FAQ’S

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

A police check is properly known as a “Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check” or NCCHC. The NCCHC is a national check of your history against criminal databases in all states of Australia. It is conducted with your informed consent to determine your suitability for employment, a position of trust or as required by legislation.

How to get a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

How to obtain a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check is easy with Elite Screening Australia. Just go to our START A CHECK page where we show you how to apply for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check with our easy online process.

How long does a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check last?

Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Checks are a valid point in time check. What this means is that how long a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check is valid for will vary from person to person. A crime can be committed at any time after the date of the check and the only way to know this is to perform another check. For this reason, an employer may want to recheck the criminal record of their employees periodically.

How much does a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check cost?

A Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC) costs $50.00 including GST. You can apply for one through Elite Screening Australia here.

What is the difference between a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check and Australian Federal Police (AFP) checks?

There is a difference between Australian nationally coordinated criminal history checks (NCCHCS) and Australian Federal Police checks (AFP). You can only obtain a Federal Police check from the Australian Federal Police. Please note that for immigration, visa purposes, employment in Commonwealt facilities, or working in the ACT you must supply an Australian Federal Police Check. Refer to the Australian Federal Police for more details. An Australian nationally coordinated criminal history check is suitable for industry accreditations. paid positions, positions of trust. NCCHC checks are available for Industries such as education, health, banking and finance, childcare, mining, construction and recruitment.

Where is a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check valid?

A Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check or NCCHC issued by Elite Screening Australia via the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) is valid in all states and territories of Australia including ACT, NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC and WA. It may also be recognised in some overseas jurisdictions.

What does a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check show?

A Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check Certificate lists an individual’s disclosable court outcomes and pending charges (that is, where a person has been charged with an offence but has not yet been to court) sourced from databases of all Australian police services. Certain convictions, such as spent or juvenile convictions, may not show up on a police check in accordance with the legislation and policies of the various state police services.

How far back does a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check go?

Legislation commonly referred to as ‘spent convictions’ exists in all Australian states and territories limiting the disclosure of certain older offences once a period of time passes during which a person has committed no further offences and is generally 10 years. Some offences are never spent like sex offences. Similarly, applicants who require a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check for working with children or other jobs like disability, aged and health care may find that all offences they have committed – regardless of how long ago those offences were – are released on a certificate.

Is Elite Screening Australia accredited to obtain Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check on individuals?

Elite Screening Australia is accredited body with the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC). This allows Elite Screening Australia to submit a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check request on your behalf to ACIC. Elite Screening Australia does not have direct access to criminal databases.

Who is the ACIC?

The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) is an Australian Government agency responsible for facilitating access to nationally coordinated criminal history checks. The ACIC do not provide criminal history information directly to the public, rather they facilitate check requests from accredited bodies like us. All Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check enquiries should be directed to Elite Screening Australia.

Can anyone apply for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

We allow any person, from any country, who currently or has previously lived in Australia to apply for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check. If you under 18 years of age, you will need to get consent from your parent/guardian to request a check. We will not send results to addresses outside of Australia either physically or digitally.

Can I apply for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check on behalf of or about someone else?

Yes, but only if they provide their informed consent by co-signing the Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check application form and confirming that they understand our terms of use and privacy policy with particular regards to the use of their personal police information.

How will I receive the result of my Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

We offer the choice of having the Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check Certificate securely emailed to you for speed and convenience or it can be posted to the name and address specified by the the applicant in their application form.

How can I check the progress of my Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

As above, most Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check are completed and posted within one business day of Elite Screening Australia receiving the application. You should allow for 10 working days before contacting us about the progress of your application. If you haven’t received your certificate in this time, please contact us. You should only contact Elite Screening Australia about the progress of your nationally coordinated criminal History check. Do not contact ACIC.

Why do I have to state the purpose of my Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

Elite Screening Australia cannot undertake a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check without the purpose being clearly stated. Due to exclusions in Spent Convictions legislation, there may be different results released according to the purpose for which the check is required.

What is an NCCHC?

NCCHC stands for Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check and is the proper name that ACIC uses to correct loose terms like “police check”, “criminal history”, etc; which can be misleading. An NCCHC contains your personal information, and any relevant police information about you, according to the purpose of your NCCHC. The NCCHC describes both the checking process undertaken by the ACIC and police, and the result received by Elite Screening Australia on your behalf.

What do I do if I change my address before receiving my Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

If you change your address before receiving notification that your certificate has been posted, please contact us to change the certificate address. Otherwise, you should contact Australia Post regarding a mail redirection.

I applied for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check online but forgot to include some details. What should I do?

You should contact us immediately. Do not lodge a new/updated application unless we advise you to.

I just submitted an application online but found out that I don’t need it. Can I get a refund?

No. Once you submit the application processing commences immediately. It is your responsibility to make sure that the check you’ve requested is suitable for the purpose you need it for.

Are there any limitations on the accuracy and use of the Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check?

The accuracy and quality of a police check depends on accurate identification of the applicant (including aliases) according to the information provided in the application form and the comprehensiveness of police records. Whilst every care will be taken to conduct a search of Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check information held by Australian Police agencies that relates to the applicant, the check result report may not include all criminal history information. Reasons for this include correct name matching and the operation of laws that prevent disclosure of certain criminal history information.

