National police checks

Police checks (National Police Certificates) are a summary of an individual’s offender history in Australia and a record of their criminal history relating to convictions, finding of guilt or pending court proceedings.

The Department of Human Services Screening Unit does not do police checks. You can get one from:

• South Australia Police (SAPOL)
• organisations accredited by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.

Organisations can use police checks as part of their own background checks. However, some roles are required, by law, to have a particular type of check, particularly for working or volunteering with children, people with disability, or in the aged care sector. Find out more about the different types of check.