[5] Its history goes back to November 13, 1936, when a Division of Investigation (DI) under the Department of Justice was created with the enactment of Commonwealth Act No.

It shall be composed of such personnel as may be necessary, in the discretion of the Secretary of Justice, and its duties shall be to help in the detection and prosecution of crimes; to acquire, collect, classify and preserve criminal identification records; and to obtain information on all matters affecting the public interest.The DI was the brainchild of Commonwealth President Manuel L. Quezon and the then–Secretary of Justice José Yulo.

[6] The formation of the DI generated considerable public interest and more than 3,000 applied for the initial 48 positions of NBI Agents.

These included lawyers, doctors, chemists, fingerprint technicians, photographers, research assistants, clerks, stenographers, janitors and messengers.

The DI operation was suspended upon the surrender of the Commonwealth Government to the occupying Japanese forces during World War II.

Upon the liberation of the Philippines by combined Filipino and American forces in 1945, the DI was not immediately reorganized since most of its original members were seconded in the service of the United States Army Counterintelligence Corps (CIC).

In 1947, as the Philippines struggled to recover from the ravages of war, criminality in all its forms increased dramatically, straining the meager resources of the newly reorganized police service in effectively combating sophisticated organized crime groups and the solution of complex crimes.

In November 2024, it relocated its temporary headquarters from VTech Tower, Gregorio Araneta Avenue corner Maria Clara street to Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard, Filinvest Cyberzone Bay City, Pasay, Philippines.

The agency director is a Presidential appointee and serves under the trust and confidence of the President and the Secretary of Justice (SOJ).