Working with children clearance: apply and renew

You must by law apply for a working with children clearance, also called an Ochre Card, to work or volunteer with children in the Northern Territory (NT).

Online applications are fast and easy to complete.

On the NT Police SAFE NT website you can:

• apply or renew your card
• check your renewal date
• change your details
• request a replacement card
• check the progress of an online application.

Apply now

Before you apply

You must complete the online application for a working with children clearance in one sitting.

You can't save your information and return to it.

You will need all of the following ready:

• a debit or credit card - MasterCard or Visa only
• an email address
• an Australian residential and postal address
• scanned copies of your identity documents, a passport-sized photo and, if you are a volunteer, a completed volunteer concession form to pay the reduced fee.

Provide your scanned documents in GIF, JPG, PDF, PNG or TIFF format.

Fees

You must pay one of the following application fees to apply:

• $81 if you are employed in child-related work
• $8 if you are volunteering in child-related work
• $32 to replace a lost, damaged or stolen card.

How to pay the reduced volunteer fee

To pay the reduced volunteer fee, ask your volunteering organisation to fill in the working with children volunteer concession form PDF (517.1 KB).

Submit the completed form with your application.

Apply

You can apply in person or by post if you can't apply online.

First, you must fill in a:

• paid employment working with children clearance form PDF (803.8 KB) or
• volunteers working with children clearance form  PDF (772.1 KB).

If you are volunteering with children, you can pay a reduced fee. Read before you apply to find out how to pay the reduced volunteer fee.

Apply in person

Follow these steps to apply in person:

Step 1. Go to any of the following places:

• SAFE NT at 37 Woods Street, Darwin
• a Territory Business Centre
• a Northern Territory Police station - go to the contacts page of their website.

If you apply at the SAFE NT office in Darwin, a free photo will be taken of you for your Ochre Card.

If you can't submit your form to the SAFE NT office, you must provide a suitable passport-sized photo of yourself.

Step 2. Submit your completed forms, identity documents and photo if required to any location listed above and pay the fee.

Step 3. Your identity documents will be checked on site.

Apply by post

Follow these steps to apply by post:

Step 1. Copy your identity documents being sure to provide 100 points of appropriate documentation and at least one piece of photo identification.

Step 2. Get a suitable passport-sized photo of yourself for your Ochre Card.

Step 3. Fill in the payment option on your form or provide a bank cheque. Do not send cash.

Step 4. Send your completed forms and attachments to SAFE NT.

Contact SAFE NT

Contact SAFE NT for information about your application.

In person

37 Woods Street, Darwin

SAFE NT is open at the following times:

• Monday to Thursday 8:30am to 4:30pm
• Friday 9:30am to 4:30pm.

Closed on weekends and public holidays.

Post

SAFE NT
GPO Box 39764
Winnellie 0821
Phone: 1800 723 368 (1800 SAFE NT) 
safent.police@pfes.nt.gov.au