Pre-employment Checks

Important Update to Pre-Employment Checks

This role is not eligible for new Skilled Worker visas in accordance with the current immigration rules.

From 22 July 2025, the Government introduced changes to the Skilled Worker visa route. The department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes. If you have held a Skilled Worker visa continuously, please raise this during your vetting checks and eligibility will be assessed in accordance with the immigration rules and transitional provisions in place.

If you are applying for this role and you have not held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.

The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria here.

From the 1st July, there will be a change to the way criminal conviction checks are processed as part of our recruitment process. While the process may look slightly different, please be assured that the checks themselves remain the same and will not affect how your application is assessed.

In some cases, you may be required to post a physical copy of your DBS certificate to our processing partner, SSL. Where this applies, vetting cannot be completed — and a contract cannot be issued — until the document has been received.

Please follow any guidance carefully and act promptly to avoid delays to your onboarding.

Pre-employment Checks

Prison officer recruits are required to go through pre-employment screening which includes security vetting as part of their application process. As a prison officer, you’re working in a position of trust. Security vetting plays a key role in assessing an individual’s integrity and so has a strong link to public trust and confidence within HMPPS. The vetting process considers several other factors. If you're in doubt about whether you need to disclose something or not, it’s best to include it. You’ll be asked to provide information on, but not limited to, the following -

Personal information to confirm your identity and verify your Right to Work in the United Kingdom
Your occupation history, including any previous employment within the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS), and His Majesty’s Court and Tribunal Service (HMCTS).
Your criminal history (arrests, investigations conducted by the police, cautions, convictions, impending prosecutions)
Your financial circumstances
Your offender connections (individuals known to you who have previously been engaged with or are currently engaged with the Criminal Justice System)
Your social media use
Information regarding your next of kin, your spouse or partner, and your siblings

Prison officer vetting also includes:

Background checks across police information systems on you
Credit reference checks (to ensure any existing financial difficulty is managed to prevent you being vulnerable to blackmail or corruption)
Social media and Open-Source checks (these are checks which consider any information on you which is publicly available via social media platforms and on the internet). This is to ensure that there is nothing linked to you that could undermine public trust and confidence in the prison service.
Other government and overseas agency checks.

You may also be required to complete a National Security Vetting application with the United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) depending on the prison you are applying to work.

High security Prisons.

High security prisons requiring CTC vetting

If your application is successful, you will need to undergo and clear pre-employment checks. This will include His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service Enhanced Level 2 clearance , UK National Security Vetting (UKSV) clearance at Counter-Terrorism Check (CTC ) level due to the security status of the establishment. In order to successfully complete this level of vetting, you will need to prove that you have been a UK resident for the last 3-years. The residency requirements refer to the period immediately before an application is made, and not any other three-year period, or any other accumulation of time spent in the UK.

If you have been out of the country for a significant period of time (usually up to one year) and maintained your UK residency you may still be considered for vetting clearance. This may be applicable for the following circumstances if you have :

Spent a significant period of time overseas without returning to the UK, but have since returned.
Taken a gap year before or following university
Travelled for a year
Spent time overseas visiting family

This is not an exhaustive list.

Candidates must be able to provide correct and up to date documentation when requested during the application process.

After you've submitted your vetting application our vetting team might contact you to clarify information you've provided or request additional information, which is completely normal. You must remain open and honest in your communication with them.p>

If your circumstances change at any point, you have a personal responsibility to report this as soon as possible.

Here's a bit more detail on some factors that are considered during the vetting process:

Convictions and cautions

All individuals subject to security vetting checks must declare all criminal convictions, cautions, reprimands, and fixed penalties in line with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended) and according to criminal record filtering arrangements (DBS filtering rules). This means that all criminal history - whether spent or unspent - must be disclosed, unless it is subject to filtering rules. Candidates are responsible for ensuring that they carefully review their own criminal history alongside the criminal record filtering arrangements prior to disclosure. Declaring a criminal history does not automatically mean that you will be declined security clearance. Each case is considered on a case-by-case basis. Factors that are taken into account when assessing a candidates criminal history include:

Your age at the time of the offence
How long ago the offence was committed
The nature of the offence
Whether there are obvious patterns of repeat behaviour

It's important to be honest. Failure to disclose this information will result in your application being rejected.

HM Forces offences

Convictions received whilst serving in HM Forces are not treated any differently from civilian convictions. All criminal offences convicted by a military tribunal are recorded on the Police National Computer so make sure you disclose them - again, honesty is the best policy.

Right to work

To work in the Civil Service, you must evidence you have valid and current right to work in the UK and Eligibility to be a Civil Servant.

Top tips

Here are our top tips to ensure your vetting application isn't delayed unnecessarily.

Be honest – declare all convictions, cautions and involvement in criminal investigations, in line with criminal record filtering arrangements.
Make sure you provide maiden names, dates of birth and addresses for all the people listed on your vetting forms
Include details of any criminal associates
Can’t remember or provide specific details? Include a rationale detailing why
· Make sure all County Court Judgements (CCJs) are satisfied
· Check your emails and your ‘junk/spam’ folder regularly. It’s an easy way to ensure you’re not missing any communications from our vetting team.

What should you declare?

Test your knowledge on what you need to declare with these common scenarios – the answers might surprise you.

A family member was convicted of a drug-related offence, but you weren't involved. Should you declare it?

You were caught up in a fight about 10 years ago and cautioned but never charged. Should you declare it?

You were investigated for shoplifting as a teenager but didn’t get prosecuted. Should you declare it?

