Short answer: if you live in Hamilton, you can get a Criminal Record Check, a Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Check (CRJMC) or a Vulnerable Sector Check from Hamilton Police Service, online or in person. For employment checks Hamilton Police Service has published a $50 fee. Applying online adds a $9.95 processing fee. For volunteers, the CRC and CRJMC are free and the vulnerable sector check is $25.
We are based in Hamilton too, and these are the questions we hear most often.
Which check do you need?
Hamilton Police Service offers the three standard Ontario levels:
- Criminal Record Check (CRC): unsuspended criminal convictions. Many employers ask for this one.
- Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Check (CRJMC): the CRC plus outstanding charges, warrants and certain court orders. This is required for security guard, private investigator and real estate registrations.
- Vulnerable Sector Check (VSC): the most detailed level, for work or volunteering with children, seniors or other vulnerable people.
Ask the organization requesting the check which level it wants. Ordering the wrong one is the most common and most expensive mistake.
Fees (as published by Hamilton Police Service)
- Employment CRC, CRJMC or VSC: $50
- Online application: an extra $9.95 processing and authentication fee, paid to the online platform rather than the police service
- Volunteer or student CRC and CRJMC: no fee, since April 1, 2022
- Volunteer or student Vulnerable Sector Check: $25
- Fees are non-refundable
Check the Hamilton Police Service website before paying, because fees can change.
How to apply
Online: Hamilton Police Service links to its online application from its "Get a Background Check" page. You will need two pieces of valid, unexpired government-issued ID. For a CRJMC or vulnerable sector check you also need proof that you live in the City of Hamilton.
In person: go to the Records Business Centre at Central Station, 155 King William Street, Hamilton, with your ID and payment. Cash, debit and credit cards are accepted, but personal cheques are not.
The online system processes applications in the order they arrive and does not offer a rush service. An incomplete application that sits for 60 days is treated as abandoned, and results that are not picked up within 90 days are purged without a refund.
How long it takes
For employment checks applied for online, the Hamilton Police Service online portal estimates about 14 calendar days, but it does not guarantee that time. Processing times depend on demand and on whether a record or a possible name match turns up. A clean CRC or CRJMC can come back fairly quickly. A vulnerable sector check, or any application that triggers a fingerprint request, can take weeks.
When an online CRJMC is the faster route
If your deadline is close, for example a security guard licence renewal or a job offer that depends on a CRJMC, an authorized third-party provider can be faster. Through MyBackgroundCheck.ca, a Level 1 criminal record check is $44.99 and a CRJMC is $49.99, ordered online and usually emailed within about 15 minutes.
An online provider is not the right choice when:
- you need a Vulnerable Sector Check, which must come from your local police service
- you need a Local Police Record Check for a record suspension (pardon) application, which Hamilton Police Service handles separately
- the organization requesting the check specifically asks for a document issued by Hamilton Police Service
Common questions
I just moved to Hamilton. Can I apply here? Police services generally only process checks for people living in their area, so you need a Hamilton address. If you still live somewhere else, apply to the police service there.
Can I share one check with several employers? That is up to each employer. Many will accept a recent check, often one less than six months old, but some ask for a new one.
Will a traffic ticket show up? No. Provincial offences under the Highway Traffic Act do not appear on police record checks. Your driving history is on your Ontario driver abstract instead.
Sources
- Hamilton Police Service — Get a Background Check
- Hamilton Police Service — volunteer record check fees eliminated (April 2022)
- Ontario.ca — Police Record Checks Reform Act, 2015
Checked against the official pages above on November 7, 2026.