What a background check actually covers

The checks employers commonly ask for

Most checks happen late in recruitment, once an employer is close to making an offer, and you'll normally know about them because nearly all need your consent or your details.

A credit check is missing from that list for a reason. The Privacy Act excludes employers from the definition of a credit provider, so, as the OAIC explains, employers and recruiters aren't permitted to obtain your credit report, and you have no obligation to hand one over if asked.

How a national police check works

A national police check, formally a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check, runs through the ACIC's National Police Checking Service. You apply through an ACIC accredited body (often a company the employer uses) or through a police agency. The ACIC doesn't take applications from individuals itself. The Australian Federal Police also issues checks, charging $56 for a standard application, and says you must use it when the check is for Commonwealth or ACT purposes.

You'll be asked for identity documents, your informed consent and the purpose of the check: the role, the organisation and the state you'll work in. Police use that purpose to decide what can be released under spent convictions laws and release policies, which is why a check done for one job can't be reused for a different one.

According to the ACIC, around 70 per cent of checks come back within minutes. The rest are referred to police because of a potential match, which often just means someone with a similar name and date of birth appears in police records. The service aims to finish 95 per cent of checks within 10 business days, and the ACIC has told employers that a delayed check is not a sign of criminal history.

The result says either "No Disclosable Court Outcomes" or "Disclosable Court Outcomes". A disclosable result can list charges, convictions and penalties, findings of guilt without a conviction, matters awaiting a hearing, warrants and traffic offences, depending on what the relevant laws allow for that purpose. If your result contains a disclosable outcome, the accredited body must give it to you. A check only reflects records on the day it's issued, so there's no fixed expiry: each organisation decides how recent it needs to be.

Spent convictions and what can stay off the record

Some older, less serious convictions are treated as spent, and a spent conviction usually won't appear on a check. Under the Commonwealth scheme in Part VIIC of the Crimes Act 1914, a conviction is spent if you weren't sentenced to more than 30 months in prison and a waiting period has passed: 10 years from the conviction, or 5 years if you were a juvenile. Committing a further offence during the waiting period generally means losing that protection.

A spent conviction under the Commonwealth scheme generally doesn't need to be disclosed, including when a job application asks about convictions, and it can't be taken into account. The OAIC's example is someone who mentions one by accident in an interview: that information still can't be used to assess them. The right doesn't apply when someone is assessing your suitability to work with children, when certain law enforcement and security agencies assess prospective staff, or for decisions under citizenship and migration law.

Each state and territory also has its own scheme for its own offences, with different waiting periods and exclusions. Victoria's Spent Convictions Act 2021, for example, allows some convictions to be spent immediately and others after a crime-free period. The AFP notes that, depending on the state law, a check may leave out spent convictions and findings of guilt without conviction, but that it can't tell you in advance what yours will show. If you're unsure, the criminal records section of the relevant state or territory police can tell you, and a community legal centre or Legal Aid can explain how the rules apply to you.

If something shows up on your check

A disclosable outcome doesn't automatically rule you out, but how much legal protection you have depends on where you work. Across Australia, the Australian Human Rights Commission can look into complaints of discrimination in employment because of an irrelevant criminal record and try to resolve them through conciliation. That federal process can end in a report to the Minister, but, as Legal Aid NSW has explained, it gives no enforceable remedy and no path to court. Some states and territories go further, and the table shows where.

Each of these laws has exceptions, most often for work with children or other vulnerable people. In Tasmania, for example, discrimination on this ground is allowed in the education, training or care of children where it's reasonably necessary to protect them, and the Northern Territory has a similar exemption for work that mainly involves caring for vulnerable people. In the ACT, an irrelevant criminal record also covers charges that were withdrawn or never finalised, acquittals, infringement notices and convictions that aren't directly relevant to the situation. Complaints generally have time limits too: in Western Australia, the incident normally needs to have happened within the previous 12 months. How workplace discrimination complaints work covers the process in more detail.

If you know something will appear, it may help to raise it with the employer before the result arrives, with a short, factual explanation of what happened, when, and why it doesn't affect your ability to do this role. If you think the result itself is wrong, contact the accredited body or police agency you applied through, since the ACIC directs questions about results to them.

Working with Children Checks and NDIS screening

A Working with Children Check isn't a police check with a different name. It's a separate clearance, assessed by a state or territory screening body, and in several jurisdictions holders are monitored after the check is granted. A NSW clearance lasts five years and is monitored even when you change jobs. The ACIC notes that checks for working with vulnerable people must now go through these dedicated units. You usually apply yourself, then give your employer the number so they can verify it.

Each state and territory runs its own scheme, with its own name, rules on who needs a check, fees and validity periods. Volunteers generally need a check as well as paid workers, although several schemes exempt some volunteers, such as parents helping with their own child's activity. The table gives the main requirement in each, but the exemptions are detailed, so check the scheme where the job is based.

The NDIS Worker Screening Check is the one national clearance in this group. Many disability support worker jobs with registered NDIS providers need one. You apply through the worker screening unit in the state where you live, using an employer ID number the provider gives you. According to the NDIS Commission, the clearance is valid for up to five years, is recognised in every state and territory, and some states let you start with a registered provider while your application is being assessed.

Right to work, qualifications and references

Every employer needs to confirm that you can legally work in Australia. For citizens, that usually means showing a passport or birth certificate. If you hold a visa, the Department of Home Affairs tells employers to check your work conditions through VEVO, which is free and needs your permission. You can also use VEVO to send your visa conditions to an employer yourself.

Qualification checks confirm the degree, certificate or licence you've listed. An employer may contact the institution or ask for a certified copy or digital record. For registered professions, the check is often a search of the relevant public register, such as the one Ahpra keeps for health practitioners including registered nurses.

Referee checks are usually the last step. Should you put references on your resume? covers choosing referees, and how to ask someone to be your referee has messages you can send once you've decided.

Your privacy during the checks

Information about your criminal record is sensitive information under the Privacy Act 1988, which covers Australian Government agencies, organisations with an annual turnover above $3 million and some others. Accredited bodies must also follow the Australian Privacy Principles.

Private sector employers have an employee records exemption, but it doesn't cover job applicants who aren't hired, so an unsuccessful applicant may be able to ask for the information held about them. Once you're employed, the records of your pre-employment checks fall within the exemption. The exemption also doesn't extend to recruiters or screening companies working for the employer, which have to comply with the privacy principles themselves.