You have a fixed penalty notice for speeding – but it’s only a traffic offence and the points are off your licence. Should you declare it?

You were declared bankrupt in your twenties, but have repaid your debts and maintain good credit now. Should you declare it?

You were the victim of a serious crime a few years back. Should you declare it?

Remember - if in doubt, declare it.

Documentation & Pre-employment Checks

If following your OAC you are successful and are subsequently made a provisional offer of employment, you will be asked to provide proof of right to work, ID and address.

IDVT is a form of technology operated for the purpose of verifying the identity of a person, whereby a digital copy of a physical document relating to that person is produced for verification of the document’s validity, and whether that person is the rightful holder of the document. To use this service, you must have a valid in date British or Irish passport (including passport cards) or share code and a Biometric passport that meets the ICAO specifications for e-passports, or EU/EEA biometric ID Cards that follow EC 2252/2004.

If you are unable to meet the criteria to use the IDVT service, do not worry as you will be able to have your documents verified later on in the process. If this is the case, you will receive separate instructions on the action required. The information below details what documents you will need to provide.

Proof of Right to Work

To work in the Civil Service, you must evidence you have valid and current right to work in the UK and Eligibility to be a Civil Servant by presenting 1 document from the relevant list below:

I have a permanent right to work in the UK (List A)

A passport (current or expired) showing the holder is a British citizen or a citizen of the UK and Colonies having the right of abode in the UK.
A passport or passport card (in either case, whether current or expired) showing that the holder is an Irish citizen.
A document issued by the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey or the Isle of Man, which has been verified as valid by the Home Office Employer Checking Service, showing that the holder has been granted unlimited leave to enter or remain under Appendix EU(J) to the Jersey Immigration Rules, Appendix EU to the Immigration (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Rules 2008 or Appendix EU to the Isle of Man Immigration Rules.
A current passport endorsed to show that the holder is exempt from immigration control, is allowed to stay indefinitely in the UK, has the right of abode in the UK, or has no time limit on their stay in the UK.
A current Immigration Status Document issued by the Home Office to the holder with an endorsement indicating that the named person is allowed to stay indefinitely in the UK, or has no time limit on their stay in the UK, together with an official document giving the person’s permanent National Insurance number and their name issued by a government agency or a previous employer.
A birth or adoption certificate issued in the UK, together with an official document giving the person’s permanent National Insurance number and their name issued by a government agency or a previous employer.
A birth or adoption certificate issued in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or Ireland, together with an official document giving the person’s permanent National Insurance number and their name issued by a government agency or a previous employer.
A certificate of registration or naturalisation as a British citizen, together with an official document giving the person’s permanent National Insurance number and their name issued by a government agency or a previous employer.

I have a temporary right to work in the UK (List B)

A current passport endorsed to show that the holder is allowed to stay in the UK and is currently allowed to do the type of work in question.
A document issued by the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey or the Isle of Man, which has been verified as valid by the Home Office Employer Checking Service, showing that the holder has been granted limited leave to enter or remain under Appendix EU(J) to the Jersey Immigration Rules, Appendix EU to the Immigration (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Rules 2008 or Appendix EU to the Isle of Man Immigration Rules.
A current Immigration Status Document containing a photograph issued by the Home Office to the holder with a valid endorsement indicating that the named person may stay in the UK, and is allowed to do the type of work in question, together with an official document giving the person’s permanent National Insurance number and their name issued by a government agency or a previous employer.
A document issued by the Home Office showing that the holder has made an application for leave to enter or remain under Appendix EU to the immigration rules (known as the EU Settlement Scheme) on or before 30 June 2021 together with a Positive Verification Notice from the Home Office Employer Checking Service.
A Certificate of Application (digital or non-digital) issued by the Home Office showing that the holder has made an application for leave to enter or remain under Appendix EU to the immigration rules (known as the EU Settlement Scheme), on or after 1 July 2021, together with a Positive Verification Notice from the Home Office Employer Checking Service.
A document issued by the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey or the Isle of Man showing that the holder has made an application for leave to enter or remain under Appendix EU(J) to the Jersey Immigration Rules or Appendix EU to the Immigration Rules (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Rules 2008, or Appendix EU to the Isle of Man Immigration Rules together with a Positive Verification Notice from the Home Office Employer Checking Service
An Application Registration Card issued by the Home Office stating that the holder is permitted to take the employment in question, together with a Positive Verification Notice from the Home Office Employer Checking Service.
A Positive Verification Notice issued by the Home Office Employer Checking Service to the employer or prospective employer, which indicates that the named person may stay in the UK and is permitted to do the work in question.

Home Office online right to work checking service

You may also use the Home Office online right to work checking service as a proof of right to work. Currently, the online checking service supports checks in respect of those who hold:

Biometric residence permit
Biometric residence card
Status issued under the EU Settlement Scheme
Status issued under the points-based immigration system
British National Overseas (BNO) visa
Frontier Worker permit

Proof of ID and Address Documentation

You must have 3 appropriate items of identification uploaded at the onboarding stage. The options will change depending on the first document you select. Please use 3 different forms of ID at this stage as the same document cannot be used more than once.

0/3

You haven't confirmed every item.

Item 1

Date of Birth

Proof of Address

Photo ID

Item 2

Date of Birth

Proof of Address

Photo ID

Item 3

Date of Birth

Proof of Address

Photo ID

All documents must be in your current name. One of the documents must verify your current address, one must include a photograph and one must include your date of birth.

Please note EEA Passports can only be used as proof of ID and are no longer accepted as a proof of Right to Work unless endorsed to show the holder is allowed to stay in the UK and carry out the work in question.