My DBS Check Hasn’t Arrived – What Next Steps Should I Take?
When you apply for a DBS Check, typically you should receive that within fourteen working days. If you haven’t received your DBS certificate within this timeframe, this article will explain the next steps that you should take:
What is a Typical Time Frame for a DBS Check?
This can depend entirely on where you live from a few days to three weeks. It may depend on how many different addresses you’ve lived at too, because the local police will need to be contacted in these areas to check whether they hold any information on you, relevant to your job application. For most candidates it should be within fourteen working days. If you have been waiting for four weeks, then you could contact the relevant authorities to enquire why there is a delay.
What Reasons Could There be for my Certificate Not Arriving?
There could be several reasons, some of the most common ones are:
- An incorrect address put on the DBS Check application form.
- The application has been lost in the post.
- A shared mailbox
- Missing or incorrect information on your DBS application form
- A lot of demand for DBS Checks slowing down the process
If you are sure that your address was correct, and that you did not make any errors on your form with lack of information, or incorrect information, then you could contact the relevant authorities to ask where your DBS certificate is. If your DBS certificate has been completed and sent to you, you can request a DBS certificate reprint.
How Can I Obtain a DBS Certificate Reprint?
DBS will only issue reprints under certain conditions.
They will not issue a reprint if you have lost or destroyed the certificate after receiving it. They will not do a reprint if you have been sent a reprint but have not received it yet. They will not give you a reprint if the DBS Certificate was printed over three months ago. If your certificate was issued over three months ago, then you need to apply for a new DBS Check.
For a Standard or Enhanced DBS certificate that has not been received within four weeks, DBS will give you a reprint if:
- You request the reprint, within 3 months of the certificate being issued.
- You have waited at least 14 days since the certificate was issued.
- The address you want it sending to, is the address that was on the DBS application form.
You can only request one reprint. Your reprint should be processed within 5 working days of DBS receiving your request.
For Basic DBS Checks, DBS will only provide a paper reprint if you requested a paper certificate originally. Like the Standard and Enhanced DBS Checks you must request this, within three months of your original application.
So, if your DBS Check hasn’t arrived, you need to ensure that it has been 14 days since you applied for it, and preferably wait one month for it to arrive, but then if you haven’t heard then, you can contact DBS to request a reprint, providing your address is the same as on the DBS application form. Don’t allow too much time to pass after one month, to request a reprint, because if three months passes you will need to re-do a whole new application.
