National Police Check in Australia (2026): How to Apply, Cost and Which Type You Need

“Just get a police check” sounds like a one-step errand, but in Australia it is not one single product. There are two genuinely different application channels, the fee ranges from around $40 to $113 depending which one you use, and picking the wrong channel for the wrong purpose can mean paying twice and starting over – which matters a lot if the purpose is a visa or citizenship application with a real deadline attached.

This guide is sourced directly from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), which runs the national system behind every check, the Australian Federal Police (AFP), and Queensland Police Service, one of the two state police services that process checks through the Australia Post network. It also builds on our Working with Children Check guide, since the two are frequently and incorrectly assumed to be the same thing.

Quick Facts

What a National Police Check Actually Is

Its official name is a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check. “National Police Check” and “National Police Certificate” are just the common names for the same thing. The system behind it, the National Police Checking Service (NPCS), is owned by the ACIC but the ACIC does not process applications or deal with individuals directly – it works through Australian police agencies and a network of ACIC-accredited private bodies, who verify your identity and lodge the check on your behalf.

Every result comes back as one of two outcomes. A No Disclosable Court Outcome (NDCO) means there is nothing that can legally be released for the purpose you stated. A Disclosable Court Outcome (DCO) means something can be released – which might be a conviction, a court appearance, a good behaviour bond, an outstanding warrant, or a pending charge. What gets released depends on the stated purpose of your check and the relevant spent convictions laws, which is why a check is tied to the exact purpose you nominate and generally cannot be reused for a different one.

The One Thing Most Guides Get Wrong: Which Channel You Use Depends on Why You Need It

Most articles about Australian police checks talk about cost and speed as if there is one generic product to shop around for. There is not. Queensland Police Service says this explicitly on its own National Police Certificate page: “If you require an NPC for Immigration to Australia, it is imperative that you apply through the Australian Federal Police (AFP).” The cheaper, faster state-police-via-Australia-Post route that most job applicants use is not the right channel if your purpose is immigration, citizenship, or a Commonwealth or ACT matter.

• Use the AFP if your check is for a visa application, Australian citizenship, permanent residence, or any Commonwealth or ACT government purpose.
• Use a state police service or an ACIC-accredited body (commonly via the Australia Post network) if your check is for a job application, rental application, volunteer role, or most licensing purposes within a state or territory.

Applying through the wrong channel does not just cost you the fee twice – it can cost you the processing time as well, which matters when a visa application has its own clock running.

How to Apply: Two Main Pathways

Both pathways end up feeding into the same national system, but the application process, identity requirements and cost differ.

Through the Australian Federal Police

• Cost: AUD $56 for a standard digital certificate, or $113 total if fingerprints are required (GST-exempt, though a card payment surcharge may apply).
• Identity requirements: at least 100 points of identification, following the AFP’s own proof-of-identity checklist. A current passport and Australian visa can both count toward this.
• Processing time: most digital certificates arrive within 48 hours of a complete online application. Fingerprint-based checks, required for some overseas visa applications and specific licensing, take 15 to 30 business days and can only be lodged by post.
• How to apply: online through the AFP’s own application portal for standard checks, or by post if fingerprints are needed.

Through a State Police Service or Accredited Body

Queensland Police Service and Western Australia Police Force both process National Police Certificates online through the Australia Post network, and either can be used no matter which state you live in. Dozens of other ACIC-accredited private companies offer the same underlying check for employment and other everyday purposes.

• Cost: set by the individual police service or accredited body and shown before you pay – typically in the $40 to $90 range for a standard employment-purpose check, cheaper than the AFP’s fingerprint option and without the fingerprint requirement.
• Identity requirements: generally four documents across three categories – one “commencement of identity” document (an Australian birth certificate, current passport, valid Australian visa or VEVO record, or Citizenship Certificate), one “primary use” document (such as a driver licence or a current foreign passport with an Australian visa), and two “secondary use” documents (such as a Medicare card or a bank card). If you cannot verify your identity digitally, you may need to attend an Australia Post outlet in person with physical originals.
• Processing time: around 70% of all checks nationally return a result within minutes if there is no potential name match against police records. If a potential match is found (common with more common names), it is referred to a police agency for manual review, which the Service aims to complete within 10 business days, though it can occasionally take longer.
• How to apply: online via the Queensland Police Service or Western Australia Police Force portals (both run through Australia Post), or through any other ACIC-accredited body’s own application process.

What Shows Up: Spent Convictions and Real Exceptions

Every state and territory has spent convictions laws that stop older, minor offences from appearing on most checks. The standard waiting period is 10 years for an offence committed as an adult, or 5 years for an offence committed as a child, and you must stay offence-free for that entire period – reoffending resets the clock. Once an offence is spent, you generally do not have to disclose it, and in most cases the process happens automatically without you needing to apply for anything.

There are real exceptions, and this is where a lot of general advice oversimplifies. Several categories of purpose can be excluded from spent convictions protections entirely, meaning older convictions may still be disclosed. These include working with children, older people or people with disability, teaching, firefighting, immigration or citizenship applications, some government security clearances, and some overseas employment. Sexual offences and sentences of imprisonment over a set threshold are also generally never treated as spent, regardless of purpose.

Not the Same as a Working with Children Check

These two get mixed up constantly, including by employers who ask for the wrong one. A National Police Check is a one-off, point-in-time snapshot – it is not monitored after you receive it, and nothing about it changes unless you apply again. A Working with Children Check is a broader, ongoing suitability screening specific to child-related work, continuously monitored for the life of the check and issued by a state-based screening unit rather than through the National Police Checking Service at all. If a role involves regular contact with children, a National Police Check alone will not satisfy that requirement – you need the state-specific Working with Children Check instead.

How Long Is It Valid For?

Unlike a Working with Children Check, a National Police Check does not have a fixed statutory validity period. It reflects your record as at the date it was issued and will never show anything that happened after that date. It is entirely up to the organisation requesting it how recent they will accept – many employers ask for one issued within the last 6 to 12 months, but there is no single national rule.

One practical detail worth knowing: Queensland Police Service certificates are only available to re-download for 90 days after issue and cannot be reissued after that – if you lose access, you need a fresh application, not a reprint. The AFP allows re-downloads and reprints for up to 3 months from the original date. Check your provider’s own policy before assuming you can retrieve an old copy indefinitely.

What This Means in Practice

If you need a check for a graduate job application, a first casual job, a rental application, or most volunteer roles, the state police or accredited-body route is almost always the right one – it is cheaper, usually faster, and does not require fingerprints. If your check is supporting a visa application, permanent residence, or citizenship, go directly to the AFP – applying through the wrong channel for these purposes risks having to redo the whole process against a real deadline. And if the role actually involves regular contact with children, neither pathway is a substitute for the state-based Working with Children Check that role legally requires.

Frequently asked questions

Last verified: 31 August 2026, against the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, the Australian Federal Police, and Queensland Police Service’s own official pages. Fees, processing times and identity requirements can change – always confirm current details directly with the ACIC, AFP or your chosen accredited body before applying.