What is UK Visa Criminal Record Check?

Depending on the type of UK visa you are applying for and where you are applying from, you may need to provide an overseas criminal record certificate to enable the Home Office to carry out a criminal record check. You will need to provide an overseas criminal record certificate if you are applying from overseas for a:

• Tier 1 Investor Visa
• Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa
• Skilled Worker visa (if you have a job in education, health, or social care – e.g. Psychologists, nurses, senior care workers, or teaching assistants)
• Dependent partner visa (allowing you to join a person with one of the above visa types)

If you are applying for one of these visas from within the UK (i.e. switching to or extending your UK visa), you will not need to provide an overseas criminal record certificate. Please note Tier 1 Investor Visa and Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa are currently closed for new applicants. However, it may still be possible to extend them before they expire.

In most cases, you can request a criminal record certificate from the police or law enforcement agency in your home country. The Home Office also provides detailed guidance on the application process for criminal records checks overseas for each individual country. You can check the guidance here: Criminal records checks for overseas applicants

UK visa Criminal Record Certificate requirements

If you are required to provide a Criminal Record Certificate, it must:

• Be an original or scanned copy of a criminal record certificate.
• Have been issued by the relevant authority in any country where you have spent 12 months or more (i.e. continuously or in total) in the past 10 years while aged 18 or over.
• For your last country of residence - have been issued no earlier than 6 months before the date of application.
• For all other countries – have been issued within the last 6 months before your last period of stay ended.
• In English – if the original version is not in English (or Welsh), you will need a translated copy.

Can a criminal record affect your visa application?

If applying for a visa with a criminal record, you may, understandably, be concerned that your chances of approval may be negatively affected. Your criminal record may negatively affect your visa application depending on the sentence and the amount of time that has passed since it was completed.

Mandatory refusal

Your visa application must be refused if you received a prison sentence of:

• 4 years or more
• Between 12 months and 4 years unless 15 years or more have passed since the end of the sentence
• Less than 12 months unless 7 years or more years have passed since the end of the sentence

In addition, an application for indefinite leave to enter or remain will be refused if you have been convicted of or admitted to a criminal offence which led to a non-custodial sentence or out-of-court disposal less than 24 months before the visa decision date. Non-custodial sentences include fines, civil orders, and driving disqualifications. Fixed penalty notices do not normally result in the refusal of UK visa applications.

Discretionary refusal

If you have committed a criminal offence that does not fit any of the above mandatory reasons for refusal, the Home Office may still exercise its discretion when making a visa decision. The immigration rules state that the grounds for visa refusal depends on if an applicant’s conduct, character or associations is undesirable for them to enter the UK. Refusal is also likely if the applicant represents a threat to national security, their offending caused serious harm, or they are a persistent offender.

It is also important to note that failure to provide a criminal record certificate may also lead to the refusal of your visa application.

What if you are unable to get a criminal record certificate

In some circumstances, it may not be possible for you to acquire a criminal record certificate. This may be the case if the country from which you need the certificate has no functioning criminal record system or if they refuse to provide you with a police certificate for immigration purposes for any reason (e.g. if you are a non-citizen).

If you are not able to get a criminal record certificate, you will need to provide a written explanation to UKVI stating:

• Why you have not been able to obtain a certificate, and
• Your attempts to obtain a certificate

Based on your explanation and evidence, UKVI may decide to waive the requirement for a criminal record certificate. If, on the other hand, they decide not to waive this requirement, your application is likely to be refused.

UKVI also states that where criminal record checks cannot be completed, employers should obtain as much information as possible (e.g. references) before offering employment.