Help & Support

Frequently Asked Questions

• How long will my check take?

  Our turnaround times on our website reflect 30 minutes unless referred. Additionally, we state that *If your check has been referred to the police, it will be manually coordinated to ensure an accurate match. In most cases, results take between 1–10 business days or in some cases longer. View more information here.

  Unfortunately, no ACIC accredited service organisation is able to influence the turnaround times of the National Police Checking Service (NPCS) or related police agencies.

  Please refer to the product description for time frames for your specific check. If you have any questions about turnaround times, please call our support team on: 08 6466 3194 WST Monday to Friday 08:00–17:00.

• What do I need to apply for a check?

  To verify your identity, we accept a wide range of identification documents (in colour). See the Identification Documents list.

  You will be required to upload a selfie from an electronic device to verify your identification documents that you have uploaded. Please provide the document or licence for each specific check you need.

• What do I need to take a selfie?

  You can use any electronic device with a camera to take a passport-style colour photo of yourself holding a piece of paper with CITED written on it.

  By asking you to take a selfie showing you holding a piece of paper with CITED written on it we can be sure that someone hasn’t copied your image without your knowledge from social media sites.

• Why do I have to provide a selfie?

  We ask for a selfie as it reduces the risk of someone trying to fraudulently use your documents. Identity crime is rife in Australia, with an annual cost of $2.2 billion. By asking you to take a selfie showing you holding a piece of paper with CITED written on it we can be sure that someone hasn’t copied your image without your knowledge from social media sites.

  This is another way Cited protects you and your information.

• What is a 100 point identity check?

  A 100-point identity check confirms an individual’s identity by sighting ID documents (in colour) to a combined minimum of 100 points.

  From 1 July 2018 the ACIC no longer uses 100 points for police check purposes.

  See the full list of identification documents.

• How long does a National Police Check take?

  Approximately 70% of checks results are returned almost instantaneously. If you did not receive an instant result, your check may take up to 10 business days. See more information here.

  If you did not receive an instant result, your check may take up to 10 business days as the National Police Checking Service (NPCS) use a matching algorithm based on name and date of birth and when there are other individuals with the same (or similar) name and date of birth, they refer to at least one police agency in order to ensure that your correct result is returned.

  Please note that we are unable to follow up with NPCS on checks until they have been pending for at least 10 business days.

• What is the fee for processing credit card payments?

  The credit card processing fee is set at a flat 1.5% of the payment amount, including applicable GST.

• What do I get with a National Police Check?

  You will receive a Cited National Police Check certificate. If you have no police history, the results will show ‘No disclosable court outcomes’. If you do have police history, your result will show ‘Disclosable court outcomes’.

  Your disclosable police history will be listed on the check and may include:

  • Charges
  • Court convictions, including penalties and sentences
  • Findings of guilt with no conviction
  • Court appearances
  • Good behaviour bonds or other court orders
  • Matters awaiting court hearing
  • Traffic offences

• Where is my National Police Check?

  If you did not receive an instant result, your check may take up to 10 business days as the National Police Checking Service (NPCS) use a matching algorithm based on name and date of birth and when there are other individuals with the same (or similar) name and date of birth, they refer to at least one police agency in order to ensure that your correct result is returned. See more information here.

  Please note that we are unable to follow up with NPCS on checks until they have been pending for at least 10 business days.

• What types of disclosable court outcomes could be on my police check?

  Disclosable court outcomes may include:

  • Charges
  • Court convictions, including penalties and sentences
  • Findings of guilt with no conviction
  • Court appearances
  • Good behaviour bonds or other court orders
  • Matters awaiting court hearing
  • Traffic offences

  The type of police history information that is released depends on the purpose and category of the police check and any relevant spent conviction legislation or information release policies by which Police agencies are bound.

• Why is my police check taking so long?

  Unfortunately, the NPCS (National Police Checking Service) may take up to 10 business days or longer to return a result as NPCS use a matching algorithm based on name and date of birth and when there are other individuals with the same (or similar) name and date of birth, they refer to at least one police agency to ensure that your correct result is returned. Click here for more information.

