Acceptable Documents for BS7858 & BPSS

The BS7858 screening and BPSS screening require applicants to attach documents to their application. We can only accept documents from the official list below.

For the Career History checks we carry out for BS7858, applicants must upload at least two different documents per period – one dated from the beginning and the end of each period.

For example, if they have been employed for a company from Jan 2019 to Dec 2021, they will need to provide one document dated from Jan / Feb 2019 and one from Nov / Dec 2021. This is the minimum requirement. We may need more documents depending on the nature of a period and for longer periods.

Please Note:

• The applicant’s name and date must be visible on all the documents (and, for example, the name and date of the employer/academic/benefit institution for career history documents).
• The document for the document for the beginning and end of the period cannot be the same type of document e.g. they cannot both be payslips. E.g., one could be a payslip and one could be a P60.

ID Documents

You can use these as proof of your identity:

• Passport – in date
• Driving licence (photocard) – in date
• Paper driving licence (if issued before 1998) – in date
• UK birth certificate dated within 12 months of birth
• UK adoption certificate
• European or international passport – in date
• Marriage certificate
• Immigration visa

Current Address Documents

You can use any of these as proof of your current address (some of these may also be acceptable proof of ID):

• Bank statement (less than 3 months old)
• Credit card statement (less than 3 months old)
• Utility bills – Not a mobile phone bill (less than 3 months old)
• Benefit statement (less than 3 months old)
• Council Tax bill (less than 12 months old)
• Inland Revenue document (less than 12 months old)
• P45 or P60 (less than 12 months old)
• Mortgage statement (less than 12 months old)
• Letter from a government department e.g., Department for Work and Pensions

The documents must show your name, the date and address on it. You can redact the total balance and outgoing payments from bank statements – we don’t need to see that detail. We’re just looking for the name of an employer or agency and if they made a salary payment to you.

Employment History

• PAYE Records – Please see below how to download PAYE documents for free.
• HMRC / National Insurance Tax Records (you can request these from HMRC to cover your full 5 or 10 year work
  history – these can take several weeks to arrive in the post from HMRC).
• Payslips
• P45
• P60
• Redundancy Letter
• Contract of Employment
• Copies of original bank statements showing payments from employer and displaying your name
  and address – the total balance and account / sort code can be redacted.

Education Documents

• Certificates
• Student Transcripts
• Student Loan Letters
• Education Correspondence

Self-Employment Documents

• Self-Assessment Tax Returns
• Invoices to clients
• Bank statements showing payments from clients – the total balance and outgoing payments can be redacted

Career Gaps

• B8S7858 requires the applicant to provide documents to evidence any gaps in employment over 31 days

Maternity Leave

• Child’s birth certificate dated within the period of maternity leave
• Notice of Award of child benefit payments during the period or formal confirmation of award
  of child tax credit in respect of the birth of the child.
• If not parent, a link to relationship must be established with documentary evidence

Military Service

• HM Forces ID Card
• Forces Service including Reserves
• Certificate of Service
• Discharge Certificate

Redundancy

• P60/P45
• Payslip
• Tax payments
• Formal documentation relating to the redundancy

Travelling

• Official visas and passport stamps.
• Hotel, car hire & debit/credit card receipts.
• Bank statements showing overseas transactions during the period.

Volunteering

• Written evidence of voluntary work during the period on the headed paper of the concerned.
• Illness (including institutions/rehabilitation etc.)
• Medical certificate covering the period.

Caring

• Evidence of allowances received
• Power of attorney
• Doctor’s note/communication

Unemployed – in Receipt of Benefits

• Benefit Letters: formal evidence from a government agency e.g., letter from the Department
  of Work and Pensions/Department for Social Development in Northern Ireland confirming pay
  rent of benefits to the individual or confirming non-employment status.
• Bank statement evidencing payments from a government agency – the total balance and account / sort code can be redacted.

Unemployed – no economic activity

• Evidence of job applications being made/attending job interviews.
• Dated job offer letters indicating a future start date.
• Bank statement showing no income – the total balance and account / sort code can be redacted.

SIA Licences – if relevant

• We need to see a copy of all the SIA licences an applicant holds – in date and expired – if this is relevant to their role and employer

How to download your PAYE records for free

If we don’t receive a reference from a previous employer, the British Standard says we must ask the applicant for alternative supporting documents to evidence that period in their career history. That’s why we sometimes ask for an applicant’s PAYE records.

1. Log in to your Personal Tax Account and click on the Pay as You Earn (PAYE) box. If you don’t have an account, you can create one.
2. Then click “Check previous tax years”
3. Then click “Check income details sent to us”
4. Then click “Print this page” – which will add your name to the document.
5. Save them as PDFs and upload them to your application.
6. Download a record relating to each period listed in your Career History in your application because this displays each month and year you received salary and paid tax and helps us verify your employment.
7. We created a visual guide here if that helps too (PDF).

If you cannot identify any evidence from the list above, you may contact our Screening Officers to review your submission. Contact our team on 0191 5887980. 

Staffvetting.com is an NSI Gold Accredited BS7858 screening provider. The National Security Inspectorate (NSI) is recognised as the leading certification body for the security and fire protection sectors in the UK. We were the first company to achieve this level (via Nova Risk Management) and are proud to continue to promote quality services and systems.