What is included in a police record check?
NewUpdated July 16When you apply for a job or a volunteer position, you may be asked for a police record check. You may also need a police record check for:
- a visa or other international travel document
- a citizenship application
- a name change application
- a application ()
- an adoption application
There are 4 kinds of police record checks:
- criminal record check
- criminal record and judicial matters check
- vulnerable sector record check
- broad sector check
Each type of police record check shows different information about your convictions, court orders, and interactions with the police.
You must agree to get a record check. And you have the right to see the results before you agree to send it to any organization that has asked for it.
You can read more information in “How do I apply for a police record check?”
Criminal record check
A criminal record check is the most general type of check. It includes the least amount of information. You may need a criminal record check for:
- job or volunteer applications
- immigration purposes
- by-law licenses
What it includes
A criminal record check shows a list of your criminal convictions and the date you committed them.
This can include your youth criminal record, if the rules say those records are not sealed.
You can read more about when youth records are sealed in Will a youth record affect my chances of getting a job?
What it does not include
A criminal record check will not include:
- outstanding charges and warrants
- any crime that you got an absolute or for
- convictions that you got a record suspension (pardon) for
- summary offences you were of more than 5 years before you asked for the check
- peace bonds and family court restraining orders
- charges that were or
Your criminal record check also does not include contact you had with the police, for example:
- being stopped and questioned by police
- being but not charged with a crime
- having contact with the police because of a mental health crisis
- contacting the police to report a crime
If you do not have any criminal convictions, any police station can give you a . A clearance letter shows that you had no criminal convictions on the date your application was processed.
Criminal record and judicial matters check
A criminal record and judicial matters check includes more information than a criminal record check. You may need this type of record check for roles that have a higher level of trust. For example, you might be applying for a management position, a government job, or a licensing program for certain trades.
What it includes
A criminal record and judicial matters check includes all the information that's in a criminal record check. It also includes:
- outstanding charges, warrants, peace bonds, , and orders
- any crime that you got an for, unless you were sentenced more than one year ago
- any crime that you got a conditional discharge for, unless you were sentenced more than 3 years ago
- certain active court orders
What it does not include
A criminal record and judicial matters check does not include:
- court orders for psychiatric examinations while you were in
- court orders for mental health assessments while you were charged with a crime
- court orders from a case where the was withdrawn
- family law restraining orders convictions that you got a record suspension for
Your criminal record and judicial matters check also does not include contact you had with the police, for example:
- being stopped and questioned by police
- being arrested but not charged with a crime
- having contact with the police because of a mental health crisis
- contacting the police to report a crime
Vulnerable sector records check
You will need a vulnerable sector check if you're applying for a job or volunteer position where you work with vulnerable people. Vulnerable people usually means children, older people, or people with disabilities.
A vulnerable person is anyone who, because of their age, disability, or other circumstances:
- depends on other people to take care of them, or
- is at greater risk of being harmed by people in positions of authority or trust.
A vulnerable record sector check will include all the information that's in a criminal record and judicial matters check.
It also includes record suspensions, or pardons, for certain sexual offences.
And it includes charges where you were found to be not criminally responsible because you had a mental disorder. But this information cannot be included if:
- the finding was more than 5 years ago, or
- you got an absolute discharge.
Non-conviction information
A vulnerable sector record check can include “non-conviction” information. This means information about crimes you were charged with but not convicted of. This information can be included only if:
- it is a certain type of crime, like or drug trafficking
- the person you were of hurting was a child or a vulnerable person
- there are to believe that you have what the law calls a “pattern of predatory behavior”, which shows that there's a risk you might harm a child or vulnerable person.
Broad sector check
The broad sector check is for people in who care for children under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act or Intercountry Adoption Act 1998. For example, you may need a broad sector check if you:
- are applying to adopt a child from outside of Canada
- work for an adoption agency that does international adoptions
- work for Child's Aid Society
The broad sector check is very in-depth. It includes everything that is in a vulnerable sector check. It also includes:
- every contact you had with the police under the Mental Health Act
- every contact you had with the police as an adult that is relevant to your ability to care for a child
- every criminal charge that was withdrawn, stayed, or dismissed
- all criminal charge that resulted in a finding of not-criminally responsible because you had a mental disorder
- family law restraining orders