On 1st September AccessNI switched to digital-only disclosure certificates, and so they have now removed the option for an applicant to select a paper disclosure certificate to be issued.
Points to note:
-
The employer can only view the certificate ONCE, as a security measure to prevent the certificate being shared further without the applicant’s consent.
-
If the employer needs to view the certificate again, they will need to request the applicant to log into their account and share their certificate again.
-
To help organisations and applicants to detect fraudulent emails, the email notification issued to an applicant will always be from the mailbox ani@accessni.gov.uk and the address of the webpage (url) must start with https://accessni.nidirect.gov.uk/certificate.
-
Extra care should be taken when providing email addresses to an applicant for the purpose of sharing digital disclosure certificates. The contents of an applicant’s disclosure certificate is classified as “sensitive data” and so if conviction information has been disclosed it should only be viewed by the relevant personnel. If there is unrestricted access to the mailbox, an applicant’s digital disclosure certificate could be viewed by inappropriate personnel and result in a breach of GDPR regulations.
-
AccessNI will continue to provide the Apostille Service for disclosure certificates to be notarised for Visa purposes.