I don’t have enough identification?

Without sufficient identification, we simply can not process any checks. There are no exceptions to this. Established pathways exist for persons without enough ID to build up or rebuild these documents. There are options available to all members of the community. Feel free to contact our support team via admin@elitescreeningaustralia.com.au should you need help with this.

How will I know if Elite Screening Australia (ESA) has registered my NCCHC application?

Your application is registered once you have completed the online form, uploaded your documents and paid the fee. You will receive a reference number via email with your ESA reference number confirming submission. Please retain this reference as proof of submission.

How Long Does A Police Check Take?

Accredited bodies, police agencies and the ACIC work together to deliver the Service, aiming to process 95 per cent of police checks within 10 business days, noting that:

  • around 70 per cent of checks are completed in real-time with results being returned to the organisation that requested the check within minutes
  • around 30 per cent of checks are referred to one or more police agencies because a ‘potential match’ is found. On limited occasions, this process can take longer than 10 business days to process, due to the complexity of the check.

A ‘potential match’ may be found if the applicant shares similar details with other individuals recorded in police systems, particularly if they have a common name. Processing of a check in these instances can take longer to progress.

Why Is My Check Taking So Long?

Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Checks are performed by computer systems which run your name and details through police databases in search of a match. This generates an automatic pairing with police history records. This can be a speedy process for many applications, but for others it can be more complex. If the computer is unable to generate a result with certainty, your application may require manual processing.

Manual processing is when your application must be checked and assessed manually, by police authorities. This can be a timely process, and will add more time onto the process.

If a match is found on the database, or your name and details match another person of interest, it will be flagged for further review. A true match must be confirmed, and the computer system is not always able to confirm this conclusively, so people are needed to investigate the matter by hand.

Reasons A Police Check Is Delayed

There are multiple reasons for why your Police Check is delayed and takes longer than the average 1 hour. Around 30% of police check applications are sent for further review by the National Police Checking System.

Common reasons for why a police check result might take longer than expected are the following.

Common Names

If the applicant has a name which is relatively common in Australia, it is possible for it to flag matches to information in criminal records belonging to other individuals with the same name. This takes the system more time to establish if you are the person in question, or if you must be excluded from being a person of interest.

Old Information

The information on police record systems should be regularly updated. However, outdated information may still exist on police records. If the applicant’s data has not been updated effectively, this may require the applicant’s information to be gathered and assessed manually by police authorities.

Issues With Police Records

Any problems with the information held on police records can cause delays to your results. If information on the system is found to be incorrect, inaccurate or incomplete, it will have to be fully investigated before the results of a police check can be established.

Transfer Delays

The National Police Checking System works by giving police agencies and ACIC accredited providers across all states and territories in Australia access to criminal history records. In order for this to work successfully, information must be transferred and shared between different states and territories. For various reasons, some agencies may take longer to pass on information, and this will result in delays to your application.

Workload

Sometimes, there are unprecedented levels of police check applications being submitted in Australia. As with every application, it must be managed correctly and meet all requirements as set out by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission. Police check applications must not be rushed, and this means that a heavy workload for individual police agencies can cause delays to police checks as they work through applications.

Will A Criminal Record Cause Delays?

If you already expect that your Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check will contain details of your criminal record, there are some reasons why the results might be delayed.

If you are wondering about a delay with your criminal record, the following are possible causes:

  • Legal technicalities and different legislation, including spent convictions schemes in different police jurisdictions
  • The state or territory where the offence took place
  • The decision process which determines whether a previous conviction or charge is disclosed as part of the results of a police check. This is dependent on the purpose behind the police check, the relevancy of the information and the assessment of the role the applicant is applying for (if for pre-employment screening purposes)

Will Another Provider Be Faster?

If you find that you are waiting a long time for the results ofpolice clearance, there is little you can do to speed up the process. Once your application is submitted with the NPC provider, the process is handled by the system, and there is nothing that can be done to retrieve the results any faster.

All accredited bodies who submit police checks on behalf of applicants have equal access to the National Police Checking Service. All must follow the same rules and procedures put in place by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission. For this reason, you should not attempt to submit applications to different providers, as this will not result in a faster turnaround. It could slow down the process, as multiple providers will be searching for the same results.

Police checks are certified documents which must be performed following strict protocol. A police check result will only be released once the police agencies are completely satisfied and confident that the applicant has been assessed fully.

Will I Be Notified Of An Issue With My Police Check?

If there are any issues with the application submitted, the accredited body handling the application will contact you directly, either via phone, email or both. A discussion will be held to inform you of the issues, and to determine the best course of action for moving forward with thecriminal record check. This could include providing alternative documents or further personal information to help to verify your identity.

If the police check request has been sent for manual processing, the applicant will be informed and updated throughout the procedure where possible.

Can I Prevent A Delay?

Anybody who applies for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check cannot control the process once the application is submitted. The important rules to follow as a preventative measure are to complete the application correctly.

For a successful application, you must provide everything asked of you in terms of personal information and identity documentation. Check all dates to make sure documents are valid, and double check that you have entered all information correctly.

Generally, problems with the application itself can be resolved by the applicant if they read and follow the steps carefully. All applicants should consider spellings, typing errors, spacing format and consistency to enable a smooth process.