Police checks for volunteers in BC and Ontario

If you want to volunteer with children, seniors, or people with disabilities, the organization will often ask for a police check. Peel Regional Police, for example, says its vulnerable sector check is for people who work or volunteer with children, seniors, or other vulnerable people, such as coaches and parent volunteers (Peel).

This guide explains which check you need, where to apply, which checks are free for volunteers, and how long it can take.

We checked these facts on October 13, 2026. Fees and rules change, so follow the links to the official pages for the latest details.

The short version

• Ask the organization which check you need, and ask it for a letter about the role.
• Apply to the police where you live, not where you will volunteer. Police services check people who live in their area. (In BC, some roles use a provincial program instead. See below.)
• Many volunteer checks are free, but a vulnerable sector check can still cost money in Ontario.
• Bring a letter from the organization. Most free or reduced fees depend on it.
• Start early. A check can take weeks, and longer if fingerprints are needed.

Why organizations ask for a police check

Organizations ask when a role puts you in a position of trust with people who could be harmed. In Ontario, a vulnerable sector check is for people in a position of trust or authority over children or vulnerable persons. A child is anyone under 18. A vulnerable person is someone who depends on others, or is at greater risk of harm than most people, because of age, disability, or another situation (Ontario).

If you're not sure which check you need, ask the organization that wants it. The police may also ask for a letter from the organization that describes the role (Ontario).

In Ontario, an organization can't ask for a police check on you without your knowledge and consent. Applying for the check is how you give it (Ontario).

BC: the Criminal Records Review Program

BC's Criminal Records Review Program (CRRP) does checks only for employees and volunteers of registered organizations who work with children or vulnerable adults (Government of BC). If you're not sure whether your role goes through the CRRP, ask the organization.

How it starts

A CRRP check starts with your organization. It sends you an email invitation, or gives you a secure link and an access code, to the online application. If you don't have one, contact the organization (apply).

To prove who you are, you can:

• Use your BC Services Card Login
• Set up the login with two pieces of government-issued ID, if you live in another province or territory and don't have a physical BC Services Card
• Apply without the login (for example, if you live outside Canada), and the organization checks your ID instead

(apply)

What it costs

If you need fingerprints, there are other fees. Fees aren't refundable. The person getting the check is responsible for the fees, but the organization may pay for you (process).

How long it takes

A CRRP check takes one to several weeks. It can take longer if fingerprints are needed, if an offence shows up, or if the file needs a closer review. Fingerprint results can take up to 12 weeks to reach the CRRP from Ottawa. The CRRP will tell you if you need fingerprints, and it says being asked for them is not an accusation of a crime (process).

BC's law lets you work or volunteer while you wait for the result. But some organizations won't let you start until you are cleared, so ask yours (process).

BC: other roles use your local police

If your role isn't covered by the CRRP, ask the organization which check it wants. You usually get it from the police service where you live. Two examples:

• Vancouver. The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) does police information checks for Vancouver residents. If you live somewhere else, contact your local police first. A check for volunteering is free if you include a letter on the organization's letterhead (see "The volunteer letter" below). You can apply online or in person by appointment (VPD).
• Surrey. Surrey Police Service does checks for Surrey residents only. A check for volunteering is free if you bring a current letter from the organization that confirms the check is for a volunteer position. You apply in person, and you need two pieces of government ID, including one with a photo, plus proof of your Surrey address (Surrey Police).

If you live in another city, check your local police or RCMP detachment's website for its volunteer rules before you apply.

Ontario: three kinds of police record check

Ontario has three kinds of police record check. Each one includes everything in the one above it (Ontario).

What is free for volunteers

• Criminal record checks and criminal record and judicial matters checks are free for volunteers. You must get them from a police service. Some authorized private companies also do police checks, but checks from them aren't free for volunteers.
• Ask for extra copies when you apply. You can get up to five free copies, but only if you ask when you submit your application.
• Vulnerable sector checks can cost money. Volunteers still pay any fee the police service charges for one.
• Vulnerable sector checks come from your local police. The police may ask for a letter that describes the role, an agency code, and fingerprints to confirm who you are.

(Ontario)

Who counts as a volunteer

For Ontario's free checks, a volunteer is someone who gets no pay, or only an allowance for expenses, or only an honorarium. If you get something else for the work, like school credit or credit toward a court sentence, you don't count as a volunteer (Ontario). So a placement you do for credit in a school program usually doesn't qualify.

If you need a check for Ontario's high school volunteer hours, ask the police service whether you count as a volunteer. Read Ontario's 40 volunteer hours for how the hours work.

GTA police services at a glance

In Ontario, you apply to the police service where you live (Ontario). If you live in Toronto, that's the Toronto Police Service. Ontario's rules above apply there too, so check its page for its vulnerable sector check fee.

These are the volunteer fees we found on the pages of the police services around Toronto.

