Bail Conditions (Tas)
When a person is arrested in relation to an offence in Tasmania, they may be granted bail or remanded in custody. If they are granted bail, they will be required to agree to abide by conditions until their criminal matter has been finalised. This page deals with bail conditions in Tasmania.
Legislation
In Tasmania, decisions about bail are made under the Bail Act 1994. The Family Violence Act 2004 and the Criminal Code 1924 also contain provisions relating to bail.
Applying for bail
When you apply for bail in Tasmania, the court will consider whether releasing you from custody would be in the public interest. It will do this taking into account the likelihood that you will:
- attend court when required
- commit an offence punishable by imprisonment
- endanger a person
- interfere with witnesses or other evidence.
If the court has concerns about releasing you on bail, it may ask you to follow particular bail conditions.
Conduct conditions
Under section 7 of the Bail Act 1994, a court may impose whatever conditions it considers necessary in the interests of justice on a person’s bail.
This may include the following conditions:
- That you must reside at a particular address
- That you must abide by a curfew
- That you must not consume alcohol or illicit drugs and must submit to alcoholic drug testing
- That you must not contact specified people
- That you must not attend specified places
Bail surety
In some situations, the court may require a person to provide a bail surety before bail will be granted.
A bail surety is an amount of money that a person agrees to forfeit if you breach the conditions of your bail agreement.
You may be required to provide a surety for your own bail, or the surety may be provided by another person – such as a family member or employer.
The court must be satisfied that the person providing the bail surety is an appropriate person to do so, and has the capacity to pay the money should bail be breached.
Family violence
Under section 12 of the Family Violence Act 2004, a person charged with family violence offences is not to be granted bail unless the court is satisfied that their release would not be likely to adversely affect an alleged victim or a child of an alleged victim.
Electronic monitoring
Electronic monitoring is used in Tasmania as a condition of parole and home detention. In February 2025, the Tasmanian government announced that it would be expanding its use of electronic monitoring to family violence offenders who are on bail. Electronic monitoring is already used as a bail condition in a number of Australian states and territories.
When a person is released on bail with an electronic monitoring condition, they must agree to have their location monitored via a device that is attached to their body. The device uses GPS technology to record their location and movements, and sends this information to the police.
If an electronic monitoring device alerts police to possible breach of a bail condition, the police may take action on the breach in real time.
Applying to vary bail conditions
If you have been granted bail by a court, you can apply to the court to vary the conditions of your bail. This may be appropriate if your circumstances have changed and the bail conditions that were imposed are no longer appropriate or workable – for example, because you are now in full-time employment.
The prosecution may also apply to the court to vary or revoke your bail.
Breach of bail
Under section 9 of the Bail Act 1994, a person who breaches a condition of their bail without reasonable cause is guilty of an offence. This offence is punishable by a maximum penalty of a fine of 20 penalty units, or 12 months imprisonment, or both.
A person who breaches their bail may be remanded in custody until their criminal matter is finalised. If they are charged with other offences in the future, it will be more difficult for them to obtain bail.
If you require legal advice or representation in any legal matter, please contact Go To Court Lawyers.
Fernanda Dahlstrom is a writer, editor and lawyer. She holds a Bachelor of Laws (Latrobe University), a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice (College of Law), a Bachelor of Arts (The University of Melbourne) and a Master of Arts (Deakin University). Fernanda practised law for eight years, working in criminal law, child protection and domestic violence law in the Northern Territory, and in family law in Queensland.