- Enforced by
- SIA
- Status
- Amended (in force with amendments)
- Penalty ceiling
- Imprisonment 4 of 14 obligations carry imprisonment (6 months). 4 carry different penalties and 6 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.
Does it bind you?
Business-side roles with duties under this instrument.
Plus 6 duties on the regulator, Crown ministers and public bodies — folded into the section list below.
Other Acts binding the same actors
If a role above is yours, these are the other instruments that most often bind it.
Any Person — also bound by 2684 other Acts
Director or Officer — also bound by 482 other Acts
What it requires
Sections creating concrete business duties or carrying penalties, grouped as the instrument is structured. Titles link to the source text — blue means you’re leaving for legislation.gov.uk.
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- SIA must follow government directions and provide informationStatutory regulator
- Carry out security activities without a licenceAny Person
- Use an unlicensed security operativeAny Person
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- SIA must publish and maintain licensing criteriaStatutory regulator
- Fail to comply with private security licence conditionsAny Person
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- SIA must maintain a public register of all licensed security operativesStatutory regulator
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- SIA must maintain a public register of approved security contractorsStatutory regulator
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- SIA must maintain arrangements for granting security company approvalsStatutory regulator
- Misrepresent approved security provider statusAny Person
Unlimited fine
- Provide security services without SIA approvalAny Person
Unlimited fine
- Obstruct SIA inspector or fail to comply with information requestAny Person
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- SIA must publish guidance on powers of entry and conductStatutory regulator
- Provide false information to the Security Industry AuthorityAny Person
- Liability of directors for corporation's Private Security offenceDirector or Officer
Unlimited fine
13 other provisions — procedural and definitional
Schedules
0 of 39 shown39 other schedules
Help complying
Guvnor’s practical routes through this instrument.
Plan SIA licence renewals for your team
Operational planning path for managing team SIA licence renewals. Check expiry dates, schedule training, and submit renewals within the 16-week window to …
SIA licence compliance quick check
Quick compliance check for businesses employing SIA-licensed staff. Covers licence validity, licence types, refresher training, first aid, right to work, and working …
Respond to SIA enforcement action
What to do if your security business faces SIA enforcement action including licence revocation, compliance inspection failure, or prosecution for deploying unlicensed …
Meet your duties when employing security staff
What pubs, clubs, retail, and events businesses need to know when employing or contracting SIA-licensed security staff — covering licence verification, working …
Start a private security business
Set up a security company that deploys only licensed staff. Get your own SIA licence, register and insure the business, check every …
Set up a security and investigation business
For new security and investigation businesses, from guarding, door supervision and close protection to key holding, alarm and CCTV work and private …
Apply for an SIA licence
Most private security roles in the UK, from door supervision to close protection, need a licence from the Security Industry Authority, and …
Register as an SIA Approved Contractor
The SIA Approved Contractor Scheme is voluntary, but many buyers of security services require it. To apply, your company must have traded …
Renew your SIA licence
How to renew your SIA licence before it expires, including the new mandatory refresher training requirements for door supervisors (from April 2025) …
Secure your business premises
Security requirements for business premises including CCTV compliance, SIA licensing, and physical security measures.
Set up security staff training
Every security operative must hold the SIA-endorsed qualification for their licence sector before applying for a licence. Since 1 April 2025, door …
Understanding SIA regulation of the private security industry
What the Security Industry Authority does, why private security is regulated in the United Kingdom, how the licensing system works under the …
Verify SIA licence validity for your employees
Before deploying anyone on licensable security work, check their licence on the SIA Register of Licence Holders, confirm it is active and …
3 more guides that reference this instrument
Connected legislation
Instruments made under this Act. They carry the detail the Act delegates.
Duty extraction and severity labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the instrument, not the instrument itself. Always verify against the linked source text.