Police certificates & clearances

Who needs one (and who does not)

Police certificates are tied to the immigrant visa process, not to short-term travel.

• Required: immigrant visa (and K fiancé(e)/spouse visa) applicants aged 16 or older, as one of the civil documents collected before the interview.
• Not routinely required: nonimmigrant visa applicants (B visitor, F/M student, J exchange, most H/L/O/P/Q/R work categories), though a consular officer may request one case by case.
• US exception: present and former residents of the United States do not submit a US police certificate. Any criminal history in the US is checked through other systems.
• Adjustment of status applicants inside the US (Form I-485) follow USCIS biometrics and background-check procedures rather than filing foreign-style police certificates in the same way, though evidence of foreign records may still be requested.

Which countries you must cover

The requirement is based on where and how long you have lived since turning 16. As a general rule for applicants aged 16 and older:

• Country of current residence: required if you have lived there more than six months since age 16.
• Country of nationality: required if you have resided there more than six months.
• Countries of previous residence: required from any country where you lived more than one year.
• A certificate may also be needed from a place where you were arrested, regardless of how long you lived there.
• These thresholds are the State Department's general standard, but individual embassies can vary the detail, so check your processing post's instructions.

What the certificate must contain

• It must cover the entire period you lived in that area, not just a snapshot in time.
• It must be issued by the appropriate police or government authority for that country.
• It must list all arrests, the reason for each arrest, and the outcome (disposition) of each case on record.
• It should confirm a clear record if you have no criminal history there.

Validity and timing

Police certificates do not last indefinitely, and timing matters for the interview.

• Certificates are generally valid for two years, unless the certificate is from a country of previous residence that you have not returned to since it was issued, in which case it can remain valid.
• The certificate from your current country of residence should be recent, generally issued within the 12 months before your interview.
• Bring the original police certificates to your immigrant visa interview; the consular officer needs to see originals.
• Do not obtain certificates too early in the process, or they may expire before your interview date.

How to get one for your country

Because procedures differ so widely, the Department of State directs applicants to its per-country guidance rather than a single global process.

• Use the Reciprocity and Civil Documents by Country pages to find the exact issuing authority, the document name, and the application method for each country you must cover.
• Some countries have no police-certificate system, or one that is unavailable to certain applicants; the country page states this and the consular officer will advise on alternatives.
• Fees, processing times, and whether the document can be requested from abroad vary by country and can change, so confirm current details on the official page.