Few topics generate more public correspondence to our newsroom than the Victorian Sex Offenders Register. Readers want to know who is on it, whether they can see the list, what offences put a person on it, and how it is policed. Our chief courts reporter, Eliza Hartman, has put together this explainer to set the framework out plainly.
This is an explainer of law and policy. We do not name registered offenders. The Sex Offenders Registration Act 2004 (Vic) does not authorise public publication of the register, and we are not Victoria Police.
What the register is
The Victorian Sex Offenders Register is established under the Sex Offenders Registration Act 2004 (Vic). It is a confidential register held by Victoria Police, maintained by the Sex Offenders Registry within the force. People placed on the register are required to provide personal information to police on a defined schedule and to update that information when circumstances change.
The register is not a public document. Members of the public cannot view it, and police cannot publish it. The Act creates offences for both unauthorised access to register information and for unauthorised disclosure.
Who goes on the register
Registration is automatic for adults found guilty of certain offences listed in Schedules 1 and 2 of the Act. Schedule 1 covers the most serious sexual offences against children, including rape of a child, sexual penetration of a child, persistent sexual abuse and the production or distribution of child abuse material. Schedule 2 covers a wider list including sexual offences against adults, indecent assault, and stalking that has a sexual element.
For a small number of offences, the court has discretion not to make a registration order if it is satisfied the offender does not pose a risk to sexual safety. For the most serious offences in Schedule 1, registration is mandatory and is not a matter for judicial discretion.
Children and young people convicted of sexual offences are dealt with under a separate, more limited registration regime. The Children, Youth and Families Act framework and the Children’s Court are involved, and the registration thresholds are higher.
Reporting periods
Registration is not for life in every case. The Act sets reporting periods linked to the offence:
- Eight years for a single Class 2 offence.
- Fifteen years for a single Class 1 offence, or for two or more Class 2 offences.
- Life for two or more Class 1 offences, or for certain combinations specified in the Act.
During the reporting period, the registered person must report personal information to police annually, and must report changes — including a new address, new employment, new vehicle, new email account, new internet service provider account, new contact with a child, and overseas travel — within set time-frames. The Act requires reporting in person at a designated police station.
What information is on the register
Registered offenders must provide:
- Name, including any aliases.
- Date of birth.
- Residential address and any other premises at which they regularly stay.
- Employment details and any voluntary work involving children.
- Contact details, including phone numbers and online identifiers.
- Vehicle details.
- Tattoos and other distinguishing features.
- Any travel plans, including domestic interstate travel of seven days or more.
The Sex Offenders Registry uses that information to monitor compliance and to share intelligence within the law-enforcement system.
Public-disclosure debates
Victoria has resisted a US-style public sex-offenders register since the Act was first considered in 2004. Public disclosure regimes — sometimes referred to as Megan’s Law schemes after the United States legislation that pioneered them — have been debated periodically in Australian parliaments. The arguments for and against are well-rehearsed.
Arguments for public disclosure include the right of communities to make informed choices about safety, the deterrent effect on registered offenders, and the harm-reduction case that informed parents are better able to protect their children. Arguments against include the documented effect of public registers in driving registered offenders out of stable housing and employment — both factors associated with re-offending — and the risk of vigilante violence against people whose registration period has ended or who were registered for offences at the lower end of the schedule.
The Sentencing Advisory Council and successive Victorian governments of both political persuasions have, on the available evidence, taken the view that a fully public register would on balance increase rather than decrease the risk of harm to children. The legal academic literature, both Australian and international, points in the same direction.
The Disclosure Scheme Act 2018
The Children Legislation Amendment (Information Sharing) Act and the related Disclosure Scheme Act 2018 created a limited disclosure regime. Under that regime, in defined circumstances, a parent or carer can apply to police to find out whether a person who has unsupervised contact with their child is a registered sex offender.
The scheme is not open-access. The applicant must have a legitimate concern about a specific person who has contact with a specific child. Police assess the application against statutory criteria. Where disclosure is made, it is made privately to the applicant on conditions, and unauthorised onward disclosure by the applicant is itself an offence.
The scheme is therefore a controlled middle path between full confidentiality and the US Megan’s Law model. It places decision-making with police rather than with publishing the register.
Oversight
The Sex Offenders Registry within Victoria Police administers the register. Compliance is enforced through targeted compliance operations and through prosecutions for failure to report. The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission has oversight of police conduct generally, and the Victorian Inspectorate has oversight of integrity bodies. Parliament’s Scrutiny of Acts and Regulations Committee has examined the Act on multiple occasions.
The Sentencing Advisory Council has published research on the operation of the register, including data on compliance rates, on the demographic profile of registered offenders, and on the relationship between registration and re-offending.
What the register does not do
The register is a monitoring framework. It is not a sentence in itself. It does not change the criminal sentence imposed for the underlying offence. It does not, of itself, prevent a registered person from accessing public spaces or from working in occupations not covered by the Working with Children Check regime. Those restrictions sit in separate legislation.
Registration is also not a substitute for a Working with Children Check. The two systems intersect — registration disqualifies a person from holding a Working with Children Check — but they answer different questions.
Where to get help
If you have experienced sexual abuse, support is available 24 hours a day. The Sexual Assault Crisis Line on 1800 806 292 is staffed by counsellors trained to take calls about both recent and historic abuse. 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 covers sexual assault and domestic and family violence. Bravehearts, on 1800 272 831, supports survivors of child sexual abuse and their families.
If you have information about a person who you believe may be committing offences against a child, Crime Stoppers Victoria can be reached on 1800 333 000. In an emergency, call 000.
