How to Apply for Police Clearance Certificate in Ghana

If you plan on traveling out of Ghana, then we think you should know the procedures for applying for a police clearance certificate. This document might seem insignificant, but when you visit various embassies for your visa application, then you’ll understand how important the police clearance document is.

The police clearance certificate is very important immigration documentation to determine your character and eligibility as an upstanding citizen with a substantially clean criminal record in order to get the intended country’s visa.

Assessment for police clearance certificate is based on the following.

• If you have been sentenced to 12 months or more in prison, or multiple sentences that add up to more than 12 months in prison. A suspended sentence is considered a prison sentence.
• You have been convicted of escaping from immigration detention in another country
• you are or have been a member of a group or organization or have an association with a person, group or organization that are suspected of involvement in criminal conduct
• If you’re a suspect of being involved in people smuggling, people trafficking, genocide, a war crime, a crime against humanity, a crime involving torture or slavery, or a crime that is of serious international concern
• Your past and present criminal or general conduct shows that you are not of good character
• If it has been determined that you posed a security risk to another person in the form of stalking, physical or sexual abuse
• You are subject to an adverse security assessment by the Ghanaian Government

Police Clearance Certificate

A police certificate is an official document issued by the Ghanaian police to determine if the applicant has any outstanding criminal records or activity from the Criminal Data Services Bureau (CDSB) of the Police Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of Ghana. Criminal records may include arrests, conviction, and criminal proceedings. According to Wikiprocedure, a Police certificate is also known as good citizen certificate, good conduct certificate, police clearance certificate, or judicial record extracts.

Applicants have to submit fingerprints and certain personal information such as addresses, date of birth, place of birth, etc to get a criminal record check via the police records database.

Anyone who has lived in Ghana for more than three months and wishes to migrate or work or visit a foreign country is eligible to get this clearance certificate.

Here’s a guide on how you can process your Police Clearance Certificate in Ghana

Police Clearance Application Requirements

• Duly filled POLICE CID FORM (Nominal Vetting)
• Identification certificates
• A set of ink-rolled fingerprints
• Passport Copy
• Letter from the embassy requesting the certificate
• Two passport-size photograph
• Application fee of GH¢40.00

NOTE: A foreigner in Ghana with a working permit is treated as a Ghanaian so applicants in this category are also allowed to pay GH¢40.00. If the foreigner does not have a working permit, he is expected to pay $200 ( in Ghana Cedis) equivalent.

For more information, download the Ghana Police report application guideline here.

Where to Apply for Ghana Police Clearance Certificate

Applications for the police clearance certificate can be done at the Ghana police headquarters

Ghana Police Service, Ring Road East,
Cantonment, Ghana