What identification documents do I need for a police check?

It is now common for employers to demand a Police Check from potential employees or their staff. As it is now a mandatory requirement in many sectors, not having a Police Check may preclude you from a job opening, license, service rendering, volunteering or any other role you apply for.

Furthermore, applying for a police check has become so easy that our online portal at Australian National Character Check will provide you with a lot of useful information and actual issuance of the national criminal history check. The application can be completed within 12 minutes, and you have the freedom of applying with your mobile device, tablet or PC.

However, before you apply, there are certain documents (mostly 4) you must provide to complete the application process. These four compulsory documents divided into three categories will help ANCC to confirm your identity and assist the National Criminal Check Database to carry out proper checking of your police or criminal history records.

When filling the form, the following categories of IDs is required;

✔ One (1) Commencement of ID Document

✔ One (1) Primary Use in the Community Document

✔ Two (2) Secondary Use in the Community Document

Via the entire document listed above, we must be able to verify the information provided such as;

• Your full name
• Date of Birth
• A verifiable photograph that should be present in at least one of the commencement or primary IDs that you provide.

Documents do not have your valid photograph

If any of the commencement and primary documents do not include a photograph, a passport-style photograph will be needed - and certified by a person listed in Schedule 2 of the Statutory Declarations Regulations 1993 (Cth).

In case of a Change of Name

If any of the documents you provide is addressed in your former name (if you have changed your name), you must provide evidence of a change of name. You could provide

• A change of name certificate issued by the Australian Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.
• An Australian Marriage certificate issued the Australian Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.
• Deed poll

All these should be provided in addition to the four documents you have produced above. It is important to note that church or celebrant-issued certificates will not be accepted as a legal document verifying any of the above.

Commencement of Identity Document

A Commencement of Identity document issued by the Australian government could be any of the following documents;

• Full Australian birth certificate;

It should not be an extract or a birth card or third party issued

• Current Australian Passport;

The passport must be valid, and not expired during the Check process

• Australian Visa;

It must be valid and current at the time of entry into Australia as a resident or tourist

• Immicard;

It can be provided by immigration and Border Protection, and it enables the cardholder to prove the visa/or migration status and enrol in services.

• Certificate of identity

This ID is issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to refugees and non-Australian citizens for entry to Australia

• Document of identity;

This document is issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to Australian citizens or persons who have the nationality of a commonwealth country for travel purposes.

• Certificate of evidence of resident status
• Australian Citizenship Certificate

Primary Use in Community Document

For this category of documents, any of the following documents provided will be accepted such as;

• Current Australian driver’s license:

It must be a legal permit for driving a vehicle, including a learner's permit, provisional license issued by a state or territory. It should carry the signature or photo.

• Australian Marriage Certificate

Any marriage document provided must be provided by the registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. Church or celebrant-issued certificates are precluded.

• Current Overseas Passport;

Issued by a country other than Australia with a valid entry stamp or visa

• Current Proof of Age Photo Identity Card;

It should be issued by an Australian government agency in the name of the applicant. It should contain the name of the applicant with a signature and photo.

• Current shooters or firearms license;

It should show a signature and photo (precludes any junior permit or license)

• For persons under the age of 18, where there is no other Primary Use in community documents, a current Student ID with a signature or photo.

Secondary Use in the Community Document

When providing the Secondary use document, you will need to provide any two of the following valid forms of identification.

• Medicare card
• Bank Card; when providing more than one financial institution, it must come from separate institutions. You can hide the numbers on the card as long as the name and expiry date are visible.
• Credit Card; it must also come from separate financial institutions when providing more than one. You can hide the numbers on the card as long as the name and expiry date are visible.
• Bank Statement
• Australian Trade Association card
• State/Territory government Rates Assessment Notice
• Australian Taxation Office Assessment Notice
• Australian utility bill (must show name and address)
• Credit Reference Check
• Photo Identity Card; it must be issued by the Australian government or any other state or territory government.
• Evidence of right to an Australian government benefit (Centre link or veterans Affairs)
• Enrolment with the Australian Electoral Commission
• Australian tertiary student photo identity card
• Certified academic transcript from an Australian university
• Australian Secondary Student photo identity card
• Aviation Security identification card
• Maritime Security identification card
• Photo identity card; should be issued to an officer by a Police force
• Photo identity card; issued by the Australian Defence Force
• Security guard or crowd control photo license
• Foreign government-issued documents (for example, driver’s license)
• Certificate of identity issued by a Foreign Affairs and Trade
• Document of identity issued by the foreign affairs and trade
• Convention travel document secondary (United Nations) issued by foreign Affairs and Trade
• Consular photo identity card issued by foreign affairs and Trade
• Trusted referees report; it must be correctly filled out using the approved forms provided by ANCC

