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Online coursework on your schedule, plus a short in-person session at a partner location near you. Then you're certified.
Online coursework on your schedule, with the in-person hours SB 652 requires — same provider, end to end.
The state-required course every California guard must complete to register with BSIS. Includes the new WMD awareness module. Same provider, online + in person — exactly what SB 652 requires after Jan 1, 2026.
Start Powers to Arrest →Keep your guard card active. Eight hours of approved continuing education, fully online, with auto-reminders before each renewal deadline.
Renew My Card →Required to carry an exposed firearm on duty. Classroom legal & safety training plus live-fire range qualification. Active guard card required to enroll.
Start Firearm Permit →Legal, ethical, and safe deployment of straight and collapsible batons. Take it on its own or attach to your initial guard card enrollment.
Start Baton Permit →Safe use, legal liability, and decontamination for OC / pepper spray. Add it to your guard card enrollment or take it standalone.
Start Pepper Spray →Track expirations, manage CE deadlines, and bulk-enroll your team. Built for security operators who need every guard SB 652-compliant before the next BSIS audit.
Talk to Sales →If you don't find what you need here, the answer engine above can handle the rest.
A guard card is the official California security-guard registration issued by the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS). It proves you have completed the state-required training and a Live Scan background check, and it's the legal credential that allows you to work as a security guard in California.
Anyone employed as a security guard, security officer, or patrol officer in California needs a BSIS guard card. This includes hospital security, retail loss prevention, dispensary security, event and concert staff, and contracted-patrol officers. You must have your guard card before you can legally work a paid post.
Most applicants finish the required training in 3–5 days. Under California SB 652, the 8-hour Powers-to-Arrest course must include at least 4 in-person hours with the same BSIS-approved provider that delivers your online portion. After training, BSIS typically issues your registration within a few business days once your Live Scan and application are processed.
California guards must complete 8 hours of continuing education every year and renew their registration with BSIS every two years. You can complete the annual 8-hour CE entirely online, then submit your renewal application directly to BSIS. We send automatic reminders before each deadline so your card never lapses.
Yes — once you have completed your Powers-to-Arrest training and your Live Scan has been submitted to BSIS, you can begin working under your employer while your application is processed. Your training certificate plus the BSIS application receipt is what employers ask for in the interim. You may not carry a baton, pepper spray, or firearm on duty until those individual permits are also issued.
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