  Further to this, there are many reasons as to why some checks take longer than others to process. These reasons may include:

  • The individual having a common name, or a name that matches with many potential Persons of Interest on policing systems
  • The individual having old police history information (PHI) that requires manual collection and processing of hardcopy records
  • The relevant police agency having inaccurate or incomplete records which need to be investigated properly before the check can be finalised
  • Transferring information between the various state and territory police agencies before the information can be vetted and/or released
  • Workloads within each police agency.

  The NPCS completes around 70% of police checks within minutes, providing a result back to the submitting agency. The remaining 30% of checks are referred to one or more police agencies for manual processing. Further to this, the NPCS aims to complete 95% of those referred checks within 10 business days from the date they are submitted.

• What payment methods can I use?

  We accept Visa, MasterCard and PayPal.

• How secure is your platform and my data?

  Our website is hosted in Australia on a secure and accredited platform. As part of our due diligence, we maintain a strict policy of updating and testing our security technology on an ongoing basis.

  To protect the privacy of data and personal information we collect, we maintain physical, technical and administrative safeguards. For further information, see our privacy policy.

• How safe is your payment system?

  Our payment gateway is protected by the highest security standards and following industry best practice. We use 256-bit SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption.

• Can I use my National Police Check for visa/immigration purposes?

  No, as the Department of Immigration will only accept checks conducted by the AFP, however the information we provide is the same information taken by the Australian Federal Police. For more information, please check the AFP website.

• Is a Cited National Police Check accepted throughout Australia?

  Yes, because Cited is accredited by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC).

• What is a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check?

  From 1 July 2018 the ACIC has changed the name of Police checks. When you request a Police Check the result document you receive will be titled Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC).

• Can I contact ACIC's NPCS (National Police Checking Service) myself?

  No. Only accredited businesses can contact the NPCS.

• Can I dispute my National Police Check result?

  Yes. If you believe your result is incorrect, please contact us.

• How and when can I contact you?

  You can contact us via online chat, email and call us Mon–Fri AWST 8am–5pm. For more information, see our contact us page.

• What is the Document Verification Service (DVS)?

  Cited will pass on information you provide (such as names, addresses and copies of identification documents) to Commonwealth and State government departments via the Australian Government Document Verification Service (DVS).

  DVS will send information, using a secure line, to the issuers of the identification documents where an automated check of that data will verify whether the information provided matches the information held by the issuer. The issuer sends an automatic response via DVS to confirm or deny whether the details match the database records it holds.

• How long will you keep my National Police Check information?

  All National Police Check results and information will be kept for 12 months only.

• Where are you based?

  We are an Australian company, with dedicated support teams in Perth and Melbourne.

• How do I verify a Cited National Police Check?

  If someone has shared a check with you (hardcopy or digital) you can find the link in the results. Use the link to access the original and secure results document.

• How do I use an organisation code?

  Sign in/sign up and select the completed check you would like to share with the organisation. Select the organisation button and enter the code you have been provided.

• What do I need to create an organisation account?

  You can create an account by providing an organisation name, ABN, address and your contact details.

• How do I make a complaint?

  Please contact our support team on: (08) 6466 3194. Alternatively, you can email us on: support@cited.com.au.

• How do I use a voucher code?

  On the payment page of a check, a voucher code field will be shown where you will need to enter your code.

• How do I approve or decline a payment request?

  Click on the email notification or sign into your account and the dashboard will guide you through the approval process.

• How can my employees share their checks with an organisation?

  An organisation can create an organisation code or invite users to complete a check, and the results will be automatically shared with the organisation.

• How is Kinatico linked with Cited?

  Cited is a whole of business compliance platform that simplifies workforce compliance for businesses operating in highly regulated industries. Kinatico Ltd is a global RegTech aggregator that operates and develops digital solutions that help create safer and more productive systems for businesses, their workers, suppliers, and contractors.