Private security company: licenses and registration

Private security companies have been gaining more and more importance and space in today's market. They are responsible for carrying out a set of practices aimed at detecting and preventing criminal activities, providing protection for people, goods and property.

This service can be hired to protect public spaces, private companies and residential areas, but in order to start a private security company you need to know and comply with regulations specific to this sector.

The requirements for obtaining licenses and registrations to open a private security company vary according to the state where you operate. Some of the general steps for obtaining licenses and registrations include:

Summary

1- Check local legal requirements

Check local laws and regulations to understand the specific requirements for opening a private security company.

According to José Sérgio Marcondes, creator of the Private Security Management Blog, the process is divided into two parts: the first being the opening and registration of the company, and the second being obtaining authorization to operate from the government body that regulates private security activity in the country.

Private Security Activities in Brazil are authorized by Law No. 7,102, of June 20, 1983, and regulated by ORDINANCE No. 3,233/2012-DG/DPF, OF DECEMBER 10, 2012.

According to Law 7,102, it is up to the Ministry of Justice, through the Federal Police or by agreement with the Public Security Departments of the States and the Federal District, to grant authorizations and oversee private security activities in Brazil.

Ordinance 3,233/2012 governs armed or unarmed security activities carried out by specialized companies and by the professionals who work in them.

Private security activities are divided into four types:

Property Surveillance – an activity carried out at social events and within establishments, urban or rural, public or private, with the purpose of ensuring the physical safety of people and the integrity of property.

Valuables Transport – the activity of transporting cash, goods or valuables using ordinary or special vehicles (armored car).

Armed Escort – an activity that aims to ensure the transport of any type of cargo or valuables on highways and roads.

Personal Security – a surveillance activity carried out with the purpose of ensuring the physical safety of people.

Property surveillance, valuables transport, armed escort and personal security activities may be performed by the same company, provided it is duly authorized for each of these activities.

2- Obtain the specific license

You must obtain a business license to operate a private security company. This usually includes filling out and submitting an application form, paying a fee and undergoing a background check.

You will need to:

Define and check the availability of the company name;
Contact the city hall of the city where you intend to set up the company to carry out the location check;
Registration with the Commercial Registry of the municipality;
Registration with the Federal Revenue Department (CNPJ);
Registration with the State Treasury Department;
Registration with the Municipal City Hall to obtain the operating permit;
Classification with the Employers' Union Entity;
Registration with Caixa Econômica Federal;
Registration with the INSS;
Obtain a permit from the Military Fire Department.
Etc.

To assist with the first stage of the process, you need to hire an accountant, the professional legally qualified to prepare the company's constituent documents, help you choose the most appropriate legal form for your project and fill out the forms required by the public bodies that register legal entities. They are knowledgeable about the tax legislation to which the company providing private security services is subject.

3- Obtain security guard licenses

Depending on the state, it may be necessary to obtain a specific license for the security guards who will work for your company. This may include undergoing training and exams.

Security guards need to hold the CNV (National Security Guard Card), which is issued by the Federal Police and requires the following documents for issuance:

Certified copy of the identification document;
Certified copy of the Individual Taxpayer Registry – CPF;
Certified copy of the pages of the Work and Social Security Card – CTPS – that show the employment relationship with a specialized company or one carrying out in-house security services authorized by the Federal Police;
2 (two) recent 2×2 photos;
Copy of the certificates of completion of a training, extension or refresher course;
Bank receipt of payment of the fee due for issuing the document through the Federal Collection Form – GRU.

Security guards must also complete the security guard course at an authorized school. According to Ordinance No. 3,233/2012-DG/DPF, of December 10, 2012, the requirements to become a security guard are:

Be Brazilian, native or naturalized;
Be at least twenty-one years old;
Have an education equivalent to the fourth grade of elementary school;
Have passed a security guard training course, carried out by a duly authorized training course company;
Have passed health and psychological aptitude exams;
Have proven good character by presenting clean criminal record certificates, with no records of being charged in a police investigation, of being criminally prosecuted or of having been convicted in a criminal proceeding from where they reside, as well as from the place where the training, refresher or extension course was carried out: from the Federal Justice; from the State or Federal District Justice; from the Federal Military Justice; from the State or Federal District Military Justice and from the Electoral Justice;
Be up to date with electoral and military obligations;
Have a registration in the Individual Taxpayer Registry.

4- Register the firearms

If your company provides firearms to security guards, you must register them and obtain the necessary licenses for your employees.

Responsibility for and ownership of the weaponry belongs to the company that provides the service. Therefore, the employee may only use the firearm during working hours. They cannot take it home and, if caught with the instrument outside of work, may be charged with illegal possession.

