Department of Defence police checks in Australia

The Department of Defence is responsible for defending Australia and its national interests. Other primary roles of this department are to protect and advance Australia's strategic interests by promoting stability and security, providing military capabilities, and supporting the Australian community and civilian authorities. Consequently, the Department of Defence is an indispensable part of our government.

Working with the Department of Defence is a fulfilling job because you get to contribute towards the thriving of our great country. However, the department only employs candidates representing our country's best ideals and defending the best interests of Australians. That's why background checks are part of the hiring process.

A police check, in particular, helps determine applicants with a suitable character to make sound hires.

A police check - also called a nationally coordinated criminal history check (NCCHC) or a background check - reveals an applicant's criminal history. This may include charges, court appearances, good behaviour bonds, pending trials and convictions, warrants, traffic offences, finding of guilt, and other crimes.

Working with the Department of Defence means you have the best interest of Australia and Australians at heart. With a police check, hiring decision makers can make an informed decision.

One of every employer's key responsibilities is ensuring a safe work environment. They do this by hiring candidates that will preserve workplace safety. Applicants with a criminal history of drug abuse, violence, sexual harassment or other sexual-related offences can threaten workplace safety. With a police check, the hiring manager can make an informed decision.

The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) is the official body responsible for conducting police checks in Australia. The ACIC works with local police agencies and accredited bodies to make police checking services accessible to Australians.

Here are the steps involved in getting a police check:

You must apply for a police check through an ACIC-accredited body or a police agency. This typically involves filling out an online form and providing information such as your name, address, date of birth, and purpose of the check.

After that, you must also upload four identity documents under three categories. These categories include:

• ✔ One commencement document
• ✔ One primary document
• ✔ Two secondary documents
• ✔ A biometric link (e.g. selfie with liveness)

Finally, you must pay the application fee. If you're using an accredited ACIC agency, the cost will vary.

After you submit your application, the police agency or accredited body conducting the check will first verify your identity. After that, they will input your details to the National Police Checking Service Support System (NSS).

If no match is found, the system returns a 'No Disclosable Court Outcome' in real-time. This result is sent to the accredited body or police agency that submitted the check within minutes. On the flip side, if a potential match is found, this match is forwarded to the relevant police agency to verify if it's a match. Once the criminal record is confirmed, the police agency further conducts a vetting process to determine which criminal records are disclosable per the spent conviction legislation.

After that, the result is sent to the police agency or accredited body that requested the check.

The accredited body or police agency notifies you once the check result is available.

About 70% of check results are returned in 24 hours. However, if there are potential name matches, the confirmation and vetting processes by the relevant police agencies can take longer than 10 business days. This is usually the case for about 30% of check applications.

Are you looking to get into the Department of Defence and would first like to assess your suitability via a national police check? You can easily order a police check with ANCC's individual portal. This service is fast, efficient, and affordable.

HR managers in the defence sector can also use ANCC's business portal to order police checks for applicants. The business portal makes it easy to track application progress in real-time. We will notify you once the results are available. You can set up a business account with ANCC.