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Common Ground News

Do cautions appear on DBS?

Author

Penelope Carter

Updated on February 27, 2026

Do cautions appear on DBS?

Protected convictions or cautions are convictions or cautions which are filtered during the DBS check process - this means that they will not appear on the DBS certificate. Following this court case, the law was changed, and now certain types of conviction or caution will not appear on your DBS check.

Moreover, how long does a caution stay on your DBS?

six years

Beside above, does a caution go on your criminal record? Caution. If you admit an offence, the police can give you a caution. A caution is not a conviction. A caution is a warning which stays on your record for six years if you're an adult, or two years if you're under 18.

Beside this, are cautions filtered on enhanced DBS?

Filtered cautions and convictions do not appear on a standard or enhanced DBS check. However, they are not 'removed' or 'wiped' from police records. If you're applying for a job or role that involves a standard or enhanced DBS check, cautions and convictions that are filtered won't be included on results of the check.

What cautions are filtered on a DBS check?

  • cautions relating to an offence from a list agreed by Parliament.
  • cautions given to an adult less than 6 years ago.
  • cautions given to a minor less than 2 years ago.
  • convictions relating to an offence from a prescribed list.

Do you have to declare a caution?

If you have a simple caution, or a reprimand or final warning, you do not need to declare these when applying for insurance. You do not need to declare anything that is spent when applying for insurance.

Should I accept caution?

If you have committed the offence and are offered a caution, in most cases it is better to accept it than go to court. By accepting the caution you avoid having to attend court and obtaining a criminal conviction on your record. You will also avoid being punished by the court.

Do you have to declare a caution after 6 years?

In the event that you are 18 years or older and have received an adult caution (including reprimands and warnings), such a caution will not be declared on your DBS certificate if: six years have elapsed since the date of the caution, and.

Is a caution a conviction?

A caution is not a criminal conviction, but it could be used as evidence of bad character if you go to court for another crime. Cautions can show on standard and enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.

Can I go to America with a caution?

Any individual who has received a caution for a crime involving moral turpitude or a controlled drug offense will be ineligible to travel to the U.S on ESTA, regardless of the date of the caution.

How many years does an enhanced DBS check go back?

* Where the order does not specify the last day on which the order is to take effect, the rehabilitation period is 2 years from the date of conviction. * Where the order does not specify the last day on which the order is to take effect, the rehabilitation period is 2 years from the date of conviction.

Does your criminal record clear after 7 years?

People often ask me whether a criminal conviction falls off their record after seven years. The answer is no. Your criminal history record is a list of your arrests and convictions. When you apply for a job, an employer will usually hire a consumer reporting agency to run your background.

What shows on an enhanced DBS check?

This level of check shows full details of a criminal record. This includes cautions, warnings, reprimands, spent and unspent convictions. It can also search the children and vulnerable adults 'barred list' to see if the applicant is prohibited from working with these groups.

Can I clear my criminal record UK?

In the UK, the Police National Computer (PNC) stores all recordable offences. It remains there until the person becomes 100 years old. However, there is no formal way for a person to request deletion of court convictions. For some exceptional cases, you can clear caution and convictions on a criminal record.

Do Arrests Show on enhanced DBS?

Arrests or charges may show up on Enhanced DBS checks, at the police's discretion. Your potential employer may ask you to explain what shows up, but having convictions etc doesn't automatically mean you can't get the job and won't necessarily count against you.

Does a DBS check Show debt?

The disclosure of criminal offenses is only part of the DBS. In your case a debt, a CCJ relates to a civil matter. It won't show up in the database.

How long does something stay on your criminal record UK?

Why is it still on my record? Since 2006, the police retain details of all recordable offences until you reach 100 years of age. Your conviction will always show on your police records but the conviction may not show on your criminal record check that is used for employment vetting purposes.

Can I do a DBS check on myself?

Yes, you can apply for a DBS check as an individual. You do not need to be part of a company or organisation. Individuals cannot apply for an Enhanced DBS check or Standard DBS check however, because this can only be requested by eligible organisations or companies.

What shows on a police check?

A police check lists disclosable court outcomes released by all Australian police agencies. This includes convictions, sentences, penalties, and pending charges. Traffic infringements (e.g., drink or drug driving, excessive speeding) for which you are convicted.

How much does it cost to remove a caution?

A police caution deletion application is technically free (unless you need to go to Court), but then everyone is free to represent themselves in any legal proceedings – from the most minor traffic incident, all the way to murder.

Do you have to declare a caution on a job application?

Once a caution, reprimand, conviction or final warning is spent, you don't need to disclose it to most employers. It is against the law for an employer to investigate spent convictions unless you are applying for a job which is exempt from this Act.

How long does a caution stay on your record Australia?

A conviction becomes spent automatically at the completion of the prescribed (crime-free) period which is: 5 years where the person was not dealt with as an adult, or. 10 years where the person was dealt with as an adult.

Can a caution be removed?

A conviction can never be removed, but out of court disposals such as cautions, warnings and reprimands can be deleted entirely from the Police National Computer if sufficient grounds can be established. Even your arrest record can be deleted in certain circumstances.

Can I work in care with a caution?

Because you have received a police caution in the past does not mean that you cannot work in Adult Care (ASC). There are a number of offences that bar you from working in ASC but they are the most serious offences usually involving violence.

Will a police caution affect my job?

If you do need to disclose and you've been working for the employer for some time, then it's probably unlikely to result in your being dismissed unless the caution is relevant to the work that you're doing. Your employer carries out regular criminal record checks on which the caution may be disclosed.

Is a police caution verbal or written?

The police can also sometimes give informal warnings, which effectively amount to a verbal ticking off. The officers may take a note of your name, which can be stored on their local records, but it will not create a record on the PNC.

What happens when you get a police caution?

A caution is a possible outcome of an arrest, which you may be offered instead of being charged. The police make cautions sound less serious, but they are an admission of guilt, and will still go on your record. Accepting a caution can seem appealing because it means you will not go to court for that offence.

Do I have to declare a filtered conviction?

Employers can only ask you to disclose details of cautions/convictions that they are legally entitled to know about. Once your cautions/conviction is eligible for filtering it is deemed to be 'protected' and you do not need to disclose it, irrespective of what question an employer asks.

What cautions are protected?

Protected cautions

A caution is a "protected caution" if: It does not relate to a listed offence. It was given to a person aged under 18 at the time of the caution and two years or more have elapsed. It was given to a person aged 18 or over at the time of the caution and six years or more have elapsed.

How long does a DBS last?

A DBS check has no official expiry date. Any information included will be accurate at the time the check was carried out. It's up to you to decide when a new check is needed. If the applicant has signed up for the DBS update service you can check whether their certificate is up to date online.

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