The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) has changed how basic criminal record check results are shared. The announcement was published on GOV.UK on 22 October 2026.
A basic DBS check is a criminal record certificate in England and Wales. Employers often ask for one, e.g. in care, office cleaning, transport or security.
Until now, a person who ordered a check online had to forward emails and instructions to their employer themselves. Now you can indicate who to share the result with while submitting the application.
DBS will contact that person itself and send them a link to the result online. The employer does not have to wait for a paper document. The applicant still has access to the result and decides when and with whom to share it.
What it means for you
- Workers: you can start a new job faster. You do not have to remember to forward emails, and the result goes straight to the right person.
- Businesses: less paperwork and less waiting for candidates. You see the result online, directly from DBS.
- Watch your details: enter your employer’s exact email address. They will get access to your result.
Our assessment
It is a small but practical change. It will speed up hiring, especially in sectors where many people from Poland start work in the UK. It is good that control stays with the worker. The change applies to the basic DBS check, not the enhanced checks requested by employers.
What to do
- Apply for a basic DBS check on GOV.UK and name your employer straight away.
- Live in Scotland? There, the certificate (Level 1 disclosure) is issued by Disclosure Scotland.
- Employers: tell candidates which email address the result should go to.
Source: GOV.UK – Disclosure and Barring Service: New, easier way to share your online basic DBS check result (22.10.2026). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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