AccessNI criminal records checks

Ultimately, it is for the employer to determine whether to accept a previously issued AccessNI check. However, you should consider the following before making a decision:

• You should ensure your employee is not on a list of barred persons held by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) - see work involving children and adults - your obligations. A check issued at some time in the past might not have the most up-to-date position.
• The applicant's criminal record or other relevant information may have changed since its issue.
• The decision made by police to disclose information on an AccessNI check was made based on the position for which the AccessNI check was originally applied for. You cannot assume that no other intelligence would be disclosed for a different position.
• The position for which the previous check was sought may be different from the position you are recruiting for - this could include whether the appropriate barred list was searched previously.
• The information revealed was based on the identity of the applicant, which may have been validated by another Registered Body at the time that the original check was requested. Therefore, you should ensure that the identity details on the certificate match those of the applicant.

If you are contacted by another organisation about a previously issued AccessNI check, you should not disclose any information in that check without the express permission of the applicant. To do so may be in breach of the Data Protection Act.

AccessNI certificate

A disclosure certificate will be issued digitally to the applicant.

The applicant can view and share this digital certificate from their nidirect account. Digital certificates include a watermark that reads 'Not valid if printed'.

Paper certificates

With effect from 1 September 2025, AccessNI paper disclosure certificates are no longer available.