Working Abroad

If it is a requirement to obtain a Basic DBS check certificate in order to comply with the stipulations set out by the authorities in the country where you will be working or residing within, you should clarify and discuss this situation with the prospective employer or organisation who instructed you to do so.

Apostille

The term used for the legalisation of a certificate is ‘Apostille’, and is approved by an official body/organisation, confirming it is in fact what it claims to be.

Disclosure Scotland/Disclosure and Barring Service do not provide an Apostille service, however this particular service can be obtained from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). If you would like to know more about this service, further details can be found on the .gov website – https://gov.uk/legalisation-document-checker

What to do before applying for Apostille

To have your Disclosure Scotland/DBS apostilled by the FCO, it is necessary to have the document stamped by an authorised signatory from Disclosure Scotland/Disclosure and Barring Service. The stamp will be enough to confirm to the FCO that the document you have presented is in fact an original. Disclosure Scotland/Disclosure and Barring Service do not charge a fee for this service.

If this is a service you require, please return your certificate to the following address to be stamped and authenticated.

Corporate Governance
PO Box 250
Glasgow
G51 1YU

You should also include a covering letter within requesting that your certificate is to be signed and stamped, and include a self addressed envelope to a UK address so that it may be sent back.