How to apply for Australian Police Clearance Certification from Australian Federal Police

Fees

The fees for National Police Checks and related services are:

  1. $42.00 for each National Police Check application from a government department or an individual.
  2. $99.00 for a fingerprint and National Police Check application where fingerprints are supplied to the AFP on application.
  3. $139.00 for a fingerprint and National Police Check application, where fingerprints are taken and processed by the AFP.

To engage AIS for your police check certificate application, pay a service of $38

Purpose

You may need to apply for a national police check for the following reasons

  1. residents of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), Jervis Bay Territory and external Commonwealth territories
  2. people seeking employment with the Commonwealth Government
  3. people requiring a check under Commonwealth legislation
  4. Australian immigration purposes
  5. where the applicant resides overseas
  6. overseas employment
  7. overseas adoption
  8. visa applications for overseas travel.

As of the 15 of December, the AFP Criminal Records Team will be making minor changes to the wording on National Police Check Certificate. The purpose of the National Police Check selected on the application will now appear on the certificate. In addition, some information has been removed from the certificate in favor of placing the full purpose of the check on the National Police Certificate.

Completion Guide

.The following requirements must be met when submitting an AFP National Police Check (NPC) application. Failure to meet the required standards will result in the application not being processed.

  • Other names and date of birth

All other names by which you are known or have previously been known (such as your maiden name), must be provided in full, including given names.

Check that your date of birth is correctly entered.

  • Payment

For online payment, you can pay using either Visa, MasterCard or American Express.

Alternatively, for a manually completed application you may pay by bank cheque, which must be in Australian dollars or money order obtainable from Australia Post. If paying by bank cheque it must be from an Australian bank or financial institution affiliated with an Australian bank. Personal and Company Cheques will not be accepted.

  • Identity documents

Copies of identification documents totaling 100 points must be provided with your application.

Parental consent will be required if the applicant is under 18 years of age.

  • Extra notes for paper applications

For manually completed applications, please note:

  • You must submit the form no more than three months after signing it.
  • Mark the appropriate checkboxes with a cross (X).
  • Ensure you secure all paperwork, forms, payment, and identification to your application.
  • Ensure all the necessary details have been completed and the form is signed and dated.
  • The application form must be completed using block letters (ie capital/uppercase)

Submission

Option 1: apply via post

Complete a downloadable form for manual completion and submit it via the post.

https://afpnationalpolicechecks.converga.com.au/images/afp/npc_offline_form.pdf

Option 2: Apply online:

https://afpnationalpolicechecks.converga.com.au

Security features

Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police are printed on secure paper. This secure paper is now used nationally by all Australian Police Services.

  • Sample Certificate (PDF, 640KB)

The paper has a number of security features including:

  • a watermark consisting of multiple images of a padlock with two keys which is visible when held up to the light
  • fluorescent tricolour threads on both sides of the document glow blue, yellow and red when held under ultra violet light
  • a border to the right of the police logos on the front of the document is printed in MICROTYPE which can be read when viewed under magnification
  • images on the front are printed in heat sensitive ink and, when moderate heat or friction is applied, they will fade or disappear momentarily
  • hidden images printed in fluorescent ink and will glow yellow when viewed under ultra violet light
  • screened background printed in solvent reactive ink

Company checks

On request, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) may conduct a National Police Check (NPC) on an Australian company (“Company Check”) and supply a certificate detailing any convictions and/or any charges pending before a court against that company.

The AFP will conduct a NPC on a company only where the company has authorised for a National Police Check (Company Check) to be obtained, and there is a legitimate Commonwealth or Australian Capital Territory (ACT) requirement (legislative or regulatory) for the company to obtain a Company Check (for example as a part of the Aged Care Approvals Round, for an ACT Master Security Licence etc).

To apply for a Company Check, you will need to be authorised by the company to request the check.

Details on fees, how to apply and application requirements are in the following attachments.

Please note that these applications must be submitted via post. The AFP does not encourage the sending of credit card details via email and will not accept emailed applications.

FAQ

Check frequently asked questions on the Federal Police website.

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