Help Centre

To give home owners extra reassurance that you're not a member of the criminal fraternity, it's a good idea to commission a copy of your very own police check, or in other words, a statement from a government authority that proves your "lack of a criminal record". Having this available shows home owners that you're serious about presenting yourself as responsible and trustworthy and may put you ahead of the competition.

The process of commissioning a police check (known variously as a 'criminal record check' in Canada and a 'police certificate' in New Zealand) varies but is a fairly straightforward and inexpensive process.

• In Australia visit the Australian Federal Police website at www.afp.gov.au
• In Canada look at the Royal Canadian Mounted Police website at www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca
• In Germany try the Federal Office Justice at www.bundesjustizamt.de
• In the UK, you can try the www.acro.police.uk or the www.gov.uk website
• In the US, obtaining a criminal record check is less common, but you can try the travel.state.gov website which has some useful suggestions
• In France, go to the Ministère de la Justice website at www.cjn.justice.gouv.fr
• In New Zealand, go to the www.police.govt.nz website
• In Spain, go to theSpanish Ministry of Justice website at www.mjusticia.gob.es
• In Sweden, try the polisen.se website

Your criminal record check should be current (preferably less than one year old).