How to apply for the Police Check Australia

There are two methods to apply for a Police Check Australia, you can either apply through

When you apply through the online forms of ANCC, you get the Police Check delivered to you mostly within 24 to 48 hours of completion. The remaining that automatically get referred for manual processing will take longer. The online process is convenient, safe and generally quicker for all applicants and even for an organisation.

May requires physical trips to the Local Police office, and the process may be partly paper-based. Applicants may also need to get their identification documents certified or attested by an authorised person.

How to begin a Police Check application online;

The steps of application include;

Step 1: Visit the Australian National Character Check (ANCC) website for nationally coordinated criminal history check (NCCHC) applications

Step 2: Fill the required fields on the application forms, they are used by ANCC’s compliance team to verify the applicants through the required information and IDs

Step 3: ANCC will forward all applications through a secure portal to the National Police Checking Service system through a secure server

Step 4:The applicants' information is searched against a stream of the entire criminal database in the nation

Step 5: Result is provided to Australian National Character Check (it either comes out as No Disclosable Court outcome (NDCO) or with a Disclosable Court Outcome (DCO) and the details

Step 6: The Police Checking is completed, and a certificate returned to the applicant normally within 48 hours. Some checks that get referred for manual processing may take up to 15+ days.

Self photo (selfie) for a biometric link

When applying for a police check online, applicants are required to provide a biometric link to their identification documents and for the purpose of establishing “liveness”.

The self photo (selfie) with hand-written numbers as directed on the ANCC criminal history check application forms is a suitable biometric link.

What is disclosed in my Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check result?

A Police Check results contain all the release-able convictions of an individual (DCOs). Some of the convictions that will appear on a Police Check certificate are

• All relevant Charges
• Good behaviour bonds
• Pending trials and convictions
• Court appearances
• Traffic offences that lead to sentences
• Warrants or court warnings
• Finding of guilt with no convictions
• Offences not covered under the spent convictions scheme.
• Convictions/Charges against corporate organizations

What is not disclosed in the Check result?

• Incomplete or abandoned charges
• Diversion programs
• Spent charges or convictions that come under the spent convictions scheme
• Sentences are given abroad
• Traffic infractions that do not culminate in convictions (cautions, warnings, fines)
• Penalties from third- party institutions
• Offences prosecuted by authorities outside the Police Jurisdiction

Spent charges

Spent offences are struck out of your national criminal history check certificate depending on the state legislature where the conviction was given. Some of the conditions that may qualify an offence to be Spent are;

• Convictions after ten (10) consecutive years have elapsed for offences committed as an adult (not convicted in a juvenile court)
• Convictions after Five (5) consecutive years (3 years for NSW) elapses for offences convicted in a juvenile court (committed by a child)

All these conditions remain valid as long as;

• The individual must not be convicted of any punishable offence during this waiting period, else the period restarts
• If a jail term is imposed, the crime-free period begins after the jail term
• Convictions stipulated by the court to be considered as Spent if the individual meet some criteria

Why is a Police Check important?

A criminal background check is not just important to the government and the corporate world; it is also useful to decision makers for every day "informal" contracts.

Police Check helps to keep communities safer. Drivers, for example, need a Police Check before they can proceed to apply for a driver accreditation or licensing.

Non-profit organizations need volunteer police checks to assess the “intentions” of the persons they hire through previous convictions, offences and charges.

A criminal record check helps people to employ the right people for domestic services such as; Home tutors, nannies, caregivers, cleaners, real estate agents, and so on.

Australian National Character Check (ANCC) assists and provides both individuals and businesses with a valid Police Check document.