Can you escalate my police check – its been too long!

Understanding When (and Why) a Police Check Can Be Prioritised #

We understand waiting for a police-check result can be frustrating — especially if you’re eager to start work. Many people in this situation also need a National Police Check for employment or onboarding. However, Worker Checks and all other ACIC-accredited providers must follow national processing rules..

⛔ Police checks cannot be escalated or fast-tracked unless they meet strict ACIC “Urgent Priority” criteria.

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🕓 Why Standard Checks Can’t Be Escalated #

Once your Worker Checks Police Check is submitted, it’s securely processed through the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) and state/territory police agencies.
After submission, no provider — including Worker Checks — can change the order, speed, or manual review timing.

There is no general escalation process for standard checks.
All requests must meet ACIC’s definition of an Urgent Priority.

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🚨 What Counts as an “Urgent Priority” #

An Urgent Priority may only be applied where a delay in results could directly affect the care, safety, or provision of essential community services.

ACIC recognises four broad categories:

1. Specialist skills needed for an emergency or disaster response
2. Political reasons, including national security (Australian Government only)
3. Medical reasons, where a specialist is urgently required
4. Child-related processes, such as adoption or emergency foster-care placement

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✅ Examples of Eligible Urgent Circumstances #

• Volunteers needed for bushfire or disaster relief
• Support staff required for an upcoming election
• Medical specialists urgently filling remote or locum positions
• Emergency foster carers awaiting child placement clearance

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❌ Examples Not Considered Urgent #

• Starting a new job tomorrow or soon
• Expired or expiring police clearance
• Inability to work until a check is complete
• Professional registration or licence renewal pending

These are understandably important but do not meet ACIC’s urgent-priority threshold.

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💬 What Worker Checks Can Do #

If you believe your circumstances genuinely fit one of the urgent categories above, please contact [email protected] with evidence (e.g. agency letter, emergency request).
Worker Checks will review your situation and, if applicable, formally submit an urgent-priority request to ACIC.

Otherwise, your check will continue through the standard procssing queue. Worker Checks efficient processing completes 75% of Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Checks within 1 hour depending on review requirements.

Still Need Help? #

We’re happy to assist you in understanding your results and next steps.