Criminal record check online in Nova Scotia
A new job in Nova Scotia, from a Halifax office to a fish plant on the South Shore, often comes with one condition before your first shift: a criminal record check. With MyCRC you order it yourself from your phone. Your name and date of birth go into a name-based search of the RCMP’s national database, a photo of your ID and a selfie confirm it’s you, and the report arrives as a PDF you can forward to the employer, in as little as 15 minutes. It works the same in Truro, New Glasgow, Kentville, Bridgewater, Yarmouth or Sydney.
Who handles record checks in Nova Scotia
The Nova Scotia RCMP, headquartered in Burnside, Dartmouth, keeps its guidance simple. Its advice for anyone who needs a criminal record check or fingerprinting is to contact your local police service. Where you apply through the police depends on where you live, and in the province’s largest urban area that is Halifax Regional Police.
Halifax Regional Police
Halifax Regional Police takes criminal record check applications online or in person, and says all checks are completed by its own staff and cost the same either way: $50, with a service fee and tax added online, where you must pay by credit card. In person, you apply Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at headquarters, 1975 Gottingen Street in Halifax, or at the division offices at 7 Mellor Avenue in Dartmouth and 15 Convoy Run in Bedford. You bring two pieces of identification with your current address, which must be inside the Halifax Regional Municipality.
Halifax Regional Police says checks are usually processed in 14 days, depending on volumes, and the results go to you first: the police won’t share them with the organization asking without your consent. Volunteer positions cost $30 in person, which requires an agreement between the volunteer organization and the police, and students who need a check for their program of study also pay $30 with proof of enrolment.
Liquor licences use their own check
If your check is for a Nova Scotia permanent liquor licence, or for becoming a new manager of a licensed establishment, the province runs that check itself. You complete the Liquor Licensing criminal history form, which authorizes the Alcohol, Gaming, Fuel and Tobacco Division to do the check, and there is no cost to submit it.
When the 14-day wait doesn’t fit
Two weeks is fine when a start date is a month away. When it’s next Monday, the online route is quicker: the check costs $68.23 with tax included, nobody needs to take a morning off for a counter visit, and because it’s a national search, the result reads the same to an employer in Halifax as one ordered from Antigonish or Wolfville.
Questions about criminal record checks in Nova Scotia
Can I get a refund?
You can get your money back if you did not finish every step. The steps are:
- Take a photo of your ID
- Take a selfie
- Check that your information is right
- Agree to send your information to the police
If you stopped before the last step, email support@mycrc.ca and ask for a refund. You get all of your money back.
After you finish every step, there are no refunds. Your report is then ready to download as a PDF. It is not refundable for any reason, no matter what your report says.
How long does a criminal record check take?
Reports can be ready in as little as 15 minutes. The average is about 4 hours. Some take longer, usually because identity verification wasn’t finished, or because confirming your ID takes extra time in our system. To compare, see how long police checks take, city by city.
What exactly am I buying?
A name-based Canadian criminal record check. It searches the RCMP’s national database, the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC), using your name and date of birth to confirm criminal convictions (what a CPIC check is). You get a PDF report online, with no trip to a police station and no appointment.
Before the search, you are asked about any past criminal convictions. If you have any, you must list them, and the details must match your record. If they don’t match, your report may come back Incomplete.
How much does it cost?
$68.23, tax included. You pay once by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, with no monthly fees and no hidden costs. See pricing.
How do I get my report?
Your report is in your account. When it’s ready we email you to sign in (the email doesn’t contain the report). On the finished check, Download report saves the PDF to your device. Log in to your account.
Sources
Last reviewed: 2026-10-28