In this article, you'll learn about the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) checks that Certn offers through our partnership with Intercheck Global Pty Ltd (Certn InterCheck). InterCheck is authorized by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) to conduct criminal record checks.

This article is part of a set. To learn more, read our articles about ordering this check and understanding this check's results.

Introduction

Certn Intercheck offers several methods for clients to order background checks on their candidates in Australia. The method you use depends on where your company is based. This article focuses on Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) checks, which Certn Intercheck only offers to clients based in Australia. 

An ACIC check is a check of criminal history that applies across the whole of Australia. It is also known as a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC) or an Australian Police Check. ACIC checks can help your organisation to make informed decisions about the suitability of candidates for a range of purposes. For example, an ACIC check is often part of screening for employment, volunteer, and not-for-profit positions. It is also used to help determine suitability for occupation-related licensing or for licensing applications. 

How do ACIC checks work?

ACIC checks are processed by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), in partnership with Australian state and territory police agencies. Our platform makes it fast for you to initiate an ACIC check, and our online application makes it easy for your candidate to submit the information that the ACIC requires to process the check. Our service also includes several validation steps to help ensure that we collect all of the information that the ACIC needs to process the check. This helps to minimize potential delays in processing.

To get a better understanding of the overall process of ordering this check, refer to Stages of this check and our article about ordering this check. You can also learn more about your candidate’s experience ordering this check, including what details they need to provide. 

What results do ACIC checks return?

When an ACIC check is completed, you receive a report that indicates whether or not any disclosable records were found. Whether records are disclosable is determined by the state or territory police agencies that the ACIC engages and coordinates with to complete these checks. To learn more about how police agencies determine which records are disclosable, and what types of records may be included in results, refer to our explanation of results for this check.

Who can order this check

To order an ACIC check through our platform, your business must operate in Australia and have a valid Australian business number (ABN).

Typically, clients who order ACIC checks are Human Resources (HR) users who are performing screening for employment, volunteer, or not-for-profit positions or for occupation-related licensing or for licensing applications. However, other acceptable purposes for using this check do exist. In any case, it is your responsibility to ensure that you have a lawful purpose for ordering a background check, in accordance with data protection laws applicable to you.

For clients outside of Australia

If your business does not operate in Australia, but you need to order a check for a candidate who currently lives or previously lived in Australia, you can order our International Criminal Record Check instead. Using this check, you can request a screening for Australia. This results in an Australian Federal Police (AFP) check. For more information about this check, visit our website or contact us.

Turnaround time for this check

As outlined in the section Stages of this check, ACIC checks initiated through our platform begin with your order and your candidate’s application. When we receive your candidate’s completed application, if all required information is present, we pass the check to the ACIC for processing, typically within one business day. Starting from the time we can submit the request to the ACIC for your check, turnaround times are as follows: 

• On average, the ACIC returns 70% within two business days or fewer.
  Some checks, such as those that find no disclosable history, can even return within minutes from the time we submit your request to the ACIC.
• On average, 30% of checks may take or exceed three to twelve business days.
  Typically, this occurs when the ACIC’s initial search locates records that may belong to your candidate. In this case, the ACIC routinely refers checks to Australian state or territory police agencies who assist with processing. A longer processing time does not always mean that your candidate has a criminal history. The following are examples of scenarios that can increase turnaround time:
  
  • The candidate has a common name or similar personal details to someone who has criminal history. In this case, police agencies perform a review using your candidate’s provided information to determine whether the history found belongs to your candidate and is disclosable.
  • Police agencies need additional time to coordinate with police agencies in other states or territories to complete their processing.
  • Police agencies need additional time to manually retrieve or process hard-copy records.

When the ACIC check is complete, you will receive one of two standard results: Cleared or Review. Learn more about what these results mean for ACIC checks.

Stages of this check

We offer several ways to help you initiate an ACIC check. You can initiate this check via our web application, via our API, or via an integration with your applicant tracking software (ATS), if an integration for your ATS is available. 

When you initiate an ACIC check using our web application, the stages of this check are as follows:

How to get started

If you're new to Certn InterCheck and you want to start ordering this check, start by creating your account. If you have an account and are ready to order this check, refer to our article about ordering this check.