Free PSA Security Guard Practice Test 2026
200 original questions for the QQI Level 4 Security Guarding Skills theory exam you need for a PSA licence: the 2004 Act, arrest and reasonable force, access control, patrols, reports, fire, events and retail. Four 50-question mock tests. Tuned for mobile. No account needed.
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The QQI Security Guarding exam at a glance
In Ireland, a security guard must hold a licence from the Private Security Authority (PSA) under the Private Security Services Act 2004, and the PSA must refuse anyone under 18 or not a fit and proper person. Since 1 November 2022 the Private Security (Licensing and Qualifications) Regulations require QQI Level 4 minor award 4N20604 Security Guarding Skills, or an equivalent, for a security guard (guarding) licence. QQI's specification assesses it by a theory examination worth 50% and a skills demonstration worth 50%, both of which must be passed; the training provider writes the exam paper, so no official question count or time is published. The award is graded Pass 50 to 64%, Merit 65 to 79% and Distinction 80 to 100%. 70% is Tigertest's target for these mock tests.
Tigertest has 200 QQI Security Guarding practice questions with explanations, all free with no account required.
- Qualification
- QQI Level 4 minor award 4N20604 Security Guarding Skills (10 credits)
- Assessment
- Theory examination 50% and skills demonstration 50%; pass both
- Questions
- Set by the training provider; not published
- Grades
- Pass 50-64%, Merit 65-79%, Distinction 80-100% (70% is Tigertest's target)
- Licence
- PSA security guard (guarding) licence
- Minimum age
- 18
- Run by
- QQI-validated training providers; licensing by the PSA
Updated by the Tigertest team. Practice questions follow QQI component specification 4N20604 and S.I. 574/2022 as amended by S.I. 204/2024, checked November 2026. Exam rules change, so confirm current details with QQI: Security Guarding Skills 4N20604.
How It Works
Train Topic by Topic
Four training sets: the sector, the PSA and your role; arrest, force and access control; patrols, reports and court; and emergencies, events and retail. Questions you miss come back until you have mastered them.
Four Mock Tests
Four tests of 50 questions that mix every topic, with a 70% target. No question appears in more than one test, and every answer comes with a short explanation set at an Irish shopping centre, office, warehouse or event.
Built on the QQI 4N20604 Learning Outcomes
Training providers set the theory exam and QQI publishes no topic weights, so each 50-question test spreads the award's two units, Private Security Sector and Security Guarding Skills, as below. The law questions follow the Private Security Services Act 2004, the PSA's regulations, the Criminal Law Act 1997 and the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997.
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Share FeedbackHow to Pass Your Security Guarding Exam
1. Know that a licence adds no powers
A PSA licence lets you work in security; it does not make you a Garda. You arrest only as any person can under section 4 of the Criminal Law Act 1997, search only with consent, use only reasonable force, and hand anyone you arrest to the Gardaí as soon as practicable.
2. Learn the licence rules you live by
Carry your PSA identity card on duty and show it when a client, a Garda or a PSA inspector asks; wear it as your badge unless the work is covert; tell the PSA about any conviction or pending case; and surrender the card when you stop working in security.
3. Write reports that stand up in court
Exact times on the 24-hour clock, what you saw and heard, descriptions from head to toe, one line through any mistake, and no back-dating. Protect a scene for the Gardaí and keep a log of who goes in.
4. Practise each unit, then test
Finish the four training sets first, then take the mock tests. Aim for 80% or better on every mock test, ask your training provider how its theory exam is set, and remember the skills demonstration is assessed separately.
PSA Security Guard Frequently Asked Questions
What qualification do I need for a PSA security guard licence?
Under the Private Security (Licensing and Qualifications) Regulations 2022, as amended in 2024, a security guard (guarding) licence needs QQI Level 4 minor award 4N20604 Security Guarding Skills, or a qualification the Private Security Authority (PSA) accepts as equivalent. Door supervisors need 4N20611 Door Security Skills instead. Under section 22 of the Private Security Services Act 2004 the PSA must also refuse anyone under 18 or anyone who is not a fit and proper person.
How is the QQI Security Guarding Skills award assessed?
QQI's component specification for 4N20604 sets two assessments, a theory examination worth 50% and a skills demonstration worth 50%, and you must pass both. The training provider writes the exam paper, so the number of questions and the time vary by course. The award is graded Pass (50 to 64%), Merit (65 to 79%) and Distinction (80 to 100%). The mock tests here have 50 questions with 70% as Tigertest's own target; the skills demonstration is not modelled.
What topics does the course cover?
The award has two units. Private Security Sector covers the industry and its law, the guard's role, prevention, protection and detection, Irish criminal, civil, equality and safety law, court procedure, emergencies including terrorist threats, patrols and access control, documentation, alarms and evacuation, communication and conflict, and confidentiality. Security Guarding Skills covers the law on a guard's role, patrols, event security and crowd control, trespass, powers of arrest, search and detention, key handling, store detectives and cash handling.
Can a security guard arrest someone in Ireland?
Only as any person can, under section 4 of the Criminal Law Act 1997: someone in the act of an arrestable offence (one carrying 5 years' imprisonment or more, such as theft), or, where such an offence has been committed, someone reasonably suspected of it. A private person may arrest only where there is reasonable cause to suspect the person would otherwise avoid arrest by the Gardaí, and must hand them to the Gardaí as soon as practicable. Any force must be reasonable under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997.
Are these the real QQI exam questions?
No. Every question is original, written by Tigertest from the QQI 4N20604 learning outcomes, the Private Security Services Act 2004 and the PSA regulations, the Criminal Law Act 1997, the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 and standard guarding, fire and first response practice. It is free practice, not affiliated with the Private Security Authority, QQI or any training provider, and it does not replace a validated course.
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