Government Documents
Clearance certificates
Police clearance, the record check behind it, fingerprints, and SAQA verification of tertiary qualifications — run in the right order.
Police clearance certificates
A Police Clearance Certificate is issued only by SAPS Criminal Record and Crime Scene Management in Pretoria. It states whether convictions are recorded against the applicant. Foreign missions, employers and emigration files usually require an original no older than six months.
- Preparing the SAPS 91(a) fingerprint route and supporting identity copies
- Lodging and tracking the file in Pretoria
- Arranging DIRCO apostille or authentication when the certificate is used abroad
SAPS does not accept scanned fingerprints and will not email the finished certificate: the physical original is the document that matters. We also assist with letters of no impediment and other good-conduct certificates where the destination country asks for them.
Record checks
A record check is the enquiry behind a clearance: whether a name and identity number return a conviction, a pending case or a clean result. Employers, professional councils and some embassies ask for the check itself.
- Name and identity-number searches for employment onboarding
- Support for a professional-council or visa file that asks for “no criminal record”
- Advice where a record exists and must be disclosed, or where expungement may be available
Results are only as good as the identity documents and fingerprints supplied. We will not confirm a clean record that the competent office has not issued.
Biometric verification
SAPS and Home Affairs identify a person by fingerprints, not by a photocopy of an identity document. Police clearance, some visa categories and smart ID or passport applications still require a live biometric capture.
- Attendance at a SAPS station, or a South African mission abroad, for a full set of prints on the official form
- Home Affairs biometric enrolment for an ID, passport or visa where required
- Checking that the print form is the one the receiving office will accept
SAQA verification
The South African Qualifications Authority verifies tertiary qualifications against the National Qualifications Framework. DIRCO will not apostille or authenticate a South African degree until SAQA has issued its verification letter and stamped copy.
- University degrees and diplomas for work, study or professional registration abroad
- Each qualification separately, where a person holds more than one
- Older school qualifications that fall to SAQA rather than Umalusi (generally pre-1992 school certificates)
National Senior Certificates from 1992 onward go to Umalusi, not SAQA, and trade certificates go to the QCTO — see Umalusi authentication.
Speak to us about your matter
Monday to Friday 08:00–16:30. Email is best for a first enquiry — include the facts and any deadline.