What starts as a simple need to get a Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) can quickly turn into a frustrating, time and money-wasting effort if you decide to apply for a PCC on your own, starting at your nearest police station!
Your first question when facing the general run-around when it comes to applying for any official documentation, if you’re like most of us and treasure your time, will be; how long does South African PCC take?
The main reason for this is because of the current backlog in issuing PCC’s being experienced by the overworked South African Police Services Criminal Record Centre (CRC), and Crime Scene Management (CSM) departments.
Anyone who has decided to work or study overseas, or who plans to immigrate is going to need a police clearance certificate as part of their visa applications, and, because of an increase in the volume of applications for PCC’s, SAPS is working against the clock to meet expected turnaround times.
How long does South African PCC take?
According to an article in IOL on 22 December 2021, Police minister Bheki Cele said, “there has been an increased demand for the issuing of police clearance certificates, a move that has seen SAPS unable to meet turnaround times.
“The increase in demand has been influenced by different legislative imperatives and expectations from employers to potential employees.
“Noticeably, there is high demand which is influenced by increased applications for expungement of criminal records, employment seekers, sex offenders register clearances and international travel.”
At the moment, you’re looking at an average of up to 6 weeks for the process of applying for a South African PCC to be completed, however, there is a far easier way to get a PCC than to go it alone!
How to end the frustration that comes with applying for a PCC?
Doc Assist is a South African-based document procurement service and South African PCC services provider, helping clients to obtain PCC’s with the minimum of hassle, whether they’re currently living in South Africa or overseas.
If you apply for your PCC through Doc Assist you’ll be looking at getting a PCC within approximately 15 days, which makes it well worth it to contact this team for a quotation which will save you time and money during the process of applying for a police clearance certificate!
If you’re applying for a PCC with a criminal record, it can take up to 6 months for the whole process to be completed, provided you qualify for the expungement of your criminal record.
Doc Assist makes sure you cross all the t’s and dot all the i’s on your PCC application form, in order to make sure you don’t have to deal with unnecessary delays in the process.
One misspelt word, name or street address can create delays you really don’t want in a system that’s already severely backlogged, especially if you don’t have much time in which to obtain your PCC.
Contact Doc Assist for quotation via email or call them with your queries about getting a South African PCC, or any other documentation you may need; they’ll be more than happy to guide you through a process that’ll be a lot easier than going it alone!