Get Your Criminal Record Check in Ottawa, Online

An Ottawa criminal record check, done from home

Ottawa runs on clearances and checks, and a criminal record check is often one of the first things a new employer, contract or landlord asks for. MyCRC lets you get a name-based criminal record check online: your name and date of birth are searched against the RCMP national database, you verify your identity with your phone, and the finished PDF is in your account to download. It works the same in Kanata, Orléans, Barrhaven or the Glebe.

Police record checks from the Ottawa Police Service

The Ottawa Police Service only processes record checks for people who live in Ottawa, and asks for proof of a current Ottawa address. If you live across the river in Gatineau, or in a town outside the city, you apply through your own local police service instead. Applications start online, and the system decides whether you can verify your identity electronically or need to complete an ID submission. You’ll need one photo ID from its accepted list and a second piece of ID, and photocopies aren’t accepted.

As an Ontario police service, it offers the province’s three levels of check. Its standard criminal record check is the level for most jobs; vulnerable sector checks are handled by the police service where you live. For employment checks, the Ottawa Police Service’s published fee from January 1, 2026 is $74, and volunteer checks are free with a letter from the organization you volunteer with.

Police check vs criminal record check in Ottawa

When an Ottawa employer asks for a “police check”, ask which of Ontario’s three levels they need: a criminal record check, a criminal record and judicial matters check, or a vulnerable sector check. A name-based criminal record check from MyCRC is a search of criminal convictions, ready in as little as 15 minutes and in about 4 hours on average.

Federal jobs and security clearances

Many Ottawa jobs are with the federal government or its contractors, and those roles use a separate, formal security screening process run by the hiring department. That process is arranged by the employer, not ordered by you. A personal criminal record check is what private employers, landlords, schools and community organizations usually ask for.

Who asks for one in Ottawa

Beyond government, Ottawa’s technology companies in Kanata North, the University of Ottawa, Carleton and Algonquin College, tourism and hospitality employers, construction firms, and property managers all ask for criminal record checks. Tenants applying for rentals are often asked for one too.

Nearby

For how checks work across the province, see criminal record checks in Ontario, or compare with criminal record checks in Toronto.