A few details:

• Peel takes applications online only. Its online ID check runs through Equifax and needs a bank account and credit history. It is not a credit check, and if you don't pass it, the police email you more information. Not everyone needs fingerprints for a vulnerable sector check, and Peel tells you if you do. Online checks take about 10 business days (Peel).
• York's online vulnerable sector check application also checks your ID through Equifax, with financial questions. If it can't confirm your ID, you go in person (York).
• Durham takes applications online only. It lists one $21.42 rate for volunteer and student placements. To get it, you choose that option and upload a letter on the organization's letterhead that includes a statement that you won't be paid for your work or compensated for any expenses. Without the letter, your application is refunded and you must apply again (Durham). Ontario says volunteer criminal record checks and judicial matters checks are free at police services, so ask Durham before you pay for one of those.
• Halton needs a separate vulnerable sector check application for each organization. Checks usually take two to four weeks, and longer if you lived outside Halton in the past five years (Halton).

Live somewhere else in Ontario? Check your local police service's website. For a list of places to volunteer, see volunteering in the Toronto area.

Fingerprints and the $25 RCMP fee

Fingerprints confirm who you are. They are not an accusation of a crime (VPD). For a vulnerable sector check, the VPD, for example, asks for them if your gender and date of birth match a pardoned sex offender record, or if the search doesn't give a clear answer (VPD). Vulnerable sector checks are done for individual positions, so you may need fingerprints again for a second role (RCMP).

If you need fingerprints, there is a federal RCMP processing fee of $25 per check. The police service or fingerprinting company that takes your fingerprints collects it (RCMP, VPD). There is no federal fee for volunteer work in Canada, but the RCMP's meaning of "volunteer" is stricter than Ontario's (RCMP):

• Volunteer work means charitable work where you are not paid and not paid back for expenses.
• Volunteering ordered by a court doesn't count.
• Student placements pay the fee.
• Your letter must say you won't be paid for your work or compensated for any expenses.

So if you get mileage, bus fare, or an honorarium, you may still get Ontario's free police check but have to pay the RCMP's $25. Local police and accredited fingerprinting companies can also charge their own fees, on top of the federal fee (RCMP).

Fingerprints add time. The RCMP gives approximate times: an electronic fingerprint check with no match takes 3 business days or less, but a check that needs manual processing or has a possible match takes about 120 business days (RCMP).

If you are under 18

Teens often can't get a vulnerable sector check for a charity role. The rules depend on where you live:

• Surrey: no vulnerable sector checks for anyone under 18 (Surrey Police).
• Toronto: Toronto Police processes checks for 14- to 17-year-olds only for federal, provincial, or municipal government roles (Toronto Police).
• Mississauga and Brampton: you must be over 18 for a vulnerable sector check (Peel).
• Halton: police checks for under-18s only if you are volunteering or working for a government agency (Halton).
• Durham: the online system is for people over 18. Ages 12 to 17 use a separate youth process (Durham).
• York: under-18s volunteering with a government agency can't apply online and must go in person (York).

Before you apply for a role that needs a vulnerable sector check, ask the organization and the police whether you can get one at your age. If you can't yet, ask about roles that don't need one. Read Volunteering for teens under 16 for ideas.

What to bring

The volunteer letter

Ask the organization for a letter on its letterhead. Police services ask for slightly different things, so a letter with all of these covers most of them (VPD, RCMP, Durham):

• Your name
• The organization's full name, address, and phone number
• The name and title of the person asking for the check
• Your role and why you need the check (for example, "homework club tutor")
• Whether you will work with children or vulnerable people
• A statement that the role is unpaid. If you get no expenses either, ask them to say you won't be paid or compensated for any expenses, which the RCMP and Durham need

ID

The VPD, Surrey Police and Peel want two pieces of government-issued ID, and at least one with your photo (VPD, Surrey Police, Peel). Surrey Police and Peel also want proof of your address. A Social Insurance Number card is not accepted as ID at the VPD or Surrey Police (VPD, Surrey Police).

Tips

• Ask questions first. Which check? Who pays? Can you start while you wait? Then apply as soon as the organization says you are a good fit.
• Use the official route. Apply through the CRRP link from your organization, or start from your police service's own website. Don't pay a person or a company you don't know for a "volunteer check."
• Ask before you pay. If a page lists a fee, check whether a volunteer letter makes it free or cheaper.
• Keep your copies. Save every result. A vulnerable sector check is usually for one role, so you may need a new one for the next organization.

Next steps

• Find places to volunteer: Metro Vancouver and the Toronto area
• Start with the basics: Volunteering to build experience and references
• New to Canada? Read Volunteering as a newcomer
• Thinking about security work? A licence has its own record check. Read How to get a security worker licence in BC or How to get a security guard licence in Ontario
• Ready for a paid job? Browse entry-level jobs in Metro Vancouver and the Greater Toronto Area