Information included in a police certificate of conduct

A police certificate of conduct may be required to be presented upon appointment in several types of public or private positions, professions or offices. A police certificate of conduct may also be required for admission to several types of studies and for obtaining different types of permits from public authorities.

A police certificate of conduct is used to assess whether you are suitable for a position, office, assignment or educational pathway. The recipient of the police certificate of conduct, for example an employer, must make the assessment of whether you are suited for the position or not.

Not everyone has the right to request a police certificate of conduct. There must be clear statutory rules stating that a police certificate of conduct is required in your profession, office or study in order for an employer, organization or educational institution to request a police certificate of conduct from you.

In the list of police certificate of conduct purposes (161 kB pdf), you will find an overview of all the purposes that entitle requests for a police certificate of conduct.

The Police certificate of conduct must be shown to your employer, client or educational institution before you start your work, assignment or studies.

• Once you have presented the Police certificate of conduct, it will be valid for as long as you have the same position, assignment, office or study.
• The same employer or client cannot demand a renewed or updated Police certificate of conduct from you as long as you have the same position, assignment or office. If necessary, we can provide you with a copy of a previously issued Police certificate of conduct.
  
  Exception: A new Police certificate of conduct may be required from students during their studies. The same employer or client may also require a new police certificate of conduct from you if you have been offered a new or changed position, assignment or office, or if you have left and then returned to the position or office.
• You may not use a police certificate of conduct you already have for a new position, assignment, office or study.

A police certificate of conduct shall indicate imposed penalties, other criminal sanctions or measures recorded in the Norwegian sanctions database in connection with a criminal offence. A penalty is for example a fine, a sentence of imprisonment or a sentence of community service. The police certificate of conduct can also indicate pending cases, i.e. whether you are under criminal prosecution or investigation.

A police certificate of conduct is not a transcript of your criminal record. There are clear rules regulating what information a police certificate of conduct can indicate and for how long. The rules are found in Chapter 7 of the Police Databases Act and Chapter 8 of the Police Databases Regulations.

The information indicated in a given police certificate of conduct varies in accordance with the purpose for which it is to be used. It is the purpose that determines the type of police certificate of conduct that applies to a particular position, assignment or office. It is the type of police certificate of conduct that determines what information shall be indicated on the police certificate of conduct and for how long.

Some information will never be indicated on a police certificate of conduct:

• Dismissed criminal cases
• Pending cases where you have status as a suspect ("mistenkt") in the case
• On-the-spot fines
• Civil cases remitted to Mediation Service

There are several different types of police certificate of conduct:

• Ordinary police certificate of conduct
• Exhaustive police certificate of conduct
• Exhaustive and expanded police certificate of conduct
• Ordinary and expanded police certificate of conduct
• Limited police certificate of conduct (may have a combination of ordinary, exhaustive and expanded conditions)

Examples:

1. For positions that involve working with children, for example, child welfare services, primary schools, kindergartens and voluntary organizations, so-called childcare certificates ("barneomsorgsattest") are often required. This is a limited police certificate of conduct, and the information indicated on the certificate is determined by Section 39 of the Police Register Act.
2. For positions in the police, the Armed Forces and security companies, an exhaustive and expanded police certificate of conduct is often required, and the information indicated on the certificate is determined by Section 41 (1) and (2) of the Police Register Act.
3. For positions in finance, insurance and security, an ordinary police certificate of conduct is often required, and the information indicated on the certificate is determined by Section 40 of the Police Register Act.
   In the list of purposes (161 kB pdf) (98 kB pdf) you will find an overview of what type of police certificate of conduct that is required for the various purposes.

An ordinary police certificate of conduct shall indicate information about certain types of penalties within a limited period of time.

The table below shows all the types penalties that may be indicated on an ordinary police certificate of conduct and how long the penalty will be indicated. Penalties that are not mentioned in the table will never be indicated on an ordinary police certificate of conduct.

An exhaustive police certificate of conduct shall indicate all criminal sanctions registered in the Norwegian sanctions database.

These rules apply in regards to how long a sanction will be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct:

1. All penalties, with the exception of fines and criminal cases remitted to the Mediation Service, will be indicated forever if the offence carried a maximum penalty of imprisonment for more than 3 years.
2. Criminal cases remitted to the Mediation Service and youth follow-up in Mediation Service will be indicated for 2 years, counting from the date of approval of an agreement, a youth plan or a Mediation Service plan.
   Exception to number 2: If a new offence which carry a prison sentence is committed before the 2-year-period has expired, the Mediation Service will be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct for longer. If the offence carried a maximum sentence of imprisonment for 3 years or less, the Mediation Service will be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct for 20 years. If the offence carried a maximum sentence of imprisonment for more than 3 years, the Mediation Service will be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct forever.
3. Fines will be indicated for 15 years, counting from the date the fine was enacted.
4. All penalties other than fines and Mediation Services with a period of 2 years (see number 2) will be indicated for 20 years, counting from the date the sanction became enforceable, if the offence carried a maximum penalty of imprisonment for 3 years or less. The same applies to Mediation Services with a 20-year-period (see exception from number 2).
5. If a new criminal penalty is imposed before the mentioned time periods for previously imposed sanctions has expired, the time limits set out in number 3 and 4 will not apply. The consequence is that the time periods of 15 and 20 years begin to run anew from the last imposed reaction. This means that new offences 'drag' old offences with them on the certificate.

