Three names, one Nigerian document. If you have seen "police character certificate", "police clearance certificate" and "certificate of good conduct" used for what looks like the same thing, that is because they usually are.
What the Nigeria Police Force actually calls it
The Nigerian Police Force's own portal, possap.gov.ng, lists this service as the police character certificate. Every fact and step in this cluster refers to it by that name because it is the one the police themselves use on the form you will actually fill in.
Where "police clearance certificate" comes from
"Police clearance certificate" is widely used alongside "police character certificate" in Nigerian reporting and by embassies referring to the same document. Nothing about applying changes based on which of the two terms you searched to get here.
Where "certificate of good conduct" comes from
"Certificate of good conduct" is a name used for similar documents in other countries. Nigerians searching that phrase are often looking for a police character certificate to use abroad, even though it is not the term the Nigeria Police Force prints on its own form.
This site does not state what any other country calls its own document, or what it requires. If you were told to get a "certificate of good conduct" for a specific destination, check that country's own description of what they mean before you apply, since the underlying paperwork they expect may not map one-to-one onto Nigeria's process.
One application, regardless of the name you started with
Whichever term brought you here, the process is the same: apply on possap.gov.ng, pay the invoice, attend fingerprint capture. See applying for a police character certificate on POSSAP for the full walk-through.
There is no separate Nigerian form for a "certificate of good conduct" or a "police clearance certificate". They all lead to the same POSSAP application.
What to check before you apply
- What the requester actually needs. A visa checklist, job offer or immigration form is the authority here, not a search engine's phrasing.
- What name they expect printed. This site cannot confirm what any specific certificate says on its face; ask the issuing formation if this matters for your case.
- Whether they mean something narrower. Occasionally "police report" means a specific incident record rather than a general character check. Confirm before assuming they are interchangeable.
Common mistakes with naming
- Searching for a Nigerian "certificate of good conduct" office. No separate office exists; it is the same police character certificate process.
- Assuming a different name means a different fee or route. Cost and process are covered in how payment works, regardless of what you called the document when you started searching.
- Not asking the requester to clarify. A quick check saves a wasted application.
For the certificate itself, our full guide to cost and process covers everything from fees to fingerprint capture, and you can start a police character certificate request once you know what your destination needs.