Can you explain under what circumstances would overseas criminal records be held on the Police National Computer and revealed on a DBS certificate?

Criminal records from overseas are inputted on to the Police National Computer (PNC) when the UK police are advised by a police force from overseas or an international law enforcement or investigation agency, such as Interpol, that a UK National has been involved in criminal activity in their country.

This relies solely on the overseas police forces or international agencies to advise the UK police of this information.

When overseas criminal record information is entered onto the PNC, it will be revealed on a DBS certificate in the same way as criminal record information about any criminal activity an individual has been involved with in the UK, subject to filtering.

Some overseas laws are different to the UK. If this is the case, the UK police will look for the most similar offence. DBS has no influence over what information is passed from overseas police to the UK police or how this information is recorded or revealed on a DBS certificate.

If you disagree with the information, you can raise a dispute, following the instructions on the Report a problem about a criminal record check or barring decision GOV.UK page..