The DBS Update Service, Explained for Employers

The DBS Update Service lets a certificate holder keep their DBS certificate "live" for an annual fee, so employers can verify it online instead of running a new check. Used properly, it can save an employer with a rotating or bank workforce thousands of pounds a year.

When you can rely on an Update Service status check

You can rely on the online status check only when all four of the following are true:

• The candidate gives explicit consent for the status check.
• You have the original certificate to hand or a certified copy.
• The certificate is at the correct level (Enhanced, and with Barred List if the role requires it).
• The certificate is for the correct workforce (child, adult, or both).

If any of those are missing, you need a new DBS application — not an Update Service check.

What the online status will and won't tell you

The status result is one of three: "no new information", "new information available", or "certificate no longer current". If it says new information is available, you must ask the candidate to show you their new certificate — the online service will not tell you what has changed.

Making it stick

TalentClouds prompts every candidate at onboarding to subscribe to the Update Service, tracks their annual renewal, and runs the monthly status check automatically so your compliance team doesn't have to remember.