement of Eligible Shares owned. As of the date of this Proxy Statement, all members of the Covered Population have met or are on track to meet their Required Ownership Level within the required time period.

The following is a description of transactions since January 1, 2023, to which we were a party in which the amount involved exceeded or will exceed $120,000, and in which any of our executive officers, directors or holders of more than 5% of any class of our voting securities, or an affiliate or immediate family member thereof, had or will have a direct or indirect material interest.

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and some of its affiliates, each an affiliate of our Sponsor, are clients of ours and we had sales of certain products and services to Goldman Sachs and affiliates of approximately $3.8 million in the year ended December 31, 2023, and approximately $1.1 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. Outstanding accounts receivable from Goldman Sachs and affiliates as of December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2024 were $0.7 million and $0.9 million, respectively. In addition, on February 28, 2023, we entered into an amortizing $300.0 million notional value interest rate swap, $75.0 million of which was entered into with J. Aron & Company LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Goldman Sachs. Outstanding receivable from swap of J. Aron & Company LLC were less than $0.1 million as of December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2024.

Field Control Analytics, an affiliate of the Greenblatt Trusts (see “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management Table”), is a client of ours and we had sales of certain products and services to Field Control Analytics of approximately $0.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2023 and $0.1 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. Outstanding accounts receivable from Field Control Analytics were less than $0.1 million as of December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2024.

Our Board consists of ten members, which includes Messrs. Jones and Villon who are affiliated with our Sponsor (See “Corporate Governance—Controlled Company Exception and Director Independence”). Mr.  Chen was also a member of our Board and was not independent due to his affiliation with our Sponsor. Mr. Chen resigned from the Board effective March 8, 2023. Mr. Rubado was also a member of our Board. Previously, he was not independent due to his affiliation with our Sponsor. However, as of March 10, 2023, Mr. Rubado was no longer an employee of CDPQ and as a result, our Board determined that Mr. Rubado was an independent director. Mr. Rubado was not nominated for re-election at the 2023 Annual Meeting and retired from the Board on June 1, 2023, at the expiration of his term.

On June 5, 2023, entered into an agreement with BSPI, an affiliate of Goldman Sachs pursuant to which we repurchased from BSPI 1,000,000 shares of our common stock for a total of $11.7 million directly from BSPI in connection with our share repurchase program.

In connection with our IPO, on September 22, 2021, we entered into an amended and restated stockholders’ agreement with affiliates of Goldman Sachs and certain other stockholders setting forth certain demand and piggyback registration rights. Following our IPO, certain stockholders waived their rights under our amended and restated stockholders’ agreement.

Pursuant to the amended and restated stockholders’ agreement, our Sponsor, who owns approximately 50.9% of our common stock as of March 25, 2023, caused us to file the Registration Statement on Form S-3 and related prospectus dated January 24, 2023, whereby we registered 59,953,230 shares of common stock held by our Sponsor as well as 1,075,809‬ shares of common stock held by other selling stockholders, including certain directors and executive officers of the Company, as of such date for resale from time to time in one or more offerings or resales. Pursuant to the amended and restated stockholders’ agreement, our Sponsor has the right, subject to certain conditions, to require us to

facilitate offerings of its shares of our common stock, which would result in such shares becoming freely tradable without restriction under the Securities Act, except to the extent purchased by our affiliates (as defined in Rule 144 under the Securities Act).

In addition, if at any time we register any shares of our common stock (other than pursuant to registrations on Form S-4 or Form S-8), stockholders party to our amended and restated stockholders’ agreement are entitled, subject to certain exceptions, to receive notice at least 30 days prior to the filing of the registration statement (or 15 days if the registration will be on Form S-3 and a shorter period of time is required because of a planned filing date), and to include all or a portion of their common stock in the registration.

In the event that any registration in which the holders of registrable shares participate pursuant to our amended and restated stockholders’ agreement is an underwritten public offering, the number of registrable shares to be included may, in specified circumstances, be limited.

We will pay all registration and filing fees and other expenses, including, among other things, reasonable fees and expenses of one counsel for all selling stockholders, related to any demand or piggyback registration. The amended and restated stockholders’ agreement contains customary cross-indemnification provisions, pursuant to which we are obligated to indemnify any selling stockholders in the event of material misstatements or omissions in the registration statement attributable to us, and they are obligated to indemnify us for material misstatements or omissions in the registration statement attributable to them.

