Background investigation costs depend on the questions being examined, the research required, and the level of analysis and reporting involved. Before comparing prices, establish whether you need a standard check, a broader background investigation, or a different service, such as locating someone. This guide explains the main cost considerations and what to clarify before accepting a quote.
The short answer: a National Police Check you apply for yourself costs less than $100 through a police service (Victoria Police currently charges $91.50). Investigator-led work costs more because it involves research, verification, and a written report. As a guide, The Find Group’s locate enquiries start from $380 + GST ($418 including GST), and broader background investigations are quoted at a fixed fee once the scope is agreed. The table below sets out what each figure is based on.
In this guide
- Police check, background investigation or locate enquiry?
- Indicative costs at a glance
- What affects the price
- What findings can you reasonably expect?
- How pricing models work
- What should be included in a background investigation quote?
- Who commissions background investigations
Police Check, Background Investigation or Locate Enquiry?
These three services are often grouped together, but they answer different questions and are priced differently.
A police check
A National Police Check is a certificate issued through a police service or an ACIC-accredited body. It is not limited to convictions. The ACIC notes that, depending on the purpose of the check and the disclosure rules that apply, results can include charges, findings of guilt without conviction, court orders and matters awaiting a court hearing.
A police check is normally conducted with the informed consent of the person being checked. A private client cannot commission a covert police check on someone else. An employer, for example, asks the candidate to apply or to consent to the check.
A background investigation
A background investigation is investigator-led research into a specific question about a person or business. It may draw on public registers, court records, open-source research and enquiries, followed by verification, analysis and a written report. A police certificate may form part of the picture, but the investigation is the work done around it: checking what a person has stated, testing conflicting information and explaining what the records do and do not show.
A locate enquiry
If the goal is to find a current address or contact details, a locate enquiry (skip trace) is usually more appropriate and less expensive than a broad background investigation. Our guide to skip tracing costs in Australia covers that service in more detail.
Background Investigation Cost: Indicative Prices at a Glance
Each figure below is labelled by type. Government fees are external figures with the source and date shown. The Find Group fees are our own indicative starting prices, not an industry benchmark, and a confirmed quote is provided once we assess the particulars of your matter.
| Service | Indicative cost (AUD) | Typical turnaround | Type of figure |
| National Police Check (applied for by the person being checked) | $91.50 standard fee, GST exempt | Set by the issuing agency | External: Victoria Police fee, 2026–27. Other states and accredited bodies set their own fees. |
| Basic locate enquiry: address confirmation with identity details | From $380 + GST ($418 incl. GST) | Often same day | The Find Group indicative fee, per person or entity |
| Comprehensive locate report: address, available contact details, background data and associated persons | From $650 + GST ($715 incl. GST) | Typically 1–2 business days | The Find Group indicative fee, per person or entity |
| Advanced locate investigation: complex or hard-to-find subjects | From $1,500 + GST ($1,650 incl. GST) | Up to a week or more | The Find Group indicative fee, per person or entity |
| Background investigation (employment, due diligence or private matter) | Fixed quote after the scope is confirmed | Depends on scope | The Find Group, quoted per matter |
Disbursements: official search fees, such as land title, ASIC and PPSR extracts, are charged at cost where required and are additional to the fees above. All Find Group prices are starting points. Your written quote should show the total payable, including GST and any disbursements you are expected to cover.
What Affects the Price of a Background Investigation?
1. The question you need answered
Scope is the biggest cost driver. Confirming a candidate’s stated employment history is a narrower task than examining a prospective business partner’s company interests, court history, and public profile. The more questions in the brief, the more research and reporting are required.
2. The information you can provide
Identity needs to be established first. A full name, date of birth, and last known address make that quick. A common name, limited details, or conflicting information means more work before any other research can start.
3. The number of people, entities and jurisdictions
Fees are generally charged per person or entity. A subject with history across several states, or overseas, may need searches in each jurisdiction, and some registers charge a fee for each search.
4. The type of records involved
Not all records are equally accessible. Court lists, ASIC company records, the PPSR and land title records are searchable public sources, usually for a fee. Other information is restricted by law. The OAIC explains that consumer credit reports can be disclosed only to specified parties, such as credit providers, and that employers, landlords and real estate agents are not permitted to access them. A private investigator’s licence is not permission to obtain that information. A reliable quote explains which sources will be used and which will not.
