This study aims to investigate the impact of over qualification on innovative performance among personnel in the South African Police Service (SAPS), focusing specifically on how psychological empowerment, person-job fit, and perceived organizational support influence this relationship. Despite a high incidence of over qualification within SAPS, many overqualified employees remain underutilized, resulting in decreased motivation and limited innovation. Existing research lacks a comprehensive understanding of how empowerment, fit, and support can transform over qualification into a strategic asset to drive innovation in policing. Preliminary literature indicates that over qualification can either hinder or enhance innovation depending on the presence of enabling factors such as empowerment, fit, and support. Empowered and well-supported overqualified employees with good person-job fit tend to exhibit higher levels of innovative behavior, which is critical for addressing the complex challenges faced by SAPS. This study contributes to filling a critical gap in policing research by contextualizing the dynamics of over qualification and innovation within SAPS. It integrates theories of psychological empowerment, person-job fit, and organizational support to offer a nuanced framework for harnessing human capital in the public policing sector. Employing a quantitative, cross-sectional design, the study will collect data from a stratified random sample of SAPS personnel using validated survey instruments. Data will be analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to test hypothesized relationships systematically and empirically. Understanding and leveraging the interplay of over qualification, empowerment, fit, and support can enable SAPS to optimize its human resources, foster innovation, improve morale, and enhance overall policing effectiveness. The study offers practical recommendations for human resource management reforms aimed at transforming over qualification into a strategic advantage.