A particular stockholder’s shares shall no longer be considered registrable shares to which demand and piggyback registration rights apply (i) when such shares have been disposed of under an effective registration statement, (ii) when such shares are sold under circumstances in which all applicable conditions of Rule 144 of the Securities Act are met, or (iii) when such shares cease to be outstanding. The amended and restated stockholders’ agreement does not provide for any cash penalties or other penalties associated with any delays in registering any shares.

In September 2021, in connection with our IPO, we entered into indemnification agreements with our directors and executive officers (the “Indemnification Agreements”). These agreements require us to indemnify these individuals to the fullest extent permitted by Delaware law against liabilities that may arise by reason of their service to us, and to advance expenses incurred as a result of any proceeding against them as to which they could be indemnified. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors or executive officers, we have been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy and is therefore unenforceable.

There is currently no pending material litigation or proceeding involving any of our directors, officers or employees for which indemnification is sought.

In connection with our IPO, our Board adopted a policy providing that the audit committee will review and approve or ratify transactions in excess of $120,000 of value in which we participate and in which a director, executive officer or beneficial holder of more than 5% of any class of our voting securities has or will have a direct or indirect material interest. Under this policy, the audit committee is to obtain all information it believes to be relevant to a review and approval or ratification of these transactions. After consideration of the relevant information, the audit committee is to approve only those related party transactions that the audit committee believes are on their terms, taken as a whole, no less favorable to us than could be obtained in an arm’s-length transaction with an unrelated third party and that the audit committee determines are not inconsistent with the best interests of the Company. In particular, our policy with respect to related party transactions will require our audit committee to consider the benefits to the Company, the impact on a director’s independence in the event the related person is a director, an immediate family member of a director or an entity in which a director has a position or relationship, the availability of other sources for comparable products or services, the terms of the transaction and the

terms available to unrelated third parties or to employees generally. A “related party” is any person who is or was one of our executive officers, directors or director nominees or is a holder of more than 5% of our common stock, or their immediate family members or any entity owned or controlled by any of the foregoing persons. All of the transactions described above were approved in accordance with this policy except for the Indemnification Agreements and the amended and restate stockholders’ agreement, which were entered into prior to the adoption of this policy.

Certain of the foregoing disclosures are summaries of certain provisions of our related party agreements and are qualified in their entirety by reference to all of the provisions of such agreements. Because these descriptions are only summaries of the applicable agreements, they do not necessarily contain all of the information that you may find useful. Copies of certain of the agreements (or forms of the agreements) have been filed or incorporated by reference as exhibits to our filings with the SEC and are available electronically on the website of the SEC at www.sec.gov.

To our knowledge, based solely on a review of the copies of such reports furnished to us and written representations that no other reports were required, we believe that during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, our officers, directors, and greater-than-10% stockholders timely filed all reports required by Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act.

The accompanying proxy is solicited by and on behalf of the Board, and the cost of such solicitation will be borne by the Company. Solicitations may be made by mail, personal interview, telephone, and electronic communications by directors, officers, and other Company employees without additional compensation. Broadridge will distribute proxy materials to banks, brokers, and other nominees for forwarding to beneficial owners and will request brokerage houses and other custodians, nominees, and fiduciaries to forward soliciting material to the beneficial owners of the common stock held on the record date by such persons. We will reimburse brokerage houses and other custodians, nominees and fiduciaries for their expenses in forwarding solicitation materials.

As of the date of this Proxy Statement there are no other matters that we intend to present, or have reason to believe others will present, at the Annual Meeting. If, however, other matters properly come before the Annual Meeting, the accompanying proxy authorizes the persons named as proxies or their substitutes to vote on such matters as they determine appropriate.

Proposals of stockholders to be considered for inclusion in the proxy statement and proxy card for the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders pursuant to Rule 14a-8 under the Exchange Act must be submitted in writing to the Secretary of the Company at Sterling Check Corp., 6150 Oak Tree Boulevard, Suite 490, Independence, Ohio 44131 (or such principal office as set forth on the Company website or most recent SEC filing), and must be received no later than December 10, 2024. The submission of a stockholder proposal does not guarantee that it will be included in our proxy statement.

In addition, our Bylaws include advance notice provisions that require stockholders wishing to bring nominations for directors or other business before an annual meeting to provide proper notice in accordance with the terms of the advance notice provisions. The Bylaws’ advance notice provisions do not apply if the stockholder only seeks to include such matters in the proxy statement pursuant to Rule 14a-8.