To work in the security field and be able to carry weapons, the professional must take a specific armed security course and hold the National Security Guard Card (CNV). Frequent training is a requirement for the sector, since this license must be renewed every 2 years.

5- Register with the regulatory body

You must register with the private security regulatory body and keep it up to date so that your company can operate legally.

It is important to note that legal requirements may vary depending on the location, so it is recommended to consult local authorities for accurate information about the necessary requirements.

Carrying out private security activities will depend on prior authorization from the Federal Police, that is, an Operating Authorization.

Operating Authorization – This is the document valid for 1 (one) year, issued by the Federal Police, which authorizes the company to carry out private security activities.

To obtain the operating authorization, the company must meet the following requirements:

Carrying out the property surveillance activity will depend on prior authorization from the Federal Police, by meeting the following requirements:

I – have a minimum paid-up share capital of 100,000 (one hundred thousand) UFIR;

II – prove that the partners, administrators, directors and managers of the private security company have no criminal conviction on record;

III – hire, and keep under contract, a minimum of fifteen security guards, duly qualified in a training course accredited by the F.P.;

IV – prove possession or ownership of at least one ordinary vehicle, with a system of uninterrupted communication with the company's headquarters in each unit of the federation in which it is authorized;

V – have adequate physical facilities, proven by a security certificate;

VI – take out collective life insurance.

6- Get certified

It may be necessary to obtain certain certifications and compliance with safety standards in order to meet legal requirements.

To obtain operating authorization, property surveillance companies must submit an application addressed to the General Coordinator for Private Security Control, attaching the following documents:

I – a copy or certificate of the constituent acts and subsequent amendments, registered with the Commercial Registry or Legal Entity Registry Office;

II – proof of registration with the federal, state and municipal tax bodies;

III – a balance sheet or trial balance, signed by an accountant or accounting technician, proving the payment of the share capital of at least 100,000 (one hundred thousand) UFIR, together with documents in the company's name proving the effective payment of the goods or resources, such as invoices and ownership documents of movable property, issued by the competent bodies, property deeds and proof of bank balance;

IV – a copy of the Identity Card, registration in the Individual Taxpayer Registry – CPF, Voter Registration Card and Reservist Certificate of the administrators, directors, managers and partners;

V – clean criminal record certificates issued by the Federal, State and Military Courts of the States and the Union, where applicable, and the Electoral Court, regarding the partners, administrators, directors and managers, of the units of the federation where they maintain their domicile and intend to establish the company;

VI – a descriptive report of the security guards' uniform, mentioning a whistle with a cord, the company's name and logo, an identification tag, accompanied by color photographs, full-body and front-facing, of the security guard duly uniformed;

VII – a declaration from the Armed Forces, the federal and state public security bodies, and the municipal guards or the Delesp or CV, stating that the uniform model presented is not similar to those used by those institutions;

VIII – photographs of the company's physical facilities, especially of the façade, showing the company's name and logo and the place where weapons and ammunition are stored;

IX – a copy of the possession or ownership document of at least one ordinary vehicle for the company's exclusive use, equipped with a communication system, identified and standardized, containing the company's name and logo;

X – color photographs of the front, side and rear of the vehicle, showing the company's name and logo;

XI – authorization to use a radio frequency granted by the competent body or a contract with a service provider; and

XII – proof of payment of the fee for issuing the security company's operating permit.

Confirmation of the requirements and other details on How to Open a Private Security Company can be obtained in Ordinance No. 3,233/2012-DG/DPF.

Anyone interested in opening a Private Security Company should contact the Federal Police Station nearest to the location where they intend to operate the company, request more details and guidance on how to proceed.

Equipment needed to open the company

Uniforms;
Weapons and ammunition, bulletproof vests, belts equipped with batons and handcuffs;
Computers;
Printers;
Desks and chairs;
Telephone;
GPS;
Vehicles duly equipped with communication radio;
Base communication radios;
Fleet management and maintenance system;
Mesh network system;
Among others.

Have a management and communication platform

After starting a private security company, you need to know what the equipment needed to improve internal communication is. It is extremely necessary to have a platform for the management and communication of your employees.

Communication between Private Security teams in Brazil must, by law, be carried out through PTT communication (Push to Talk).

With this in mind, I want to introduce you to BiPTT, a PTT communication software that increases the productivity of the front-line team through real-time team collaboration.

The platform is approved for use in Private Security operations, according to a formal inquiry that was carried out by the Ministry of Justice.

Want to get to know this innovation better? Visit our website.