Which is the procedure for issuing a Personnel Security Clearance certificate to a natural person working in a company?

 

In order for the legal entity to be able to submit a request for Personnel Security Clearance (PSC) certificates to be issued to their employees, it is necessary to forward the request to the Directorate for Security of Classified Information (DSCI) through the competent state institution that the company has been engaged with in a joint venture. The company can directly submit the request to the DSCI, but only in a case when there is a requirement in the tender announcement for all the bidding companies to have PSC certificates for their employees before taking part in the tender. In that case, the submitted documentation attached to the PSC request must also include a copy of the tender announcement which clearly stipulates the requirement for all the participating companies in the tender to present the relevant PSC certificates.

The request to be submitted to the DSCI must clearly indicate: the level and type of the security clearance certificate requested to be issued, the reason for requesting the security clearance certificate, the duration of the activity for which the security clearance certificate is requested, as well as the person appointed to assure that the company meets the conditions prescribed in the Law on Classified Information and the supporting decrees (the security officer).The request must also include the following:

  • Security Questionnaire;
  • Statement of the applicant with his/her consent the data given in the security questionnaire to be checked;
  • Photocopy of a valid identification card or passport;
  • Curriculum Vitae and
  • Certificate from a relevant court that the legal capacity of the individual has not been revoked.

For a security clearance certificate of the classification level:

  • TOP SECRET – the Security Questionnaire Form “A” is required to be filled in;
  • SECRET – the Security Questionnaire Form “B” is required to be filled in;
  • CONFIDENTIAL – the Security Questionnaire Form “C” is required to be filled in;
  • RESTRICTED – the Security Questionnaire Form “D” is required to be filled in.

The candidate personally fills in the Security Questionnaire and the Statement, and takes care for all the blanks to be filled in. In case some questions remain unanswered, the Security Questionnaire would be considered insufficient for a procedure for issuing a security clearance certificate to be initiated.

It is mandatory for the candidate to sign the Security Questionnaire and the Statement indicating his/her consent the data given in the Security Questionnaire to be checked. In case the Security Questionnaire and the Statement are not signed, there will be no conditions for initiating the procedure for issuing a security clearance.

After the whole procedure has been finished, in case it has been confirmed that the conditions stipulated in Article 38 of the Law on Classified Information had been met, the DSCI, depending on the requirement, will issue the relevant security clearance certificate or a document that will serve to the legal entity as a proof in front of the competent authorities that its employees have been granted access to classified information.