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    1. Home
    2. Crime, justice and the law
    3. AccessNI criminal record checks
    4. AccessNI for employers
    AccessNI: Criminal record checks

    General information for AccessNI employers

    During recruitment, an employer can ask job applicants or volunteers to get an AccessNI basic check to reveal unspent convictions. Employers in certain professions must get standard or enhanced checks. When these employers recruit for certain jobs, they are legally entitled to ask about your spent convictions.

    AccessNI checks and an employer’s legal requirements

    An employer is responsible for knowing when basic, standard or enhanced checks are necessary for jobs or volunteer roles.  An employer has legal obligations when they recruit.

    When asking job applicants about spent and unspent convictions, employers must keep to the law on rehabilitation of offenders.

    • Employer obligations and fair treatment

    Checks on EU citizens

    AccessNI also checks criminal records of some EU citizens in their home countries.  This happens when the applicant wants to work with children in Northern Ireland and is:

    • French
    • German
    • Italian
    • Lithuanian
    • Portuguese
    • Slovakian
    • Spanish
    • Bulgarian
    • Hungarian
    • Latvian
    • Polish
    • Romanian
    • Czech
    • Greek
    • Dutch

    An applicant needs to be checked against the list of people not allowed to work with children.

    AccessNI checks UK criminal records and asks for that applicant’s criminal record to be checked in their home country.  If there is any additional information available, this will be disclosed in the AccessNI certificate.

    Declaring a spent conviction to employer

    Most job applicants don’t need to declare a spent conviction to an employer. But some employers can ask job applicants or volunteers to apply for an AccessNI check which will reveal spent convictions.

    Employers and licensors can ask applicants exempted questions for specific roles.

    • Rehabilitation of Offenders (Exceptions) Order (NI) 1978

    Enforced subject access

    Employers shouldn't ask an employee or job applicant to request information, on their criminal history directly from the police. This is an offence for an employer. If employers need to check criminal history information, they must use AccessNI.

    • AccessNI for employers

    Applying for a standard or enhanced check

    Registered bodies are organisations approved by AccessNI. Only these organisations are authorised to make applications for standard and enhanced checks.

    • AccessNI registered bodies

    Rechecking staff

    Employers can recheck their staff. An employer decides if they want to have a re-checking policy and intervals for re-checking. Some employers recheck every two or three years. Others rely on employees declaring any changes to their criminal records.

    Giving a job to an applicant with convictions

    Unless there is a bar, a conviction should not automatically disqualify an individual. An employer should consider if a conviction is relevant to the post.

    Sometimes the applicant is committing an offence by applying for the post. An individual on one or both of the Disclosure and Barring Service's barred lists is breaking the law if they apply to work in regulated activity.

    For more information on employing someone with a conviction and the Disclosure and Barring Service, go to:

    • Employer obligations and fair treatment

    Complaining about information on a disclosure certificate

    If you disagree with information on a certificate, you can raise a dispute with AccessNI.

    More useful links

    • AccessNI registered bodies
    • AccessNI training for registered bodies
    • Employer obligations and fair treatment

    Contact AccessNI

    Contact the AccessNI customer helpline to get advice or help with an application by phone on 0300 200 7888.

     

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    AccessNI for employers

    • AccessNI advice and complaints
    • AccessNI registered bodies
    • AccessNI registered bodies - signatories
    • AccessNI responsible bodies
    • AccessNI umbrella bodies
    • Checking job applicants, employees and volunteers
    • Disputing an AccessNI certificate
    • Employer obligations and fair treatment
    • Find an AccessNI umbrella body
    • General information for AccessNI employers
    • Guides, forms and templates for AccessNI employers
    • Online services for AccessNI employers

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