The Bylaws’ advance notice provisions require that, among other things, stockholders give timely written notice to the Secretary of the Company regarding such nominations or other business and provide the information and satisfy the other requirements set forth in the Bylaws. To be timely, a stockholder who intends to present nominations or a proposal at the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders other than pursuant to Rule 14a-8 must provide the information set forth in the Bylaws to the Secretary of the Company no earlier than January 22, 2025, and no later than February 21, 2025. However, in the event that the date of the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders is advanced by more than 30 days, or delayed by more than 70 days, from the anniversary date of the previous year’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders, notice by the stockholder to be timely must be so delivered not earlier than the close of business on the 120^th day prior to such Annual Meeting of Stockholders and not later than the close of business on the later of the 90^th day prior to such Annual Meeting of Stockholders or the 10^th day following the day on which public announcement of the date of such Annual Meeting of Stockholders is first made by the Company. If a stockholder fails to meet these deadlines and fails to satisfy the requirements of Rule 14a-4 under the Exchange Act, we may exercise discretionary voting authority under proxies we solicit to vote on any such proposal as we determine appropriate.

In addition to satisfying the foregoing requirements under our Bylaws, to comply with the universal proxy rules, any stockholder who intends to solicit proxies in support of director nominees other than the Company’s nominees must provide notice to the Company that sets forth the information required by Rule 14a-19 under the Exchange Act no later than March 24, 2025. However, in the event that the date of the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders is advanced or delayed by more than 30 days from the anniversary date of the previous year’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders, in order to be timely, notice by the stockholder must be so delivered not later than the close of business on the later of the 60th day prior to such Annual Meeting of Stockholders or the 10th day following the day on which public announcement of the date of such Annual Meeting of Stockholders is first made by the Company.

We reserve the right to reject, rule out of order, or take other appropriate action with respect to any nomination or proposal that does not comply with these and other applicable requirements.

A copy of the 2023 Annual Report accompanies this Proxy Statement. If you and others who share your mailing address own common stock in street name, meaning through a bank, brokerage firm, or other nominee, you may have received a notice that your household will receive only one 2023 Annual Report and Proxy Statement, or Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, as applicable, from or on behalf of the Company. This practice, known as “householding,” is designed to reduce the volume of duplicate information and reduce printing and postage costs. Unless you responded that you did not want to participate in householding, you were deemed to have consented to it, and a single copy of this Proxy Statement and the 2023 Annual Report (and/or a single copy of our Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials) has been sent to your address. Each street name stockholder receiving this Proxy Statement by mail will continue to receive a separate voting instruction form.

If you would like to revoke your consent to householding and in the future receive your own set of proxy materials (or your own Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, as applicable), or if your household is currently receiving multiple copies of the same items and you would like in the future to receive only a single copy at your address, please contact the Householding Department by calling 1-866-540-7095, or mail your request to Broadridge Householding Department, 51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, NY 11717, and indicate your name, the name of each of your brokerage firms or banks where your shares are held, and your account numbers. The revocation of a consent to householding will be effective 30 days following its receipt. You will also have an opportunity to opt in or opt out of householding by contacting your bank or broker.

A list of stockholders entitled to vote the Annual Meeting will be available to stockholders for examination during regular business hours for ten days prior to the Annual Meeting. To review the list of stockholders, please contact the Secretary of the Company at CorporateSecretary@sterlingcheck.com. The stockholder list will also be available during the Annual Meeting on the virtual meeting website.

If you would like an additional copy of the 2023 Annual Report, this Proxy Statement, or the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, these documents are available in digital form for download or review by visiting https://investor.sterlingcheck.com/. Alternatively, we will promptly send a copy of these documents to you without charge upon request by email to IR@sterlingcheck.com, or by calling 1-800-899-2272. Please note, however, that if you did not receive a printed copy of our proxy materials and you wish to receive a paper proxy card or voting instruction form or other proxy materials for the purposes of the Annual Meeting, you should follow the instructions included in your Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials.

If you own shares in street name, you can also register to receive all future stockholder communications electronically, instead of in print. This means that links to the 2023 Annual Report, Proxy Statement, and other correspondence will be delivered to you via e-mail. Holders in street name can register for electronic delivery directly with their bank, brokerage firm, or other nominee. Electronic delivery of stockholder communications helps expedite stockholders’ receipt of the information they need, while saving the Company money by reducing printing and postage costs and reducing the environmental impact of the Annual Meeting.