The DBS Update Service

The DBS Update Service is an annual subscription that keeps your DBS certificate current, so a new employer can check it online instead of asking you to apply for a fresh check. From 5 October 2026 it costs £15 a year, down from £16. It is free for volunteers.

What the subscription does

A DBS certificate is a snapshot. It shows what was on record on the day it was issued and says nothing about what happens afterwards. Subscribing to the Update Service fills that gap. An employer you give permission to can go online, enter your certificate details and see whether anything has changed since it was issued. If nothing has, they can accept the certificate you already hold.

The employer needs three things from you: your consent, your certificate number, and your name and date of birth. They also need to be entitled to see the same level and type of check, for the same workforce, as the certificate was issued for. A certificate for the children’s workforce will not satisfy a role that needs an adult workforce check.

What it costs

Item	Fee from 5 October 2026
Update Service subscription	£15 a year (was £16)
Standard check	£20.00
Enhanced check (with or without barred lists)	£41.00
Volunteers	Free

The subscription is a separate charge from the check itself. You pay for the certificate first, then add the subscription. If you work in several schools, trusts or health settings over a few years, £15 a year is usually cheaper than paying for a new enhanced check each time. If you expect to stay in one job for a long while, you would be paying for a service you do not use.

Which checks it works with

The service is for standard and enhanced certificates, including the barred list versions. The basic check, which shows unspent convictions only, is not covered. If a role asks for a basic disclosure, you need to apply for a new one each time. The differences between the levels are set out in DBS checks: basic, standard and enhanced.

You subscribe against a specific certificate. Gov.uk sets a time limit for joining after the certificate is issued, so check the deadline on the service page as soon as yours arrives. If the window lapses, you pay for a new check.

Why public sector employers like it

Schools, NHS trusts and councils all run DBS checks as part of pre-employment. When a candidate already has a live subscription, the employer can check it in minutes instead of waiting for a new application to go through the police and the DBS, which can take weeks off the start date. How long a new application takes is covered in How long does a DBS check take?.

It does not replace the other checks. Employers still verify identity, references and right to work, and schools still follow the safer recruitment process described in Safer recruitment in schools. Some employers insist on a fresh check whatever you hold. That is their decision, and it is common in roles with a lot of unsupervised contact with children or vulnerable adults.

Keeping the subscription alive

The subscription renews yearly. If you let it lapse, the certificate stops being updatable and you are back to applying from scratch. Keep your payment details current and note the renewal date somewhere you will see it.

You can cancel at any time, and employers who check your status will then see that you are no longer subscribed.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

The Update Service covers England and Wales. Scotland has the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme, run by Disclosure Scotland. Joining costs £59 and renewal costs £18, and membership is free for volunteers. A five-year PVG membership model started on 1 April 2026. Northern Ireland uses AccessNI to run the checks, with an enhanced check costing £32.

If you move between nations for work, ask the new employer which check they will accept before you pay for anything. Many accept a certificate from another UK body, but not all are obliged to. HR teams generally answer the question quickly.