Before we look into the question for how long is a Police Clearance Certificate Valid (PCC), lets first have a look at the definition of what a police clearance certificate is, according to the South African Police Service (SAPS):
“Regulation 1 provides that a “police clearance certificate”, means a certificate issued by the police or security authority in each country where the relevant applicant resided for 12 months or longer after attaining the age of 18 years, in respect of criminal records or the character of that applicant, which certificate shall not be older than six months at the time of its submission: Provided that the certificate shall not be required from a foreign country in the case of a renewal or extension of a visa but from the Republic.”
In plain English, no matter where you plan to use a police clearance certificate, it cannot be older than 6 months, and, as in the case of a country like Spain and a few others, a police clearance certificate is only valid for 3 months.
For how long is police clearance certificate valid
In terms of a SAPS police clearance certificate, it is only valid for 6 months from the date of its issuance. The best option is to contact the team at Doc Assist, which is a document procurement service, made up of a team of professionals who know all there is to know about PCC’s.
If anyone can assist you with information regarding how long your police clearance certificate will be valid for, depending on the country you’ll be visiting, it’ll be the team at Doc Assist.
They not only help clients based in South Africa, but also those who are currently living abroad, to obtain and renew their police clearance certificates.
In effect, the team at Doc Assist travels the world from their base in South Africa, which means that their knowledge and experience will be invaluable to you, when it comes to anything to do with a PCC.
Whether you need assistance in applying for a PCC (without Apostille), Apostilled PCC, PCC Renewal or Expungement of a criminal record in order to apply for a PCC, Doc Assist is on standby to extend their expertise to make your life easier.
If you have plans to immigrate, study or work overseas, you’re going to need a police clearance certificate, and in certain instances, you may even need one for job applications locally.
A PCC is used to prove to the host country that you are a person of sound character, with no criminal record, and that you aren’t considered a person who would be likely to break their laws.
It’s essential to make sure you understand the validity that different countries place on the validity of police clearance certificates, which means it’s best to know the lay of the land from the start of your application.
If you’d like to take all the frustration and time wastage out of applying for and understanding how long a PCC is valid for, depending on the country you’ll be traveling to, please contact the friendly team at Doc Assist for the best guidance and specialist knowledge when it comes to applying for any official documentation.