Negative notice holders

Blue Card Services (BCS) undertakes a comprehensive assessment of all applicants’ eligibility to hold a blue card based on their known past police or disciplinary information. A negative notice is issued when this assessment is concluded with the decision that it is not in the best interests of children for the applicant to hold a blue card.

The continued eligibility of current card holders is also monitored by BCS. A blue card may be cancelled and a negative notice issued if we are notified of a change in the card holder’s assessable information relevant to working with children.

In either case, the applicant and card holder are provided with the opportunity to address the information we have received and make submissions in support of their eligibility to hold a blue card.

Obligations as a negative notice holder

The blue card system places obligations on individuals and employer organisations.

If you have been issued with a negative notice, you cannot:

• apply for a blue card i.e. working with children check
• start or continue in child-related work (paid or voluntary)
• carry on a child-related business regulated by the blue card system.

If you do any of the above, you will be committing an offence and may be referred to the police for investigation. Significant penalties can apply for blue card system offences.

As a negative notice holder, you are also a restricted person.

Obligations as an employer organisation

Employer organisations must not:

• start or continue a negative notice holder in regulated employment, or
• engage a negative notice holder (a restricted person) in restricted employment.

Applying to cancel a negative notice

In Queensland, negative notices do not have an expiry date. A negative notice remains current until it’s cancelled.

You can apply to cancel your negative notice 2 years after it was issued. However, this does not mean we will automatically overturn our original decision.

When you apply to cancel a negative notice, we will ask you to make a submission. The submissions process gives you a chance to tell us about your police or other assessable information and tell your side of the story.

Your submission should show us how your behaviour has changed since the offending happened. You can include written references from employers, colleagues or health professionals who know about your past, or other relevant material. Read more about the submission process.

If your negative notice is cancelled, you are no longer a restricted person and may now apply for a blue card.

If your negative notice is continued, your negative notice remains current and you remain a restricted person. You cannot apply again to cancel your negative notice for another 2 years from this date.

Appeal a decision we have made

If your blue card application is refused, you can appeal our decision through the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT). Learn more about the QCAT appeal process.