SIA Security Guarding

You will need to provide documents that prove you are who you say you are.

Check you have the right documents to prove your identity. During the application process, you need to provide documents to prove your identity.

We suggest that you check you have the right identity documents before you start your application.

You will need to give each of the following:

• 1 document from group A
• 2 documents from group B
• A photo of yourself

Each document should be the original, physical document. We will not accept a scan or photocopy – unless we have told you that we will accept a notarised copy.

If any of your documents are not in English, you must give us both:

the original document
an English-language translation from an approved translator
You need to arrange the translation of your document into English and pay any costs.

We only accept translations from the following:

• Embassies, high commissions or consulates
• Translators who are accredited by the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI) and hold qualified or corporate membership
• Translators who are fellows (FCIL) or members (MCIL) of the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL)
• Translation companies that are accredited by the Association of Translation Companies (ATC) and hold full or overseas membership

Group A documents:
You need to provide 1 document from group A.

We accept:

• A passport that is signed, current, and valid
• A driving licence photocard issued by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in the UK
• A driving licence photocard and its paper counterpart issued by the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) in Northern Ireland
• A UK original birth certificate issued within 12 months of birth
• A UK biometric residence permit card

Group B documents:
You need to provide 2 documents from group B. Each of these documents must show your current address.

Unless we say otherwise, we will not accept 2 of the same type of document. For example, we will not accept 2 council tax statements. we will only accept 1 council tax statement and 1 document of a different type.

We will accept:

• A bank or building society statement from the last 3 months (we will accept 2 statements, but only if they are from different banks or building societies)
• A utility bill from the last 3 months (we will accept gas, electric, telephone landline, water, satellite TV or cable TV bills but not mobile phone bills)
• A credit card statement from the last 3 months (we will accept 2 statements, but only if they are from different credit-card providers)
• A council tax statement from the last 12 months
• A mortgage statement from the last 12 months
• A letter from the last 3 months from any of the following:
  HM Revenue and Customs
  the Department of Work and Pensions
  A Jobcentre Plus – or any other employment service
  A local authority
  A P45 or P60 tax statement from the last 12 months
  A paper version of a current UK driving licence (not the paper counterpart to a photocard)
  A driving licence photocard issued by the DVA in Northern Ireland (not the paper counterpart)
  A pension, endowment or ISA statement from the last 12 months
  A valid UK firearms licence with photo
  Photo of yourself

We need to have a passport-style photo of you so that we can:

check it against the photo in your group A identity document
include it on your SIA licence photocard, if you are applying for a front-line licence
If we ask you to take your identity documents to:

A UK Post Office, a member of staff at the Post Office will take this photo for you
your employer, they will take this photo for you
In some situations, we may ask you to send us a photo. If we do, the photo must be:

• In colour (not black and white)
• Clear and in focus
• A true likeness of you
• A close-up of your full head and upper shoulders
  taken against a white or cream background
  not changed using computer software

In the photo, you must:

• Be facing forwards and looking straight at the camera
• Have a plain expression, with your mouth closed
• Have your eyes open and visible
• Not have hair in front of your eyes
• Not have a head covering (unless it’s for religious or medical reasons)
• Not have anything covering your face
• Not wear sunglasses or darkened lenses (you can wear clear glasses)
• Not have any shadows on your face or behind you

If we ask you to send identity documents to us, we will tell you how to do this and where to send the documents. we will return them as soon as possible.

Do not send us any documents that you need in the near future. For example, do not send us your passport if you will need it to travel abroad in the next month.

In some situations, it may not be possible for you to send us your passport – for example, if it’s against the law to send your passport outside of your home country. If so, you should let us know. If we agree, we may ask you to send us a ‘notarised’ copy of your passport from an accredited notary in the country in which you live.

A notary is a type of lawyer who has the authority to say that certain documents are real and authentic. If you send us a notarised copy of your passport, you must include a signed and dated letter from the notary.

We will not accept a notarised copy of your passport if the reason you want to send it is because you need your actual passport for travel.

You need to provide details of all the addresses you have lived at during the last 5 years.

We use this information for our identity and criminal record checks.

If you live in the UK, our system will automatically check your current address. If this check does not confirm that you live at this address, we ask you to provide documents to prove that you live there.

Age:
You must be 18 or over to hold an SIA licence.

Qualifications:
You must have a ‘licence-linked’ qualification before you can apply for a front line licence.

You do not need a licence-linked qualification to get a non-front line licence or a key holding licence.

Check you can afford the licence fee (if you are applying for a licence yourself)
It costs £190 to apply for 1 licence.

All licences last for 3 years – except for a vehicle immobiliser licence, which lasts for 1 year.

You may need to apply for more than 1 licence. If so, we will apply a discount of 50% to the additional licences. This means that:

• The first licence will cost £190
• Each other licence will cost £95

We apply the discount for additional licences in different sectors. We do not apply the discount if you are renewing a licence for the same sector.

If you already hold a licence and you apply for another one in a different sector, both of the following conditions must be met for us to apply the discount:

• You paid the full fee of £190 for your existing licence
• Your existing licence must have more than 4 months left to run

The discount does not apply to a vehicle immobiliser licence, which always costs £190.

Once you have completed and submitted your application, we will ask you to pay the licence fee.

Alternatively, if your employer or another organisation has agreed to pay your licence fee for you, we will contact them for payment.

We must receive full payment of the licence fee before we will process your application. We will not accept payment:

• In instalments
• After we have decided whether to give your licence or not

Please remember that the payment is not refundable. This means we will not refund the payment in any situation. For example, we will not give your money back if we need to cancel your application because you gave us wrong information.