SIA approved contractors sub-contracting outside of the ACS
Sub-contracting to a company that is not an SIA approved contractor: what the rules are and how you ask for permission.
Unless we have given you permission to do otherwise, you must only sub-contract to SIA approved contractors. Your customers have contracted an SIA approved contractor and will therefore expect the service they receive to be from an approved contractor.
In exceptional circumstances, we may allow you to sub-contract to a company we have not approved. You need our permission to do this and your customer must also agree to it.
How to ask for permission
Fill out the .
Use the ‘supporting case’ box to tell us why your circumstances are exceptional. Give us as much detail as possible.
You should also use this box to tell us:
- why you chose this particular sub-contractor
- where they will work
- when they will work
Upload the form to your SIA online business account. Select ‘Help’, then select ‘I want to make a business enquiry’. Quote ‘Exceptional circumstances request’.
Ideally, you should ask us for permission before you sub-contract the work. If this is not possible then you must do so within 5 working days after deployment.
How we make our decision
We review each application individually. We will consider your specific situation.
We will only give you permission if we agree that your circumstances are exceptional.
We will also consider:
- your track history of following ACS rules
- your efforts to avoid using a company we have not approved
- whether you could have prevented the situation by acting earlier
- any potential risk to public safety or the reputation of our approved contractor scheme
We will try to reach a decision within 5 working days.
We will tell you in writing whether we give you permission. If we do, we will explain the conditions of our permission and the date it expires.
If we do not give you permission, we will explain why.
After we have reached our decision
If we give you permission, you must still make sure your customer agrees to you sub-contracting to a company we have not approved.
You can appeal our decision if we do not give you permission. Contact us through your business account to ask for an independent review.
What counts as exceptional circumstances?
Exceptional circumstances are when your only option is to use a contractor we have not approved. This is usually when you have an urgent need and no SIA-approved contractor is available.
Some examples are:
- you need a specialised service, like a trained dog-and-handler team, and you cannot find an SIA-approved contractor who offers it
- you need extra security staff for a short period of time, such as during festival season or for a big event, and you cannot find enough SIA-approved contractors
- you need security services urgently for a situation where people’s health and safety is at risk
Sub-contracting versus use of labour
‘Sub-contracting’ is different from ‘use of labour’. ‘Use of labour’ refers to hiring temporary workers. You do not need our permission to do this. Know the difference between sub-contracting and use of labour.