FOI release

Clarification on the requirement to display the SIA licence

Updated 4 December 2023

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1. Request

Please can you confirm that:

  • when an SIA licensed person is overtly guarding a van or vehicle (not a person), they should be displaying their SIA licence in plain sight
  • covert or close protection exemptions which facilitate operatives not displaying their licenses are not applicable in this environment or use case

2. Response

I can confirm that the SIA does hold this information.

Whether an individual requires a licence or not is dependant upon the activities that they are undertaking. It also depends on whether they are working in-house or not. You can find out more about what activities constitute licensable activity here: Find out if you need an SIA licence. Depending upon which category they fall into, will determine whether or not they require an SIA licence, and whether or not they need to display it.

When an individual has been granted a SIA licence they are to adhere to their licence conditions which are attached to their licence. It is a criminal offence under section 9 of the Private Security Industry Act 2001 to contravene these licence conditions. One of these licence conditions is:

You must wear your licence where it can be seen at all times when engaging in designated licensable activity unless:

  • you have reported it lost or stolen
  • it is in our possession
  • the work you are doing requires that you not be identifiable as a licensed operative (this is known as covert activity).

You can learn more about covert activity here: Covert activity.

You view the full list of licence conditions and read more generally here: Learn about the SIA licence conditions you must follow.

[Reference: FOI 0466]

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