Registration under the Private Security Industry Regulation
Registration is the backbone of the PSIRA system: a person may not render private security services unless he or she is registered with the Authority and holds a valid certificate of registration. Understanding who must register, what disqualifies a person, and what the employer must do separates a confident candidate from a guessing one.
Core concepts
- Who must register: every natural person who renders security services - including managers, supervisors and owners who personally perform security work - must be individually registered. A business is registered as a security service provider, but that does not register its employees.
- Application requirements: proof of identity, proof of training/qualification, and payment of the prescribed fee. The Authority may require fingerprints and a criminal-record check.
- Disqualification: a person may not be registered if, among other things, they have been convicted of certain offences, are of unsound mind, or were previously removed from the register. The Authority must refuse registration where a person does not meet the fit-and-proper-person standard.
- Certificate and card: registration is evidenced by a certificate and an identity card, which must be carried and produced on request.
- Renewal and lapse: registration is time-bound; a lapsed registration means the person may no longer render services until renewed.
Traps
Questions love to blur the line between the provider (the company) and the individual. Another trap is assuming a registered company automatically covers its guards - it does not. Watch for wording like "may" versus "must" and "the Authority may refuse" versus "must refuse".
Rule of thumb
If a human being physically performs a security function for reward, that human being needs their own registration - no exceptions for directors, managers or part-timers.