5. The analysis and reporting standard
A short summary for an internal decision takes less time than a detailed report that may be relied on by lawyers or other advisers. Tell the investigator how the report will be used so the format, level of detail and cost match that purpose.
6. Urgency
Urgent work may cost more because other matters may need to be rescheduled. If your matter is time-sensitive, raise it at the start and ask for any urgency charge to be confirmed in writing before work begins.
What Findings Can You Reasonably Expect?
A background investigation can confirm or contradict information, identify records relevant to your question and highlight matters that need further enquiry. It cannot guarantee a complete picture of anyone’s life, and it cannot lawfully reach every record. Some questions will remain unresolved, and a good report says so plainly rather than filling gaps with assumptions.
What should you receive for the fee?
When comparing quotes, ask what the final report will contain. A useful report should explain the enquiries undertaken, identify the information supporting the findings and distinguish established facts from assessments or unresolved information. A lower price is not necessarily better value if the scope does not address the question you need answered.
Before you accept a quote, clarify:
- Research scope: which people, entities, time periods, and jurisdictions are included.
- Analysis: whether findings will be verified and assessed, or simply listed.
- Written reporting: the format and level of detail of the final report.
- Supporting information: whether source documents or extracts are attached.
- Limitations: what the investigation will not cover and why.
How Pricing Models Work
Agencies generally use one of three models, and each suits a different kind of work.
- Fixed fee: a set price for a defined scope. It suits standard enquiries where the searches and output are known in advance, and it gives you cost certainty.
- Hourly rate: charged for the time spent. It suits matters where the direction may change as information emerges, such as investigations supporting legal proceedings. Ask for an estimate and a cap that cannot be exceeded without your approval.
- Staged work: an initial phase at a set price, with further stages quoted only if the first findings justify them. This can keep costs proportionate when it is unclear how much work a matter needs.
No model is better in every case. What matters is that the model fits the work and that the scope and price are agreed in writing before work begins.
What Should Be Included in a Background Investigation Quote?
Use this checklist to compare quotes on a like-for-like basis:
- Research scope: the questions being answered and the people or entities covered.
- External search costs: which register and database fees are included, and which are charged as disbursements.
- Report preparation: whether writing the report is included in the fee.
- Fieldwork: whether any in-person enquiries are expected, and how travel is charged.
- Urgency: the standard turnaround and the cost of faster delivery, if available.
- Additional work: confirmation that work beyond the agreed scope requires your approval first.
- Total price: the amount payable including GST.
Who Commissions Background Investigations, and Why?
Employers and HR teams commonly verify employment history, qualifications and identity for roles involving financial authority, sensitive information or vulnerable people. Criminal history is checked through a police check with the candidate’s consent. See our guides to recruitment screening and executive vetting.
Law firms may need background research on parties or witnesses to support a matter. Because the direction can change as a matter develops, these engagements are often scoped in stages.
Finance firms and businesses often check directors, company interests and registered security interests before a transaction or partnership. Our article about corporate due diligence investigations explains this work in more detail.
Insurers may commission enquiries where a claimant’s stated information appears inconsistent with verifiable records.
Private clients also commission background investigations, for example to:
- Verify that someone is who they say they are before entering a relationship, tenancy or business arrangement with them
- Look into conflicting information before a significant personal or financial commitment, such as lending money or buying property together
- Check the stated background of a prospective business partner or investor
Not every personal enquiry needs a background investigation
When the objective is to locate a beneficiary or reconnect with a long-lost relative, a locate enquiry may be more appropriate than a broad background investigation. Concerns about a person’s current activities may require a different investigative approach, such as surveillance. Clarifying the objective first helps avoid paying for work that does not answer the relevant question.
Unsure Which Type of Enquiry You Need?
Tell The Find Group what you are trying to establish. We can discuss whether a background investigation or another service is appropriate and explain the next steps before work is commissioned.
Sources
- Victoria Police, National Police Check fees and charges, 2026–27 fees, accessed October 2026.
- Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, How the National Police Checking Service works, accessed October 2026.
- Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, Third party access to credit reports, accessed October 2026.