Security clearance
Security clearance is the government vetting some UK jobs need before you can see secret information or work at sensitive sites. The levels you will see most are SC and DV. Each one usually needs you to have lived in the UK for several years, so most people applying from abroad cannot get it, whatever their visa.
In this article
- What is security clearance?
- The levels you will see in adverts
- How long you need to have lived in the UK
- Can you get security clearance on a visa?
- BPSS is not security clearance
- Clearance and visa sponsorship
- Frequently asked questions
- Related terms
What is security clearance?
Security clearance, officially national security vetting, is how the UK government checks people before they work with secret information, at sites at risk of attack or near public figures at risk from terrorism. Defence, aerospace, nuclear and government IT jobs often need it, and so do some police and airport jobs.
You cannot apply for it on your own. Clearance comes with a job: the organisation that needs you cleared starts the application, and UK Security Vetting will not accept one without it. In vetting, that organisation is called your sponsor. It has nothing to do with a visa sponsor.
The levels you will see in adverts
| Level | Who needs it | What it checks |
|---|---|---|
| BPSS (Baseline Personnel Security Standard) | Anyone with access to government assets, including contractors | Identity, right to work, work history and unspent convictions. It is not a clearance |
| AC (Accreditation Check) | People who need a pass for the secure areas of UK airports | Identity, at least five years of work and education history, unspent convictions and government records |
| CTC (Counter-Terrorist Check) | Jobs near public figures at risk from terrorism, or at sites at risk of attack | BPSS, a security questionnaire, criminal records and Security Service records |
| SC (Security Check) | Jobs with long-term, frequent access to SECRET information | Everything in CTC, plus your credit and financial history |
| eSC (Enhanced Security Check) | A few jobs that need more than SC but less than DV | SC checks, plus financial and internet questionnaires, a full review of your finances and an interview |
| DV (Developed Vetting) | Jobs with frequent access to TOP SECRET information | SC checks, plus a full review of your finances, an interview and interviews with your referees |
| NPPV (Non-Police Personnel Vetting) | Police staff and contractors who are not police officers | Run by each police force |
A very small number of jobs need enhanced DV (eDV), the level above DV.
How long you need to have lived in the UK
Vetting needs a history in the UK that it can check, so each level asks how long you have lived here. GOV.UK says the period "will usually range from three to ten years", depending on the level, and that "a lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar".
Adverts usually ask for about five years for SC and about ten for DV. Police forces give three years for NPPV, counted back from the day you apply.
What counts is where you have lived, so years you have spent in the UK on a visa are UK residence too.
Can you get security clearance on a visa?
Often, yes, if you have lived in the UK long enough, because for most jobs that is what decides it. Your nationality is still checked, and some jobs add nationality rules of their own:
- About a quarter of Civil Service jobs are reserved for UK nationals. Most of the rest are also open to Commonwealth and EEA nationals, and the advert lists who can apply.
- Some defence jobs ask for sole British nationality, and say so in the advert.
So a Graduate visa holder who studied in the UK for four or five years may be able to get SC. Someone moving from abroad for the job usually cannot, whatever visa they get.
BPSS is not security clearance
Many adverts ask for BPSS. It is the pre-employment check for anyone with access to government assets, and GOV.UK says it "is not a formal security clearance". It checks your identity, your right to work, your work history for the last three years and any unspent convictions, using a basic DBS check in England and Wales.
A visa does not stop you passing BPSS as long as you have the right to work. If you have lived abroad recently, you may be asked for a police certificate from that country.
Clearance and visa sponsorship
Clearance and visa sponsorship are separate decisions. An employer can hold a sponsor licence and still not sponsor a job that needs clearance, and few adverts that need clearance offer sponsorship. If you would need both, ask the employer before you apply.
On our jobs board, a job whose advert needs SC or DV clearance carries a note that quotes the advert, and its sponsorship likelihood is Unlikely at most. To leave these jobs out, tick "Hide jobs that need security clearance" in the filters.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get SC clearance on a Graduate visa?
You can if you have lived in the UK long enough. Vetting looks at how long you have lived here, not at your visa, and adverts usually ask for about five years for SC. If you studied in the UK for several years before your Graduate visa, you may meet that. If you arrived recently, you probably will not.
Do I need to be a British citizen to get security clearance?
Not for most jobs. What usually decides it is how long you have lived in the UK. Some jobs add nationality rules of their own: about a quarter of Civil Service jobs are reserved for UK nationals, and some defence jobs ask for sole British nationality. The advert will say so.
Can I get security clearance before I find a job?
No. Clearance comes with a job. UK Security Vetting only accepts an application started by a registered sponsor, which is the organisation that needs you cleared. In vetting, sponsor means that organisation, not a visa sponsor.
Is a DBS check the same as security clearance?
No. A DBS check is a criminal record check. A basic DBS check is part of BPSS, the pre-employment check for government work, and GOV.UK says BPSS is not a formal security clearance.
Does time spent abroad count against me?
It can. Police forces count the years immediately before you apply. For national security vetting, GOV.UK says you normally need to have lived in the UK long enough for the checks to mean something, but that a shorter time is not always a bar. If you have spent time abroad, ask the employer before you apply.
Related terms
Most sponsored jobs need no clearance at all. Search visa-sponsored jobs