As part of your relocation compliance process, you will need to apply for a Criminal Record Check from your current country of residence.
It’s important that you consider your date of arrival to the UK when applying. Your Criminal Record Check is only valid if it has been issued within 6 months of your date of entry to the UK, meaning if your document is over 6 months old prior to your arrival, you will need to apply for a new one.
Please note that if you have lived in a country other than your current country of residence in the past 5 years for over 6 months, you will also need to obtain a Criminal Record Check from there.
Below, we will provide you with details on how to apply for a Criminal Record Check from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the Republic of Ireland. We will offer further guidance when needed if you are required to obtain a check from another country.
Please bear in mind that any timeframes listed below are only approximations, and vary depending on circumstance. It is important that you apply for your Criminal Record Check as soon as possible – as long as it is within 6 months of your arrival to the UK – to ensure that it arrives on time.
Canada
You can apply for a Criminal Record Check from Canada through your local police service.
The processing times for a Canadian Criminal Record Check varies from 3 business days to 120 business days.
For more information on how to apply, please click here.
USA
You can apply for an Identity History Summary from the FBI.
Online requests are usually processed within 48 hours of visiting a US Post Office location for electronic fingerprints, or approximately 15 days after they receive your mailed fingerprint card.
If you submit your request via mail, it can take up to 75 days.
For more information on how to apply, please click here.
Australia
You can apply for a National Police Check either online or via post from the Australian Federal Police.
The turnaround for direct applications to the Australian Federal Police is around 15 days upon receipt of posted forms, if you are currently in Australia.
For more information on how to apply for National Police Check from Australia, please click here.
New Zealand
You can apply for a Criminal Conviction Report online from the Ministry of Justice.
The turnaround for a Criminal Conviction Report from New Zealand is approximately 20 working days in receipt of your application.
Please click here for more information on how to apply for a Criminal Conviction Report from New Zealand.
Republic of Ireland
To apply for a Police Certificate from Ireland, you should make an application in writing to the superintendent in charge of the district where you reside, or formerly resided, in the Republic of Ireland.
Police certificates issued by the Gardaí take approximately three weeks to process.
For more information on how to apply, please click here.
