Oregon certifies private security professionals through the Private Security Services Program of the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST), under the Private Security Services Providers Act (ORS 181A.840 to 181A.918) and the rules in OAR chapter 259, division 60. Certification lasts 2 years.
Who needs it
- Anyone whose primary job is security work for pay: observing and reporting unlawful activity, preventing theft, protecting people or property, controlling access, or detaining people. That holds whether you are armed or unarmed, in uniform or plain clothes, full-time or part-time (ORS 181A.840).
- In-house guards too. The exemptions are narrow, for example state and federal employees on duty, designated bank security officers and some event staff (ORS 181A.845).
- Event staff such as ushers, ticket takers and parking attendants are exempt only if they are unarmed, do not start physical confrontations, are not hired mainly to take enforcement action, and work with at least one certified person on site for every 10 of them.
- Door staff at OLCC-licensed bars are exempt only in narrow cases: they need an OLCC service permit and the same limits, and the exemption does not cover someone whose main job is controlling the door to an area where minors are not allowed (OAR 259-060-0015).
- Your employer needs a license too. A security company must hold a DPSST private security entity license, with at least one licensed executive manager.
Requirements
- At least 18 years old for unarmed work, 21 for armed.
- A high school diploma, a GED, or a two- or four-year college degree (OAR 259-060-0020).
- Fingerprints and a moral fitness review. Registered sex offenders are barred. A conviction for a crime on Oregon's mandatory-minimum list (ORS 137.700) bars you until 10 years after all prison, parole, probation and post-prison supervision end; any other crime punishable by more than a year bars you until 4 years after. DPSST can also deny for dishonesty, sexual or drug-related misconduct, destruction of property or violence in the past 4 years, or for false answers on the application. Armed applicants must also be legally able to possess a firearm.
- Training and exams in English, completed without assistance.
Training
- Unarmed: 14 hours of live classroom instruction with a DPSST-certified private security instructor, a closed-book written exam, and hands-on assessments such as scenarios. DPSST lists instructors who ask to be listed.
- 100% to pass. Every exam and assessment has to reach 100%. A score of 85 to 99% means going over each missed question with the instructor; below 85% means repeating the section and retaking the exam.
- Don't let it sit. DPSST must receive your training record (Form PS-6 from the instructor) within 180 days of the course.
Working before your card arrives
- File first. Your full application (Form PS-1, the PS-6, fingerprints and fees) must be submitted or postmarked before you do any security work.
- Then a temporary work permit. Your employer's licensed manager can sign a Form PS-20. It lasts 120 days, covers only that employer (a second employer needs its own), and a copy goes to DPSST by your first day. Carry your copy on duty.
- If the permit runs out before your certificate arrives, the manager can issue another only after DPSST approves it.
- Not for armed work. Temporary permits never cover armed duty, so new armed applicants wait for the armed certificate. A certified unarmed professional upgrading to armed can work armed with copies of the PS-6 and Form PS-23 until the new certificate arrives.
Armed private security professionals
- 21 or older. The 14-hour unarmed course plus a basic firearms course of at least 24 hours: an open-book written exam, a safe gun handling test and a marksmanship qualification, taught by a certified private security firearms instructor. You get three attempts in one day to qualify.
- Every year: a marksmanship qualification and a 4-hour armed classroom refresher, due the last day of the month one year after your last course. Miss it and the armed certification faces emergency suspension, with no armed work until you finish. Within 90 days of the due date the refresher still counts; after that you repeat the whole basic firearms course.
- Carrying concealed on duty also takes an Oregon concealed handgun license.
- If you become ineligible to possess a firearm, you and your employer must tell DPSST in writing within 48 hours.
Credit for police and military police experience
- Since April 2026 (OAR 259-060-0125), some applicants can skip the basic courses. You need at least 2 years as a police or reserve officer, or as a military police officer, Master-at-Arms or other military law enforcement specialty DPSST finds equivalent. For unarmed certification, corrections and parole and probation officers also count.
- Apply within 4 years of your last day actually on duty (leave before your separation date does not count), with no certification ever denied, suspended or revoked and no open misconduct investigation.
- Unarmed: take the 4-hour renewal course and exam instead of the 14-hour course. Armed: the unarmed renewal course plus the armed refresher, safe gun handling test and qualification, instead of both basic courses.
- One try. Fail any part and you take the full basic training.
- Separately, state law lets DPSST accept documented military training or experience it finds substantially equivalent to the required training (ORS 181A.855(2)). Ask DPSST how to submit it.
Cost
- $104 unarmed or $121 armed for the 2-year certification (OAR 259-060-0500).
- Background check fee for new applicants: $45 through September 30, 2026, and $48 from October 1. Renewals, upgrades and added certifications skip it unless your certification expired more than 4 years ago.
- $50 to upgrade to armed within 18 months of getting your unarmed certification; the armed certification then keeps the unarmed expiration date.
- $40 late renewal, $27 replacement card. Training and the fingerprint vendor are paid separately.
Renewal and staying certified
- Every 2 years: the 4-hour renewal course and exam. Armed professionals also stay current on the yearly requalification.
- DPSST accepts renewal documents up to 180 days before your certification expires. If you are working and send them in less than 30 days before it expires, include a Form PS-20.
- After it expires there is a $40 late fee. More than 4 years expired means a new application and the full basic training.
- Carry your card or permit on duty and show it to DPSST staff, police or OLCC agents on request.
- Report an address change within 14 days. If you are charged with a crime, tell your employer (or DPSST, if you are not employed) within 48 hours.
How tessura helps
Oregon's clock has several parts: a 2-year certification, a renewal window that opens 180 days out, a 120-day temporary permit, and for armed guards a yearly requalification due on the last day of the month. tessura is free for guards: keep your DPSST certification, temporary permit and firearms qualification in the credential wallet and get reminders at 60, 30 and 7 days before each date.
tessura is not affiliated with the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training or any state agency. Rules change, so confirm anything you rely on with DPSST.