The Disclosure and Barring Service has announced that it is launching a new EU check pilot, which will enable successful criminal background checks across the European Union (EU), as of today.

Here we’ll tell you all about the pilot and what effects it will have on you and UK organisations.

Access to Criminal Information from Across the EU

As of October 1st 2015, the DBS has launched a 6 month trial which will pilot test the way accurate international criminal background checks are generated quickly and safely for the purpose of UK employment. This is the first trial of its kind for the UK government and is a joint venture between the DBS, Home Office and UK Central Authority.

The DBS is dedicated to improving safeguarding protocols and access to information for employers and organisations. This pilot hopes to exemplify this and the DBS believes it is a major move forward in improving EU-wide criminal records checks.

The Head of Business Development at the DBS, Barbara Howard, has said: “Over 650,000 of the disclosure certificates we process annually are for applicants who are not UK nationals. While we provide guidance on how to access certificates of good conduct from countries outside the UK, feedback suggests this is complex and time consuming.

“In addition, there is no existing mechanism to access information from other EU countries and add someone to the DBS barred lists, although there is a legal provision of a framework to do so.

“DBS is dedicated to improving the quality of safeguarding information and this pilot is an important first step on our journey to access data from outside the UK.”

Why is the Trial Taking Place?

The trial has come from customer feedback, where there has been much demand for improved international checks.
Up until now, the DBS has not been able to guarantee employers that it can provide background screening for overseas applicants. This new pilot will meet this request for those who are applying from the participating countries, including those who have a dual nationality.

The DBS aims to keep its check providers in the loop by including them in the evaluation process once the pilot has finished. And will use this information to inform future projects and practises.

How Will the Trial Effect You?

Here at CBS we make assessing an individual’s history easy thanks to our bespoke online DBS checking system, but international checks have always been a little more time consuming. As a result, this new pilot will have a helpful influence on the services we provide.

The trial is most likely to affect Enhanced DBS check applications for adults who are planning on working with children, as well as particularly focusing on applications from individuals who state their nationality as Dutch or Latvian (the supportive test countries for the pilot).

There will be no added fee or extra charges during the pilot. Instead, the DBS will use this trial to assess the costs of accessing the data, which will influence future developments.

What Happens if a Crime Was Committed in a Participating Country?

If you were once convicted of a crime in one of the participating countries, the UK Central Authority will consider if they are deemed ‘serious’ and if so, add the information to the Police National Computer. As a result, the DBS will disclose this information according to normal filtering rules.

Less serious crimes will be subject to a relevancy test and may only be noted on your DBS check results if seen to be pertinent or important to disclose them. If disclosed, this will appear as police information on the certificate and not as a criminal conviction.

Learn More About the EU Pilot from CBS

Do you have more questions about the DBS EU pilot or any other aspect of DBS checks and referencing? Then please contact us directly on 01443 7999900 or email us on info@cbscreening.co.uk.