Examples:

• If you got a fine in year 2000, the fine is to be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct for 15 years, that is until 2015. However, if you got a second fine in 2014, this does not apply. In that case the 15-year time period for first fine will start running again from 2014. The new fine thus renews the time period for the old fine. The consequence is that both the fine from 2000 and 2014 will be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct until 2029. If you later get a prison sentence in 2023, the time periods for both fines will be re-renewed from 2023, along with the time period of 20-years for the prison sentence. The consequence for an exhaustive police certificate of conduct will be that both fines will be indicated until 2038 and the prison sentence will be indicated until 2043.
• If you get a prison sentence in 1985 and another in 2008, both shall be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct for 20 years. As more than 20 years passed between the receival of the first and second conviction, the second conviction will not renew the time period for the first conviction. The consequence for an exhaustive police certificate of conduct is thus that the first prison sentence will be indicated until 2005 and the second prison sentence will be indicated until 2028.

The rules described above can be found in the Police Databases Act § 41 no. 1, the Police Databases Regulations § 44-12, § 30-1 and § 30-3 fourth paragraph.

Separate rules for young offenders

For offenses committed by children between the ages of 15 and 18, there are separate rules for what shall be indicated on an exhaustive Police certificate of conduct. The special rules treat young offenders more leniently than adult offenders, and are based on the idea that young offenders should be given a second chance.

Maine rule

If you commit an offense before you turn 18 years old, it is the rules of ordinary police certificates of conduct that determine whether an offense shall be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct or not. This means that if the offense would not be indicated on an ordinary police certificate of conduct, then the offense will not be indicated on an exhaustive police certificate of conduct either. If the offense is to be indicated on an ordinary certificate, it shall also be indicated on an exhaustive certificate.

Examples

• A 17-year-old commits an offense and the criminal case is remitted to the Mediation Service for violation of Section 271 of the Criminal Code (bodily violation). Because the offense was committed before the age of 18, the rules on ordinary police certificate of conduct apply. According to the rules on ordinary police certificate of conduct, the reaction Mediation Service shall not be indicated on the certificate. The offense will therefore not be indicated on the exhaustive police certificate of conduct either.
• A 16-year-old receives a fine for an offense with a penalty of up to 1 year in prison. Because the offense was committed before the age of 18, the rules on ordinary police certificate of conduct apply. According to the rules on ordinary polic

Exceptions to the main rule if young offenders commit repeated or serious crimes

The main rule for young offenders does not apply if repeated or serious crimes have been committed. Offenses committed before the age of 18 will in such cases be subject to the normal rules on exhaustive police certificate of conduct. The rules on exhaustive police certificate of conduct applies if one of these conditions is met:

1. 1 or more offenses have been committed before the age of 18 with a penalty of imprisonment for more than 3 years.
2. 3 or more offenses have been committed before the age of 18 with a penalty of imprisonment for more than 1 year.
3. 5 or more offenses have been committed before the age of 18 that can be punished with imprisonment, regardless of the penalty.
4. An offense has been committed before the age of 18 and this offence, according to the rules on ordinary police certificate of conduct, is to be indicated on the certificate. Then a new offence has been committed after the age of 18 but within the time period in which the first offense shall be indicated according to the rules of an ordinary police certificate of conduct.

If one or more of the conditions above apply to you, then it is the rules on exhaustive police certificate of conduct that determine what shall be indicated on the exhaustive police certificate of conduct.

The rules on young offenders can be found in the Police Databases Act § 41 no. 1 letter c and the Police Databases Regulations § 30-3

An expanded Police certificate of conduct means that the certificate can also indicate information about ongoing or pending criminal cases, that is cases that have not been finally decided. An expanded police certificate of conduct shall indicate:

• Criminal cases where charges or indictments have been issued
• Criminal cases where a preliminary injunction/fine has been imposed but not enacted
• Judgments that are not legally binding

Police reports, dismissed cases or cases where you have the status as suspect ("mistenkt") will not be indicated on an expanded police certificate of conduct.

An expanded police certificate of conduct will always be in combination with it being ordinary, exhaustive or limited. There are no police certificate of conduct that are only expanded.

The rules on expanded police certificate of conduct can be found in Section 41 number 2 of the Police Databases Act and Chapter 31 of the Police Databases Regulations.

In a limited police certificate of conduct, only penalties for certain types of offenses will be indicated on the police certificate of conduct. This means that the police certificate of conduct only indicates sanctions relevant to your position, office, assignment or study.

The statutory provision for the purpose of the certificate determines which offenses will be indicated on the police certificate of conduct.

The most common limited police certificates of conduct are:

• Childcare certificate, cf. Section 39 of the Police Databases Act.
• Police certificate of conduct according to § 5-4 of the Health and Care Services Act.

To find out which offenses will be indicted on a limited police certificate of conduct, you must read the statutory provision which warrants a police certificate in the given situation.

A limited police certificate of conduct is often a combination of ordinary, exhaustive and expanded police certificate of conduct. This means that some offenses will be indicated according to the rules for ordinary police certificate of conduct, other offenses will be indicated according to the rules for exhaustive police certificate of conduct, and all pending criminal cases relating to the specific types of offenses will be indicated in the police certificate of conduct.

It is the purpose of the police certificate of conduct that determines whether you can get the certificate in English.

• Police certificate of conduct for purposes intended for use in Norway are only available in Norwegian.
• Police certificate of conduct for purposes intended for use by foreign authorities (police certificate of conduct for use abroad) can be obtained in English. Note! If the police certificate of conduct indicates criminal penalties, these will always be written in Norwegian, even if the rest of the police certificate of conduct is in English.

If you apply digitally, you can choose a language in the application form in the web portal. If it is possible to get the certificate in English, you will get it listed as an option.

If you apply by post, you must tick the desired language in the application form. You will still get the police certificate of conduct in Norwegian if it is intended to be used in Norway.

We do not translate the police certificate of conduct into other languages. If you need the police certificate of conduct translated into another language, you must contact an approved translation company yourself and have the certificate translated.