Criminal Background Check

Before hiring new staff, employers find criminal background checks beneficial to reduce the risk of theft, fraud or other criminal activity performed by a potential new staff member. A criminal record check is often a final step taken by employers to help ensure a sound hiring decision andprotect the employer and other staff from a number of potential risks.

In industries where employees are working with children, the elderly or other vulnerable groups, criminal history checks are vital for an organisation to rule out employing persons who are past offenders, thus reducing the level of risk posed to our vulnerable community members.

The base cost to obtain a criminal background check online is $52.90 + GST. The police clearance certificate is emailed directly to the applicant when ready. The criminal background check application takes only a few minutes to lodge and can be done in the comfort of your own home,or at your workplace using a PC, mobile phone or tablet. Payment options include credit card, debit card or PayPal.

Most employers don't accept a criminal background check that is older than three months. It must also be noted that a national criminal background check is a point-in-time check, meaning that the results only reflect police records on the date they are released.

Decision makers (e.g. employers) determine how long a criminal history check is to be acceptedas 'valid', based on their own risk management strategy and assessments.

The criminal background check certificate is in essence a national police check certificate and isvalid in all states and territories of Australia. This includes: QLD, VIC, NSW, SA, ACT, WA, NT and TAS. The criminal clearance certificate can be used for employment, volunteering, licensingand registration purposes.

The criminal background check certificate will contain the results of the applicant’s police check application and disclosable court outcomes (if any). Disclosable court outcomes (such as criminal history information) is released by Australian police agencies in accordance with the spent convictions scheme. Information displayed on the criminal record check is sourced from the databases of all Australian police agencies.

Since July 2018, applicants must provide four identification documents and a biometric link to obtain a police background check. These include: 1 x Commencement ID, 1 x Primary ID, 2 x Secondary ID's, a biometric link between the applicant and their ID documents. A self-photo "selfie" demonstrating liveness as instructed on the website is a biometric link. The identificationdocuments are required to enhance and improve authentication standards, the integrity of data holdings, and procedures for document verification. This keeps national police check data and aperson’s identity more secure.