Performance Crime Offences (NSW)

In 2024, the New South Wales government introduced the concept of performance crime offences. A performance crime is a crime involving a motor vehicle offence or a break and enter offence about which material is disseminated advertising the offence. This page outlines the new laws about performance crime offences.

Review of laws

The laws relating to performance crime offence have been introduced for a period of two years. After this time, the NSW government must review the operation of the laws to determine whether the policy objectives remain valid, and whether the terms remain appropriate for achieving them.    

What are performance crime offences?

Under section 154K of the Crimes Act 1900, a performance crime is a crime that consists of a motor theft offence or a break and enter offence and where the offender disseminates material to advertise their involvement in the offending or the act or omission making up the offence.  

Penalty for performance crime offences

The maximum penalty for a performance crime offence is the maximum penalty that applies to the offence plus two years imprisonment.

For example, if a person is found guilty of posting online about committing the offence of breaking into a house with intent to commit a serious indictable offence, they will face a maximum penalty of 12 years imprisonment. The maximum penalty for the offence is ten years imprisonment and a further two years imprisonment will be added on because the person advertised their involvement in the offence.  

However, a person cannot be found guilty of both a motor vehicle offence or a break and enter  offence and a performance crime offence.  

Bail applications by young persons

In 2024, the NSW government introduced some special rules in relation to bail for certain offences.

Under section 22C of the Bail Act 2013, when a young person between the ages of 14 and 18 applies for bail in relation to a relevant offence that has allegedly occurred while they were on bail for another relevant offence, they will not be granted bail unless the bail authority has a high degree of confidence that they will not commit a serious indictable offence while on bail.

A relevant offence includes a performance crime offence as well as a motor theft offence or a serious break and enter offence.

Motor theft offences include:

• taking a conveyance without consent of the owner
• taking a vehicle or vessel with assault or with an occupant on board
• stealing a motor vehicle, vessel or trailer.

A serious break and enter offence is a break and enter offence with a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment or more.

A serious indictable offence is an offence with a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment or more.

These bail laws are a temporary measure which is to remain in force only for 12 months.  

Reasons for the changes

In his Second Reading speech, Michale Daley said that high crime rates in regional New South Wales needed to be addressed, and that during 2022 to 2023 there had been an increase in youth offending involving motor theft and break and enter offences. He also noted that repeat offending by teenagers had become a trend and that it was becoming common for offenders to post about their behaviour on social media.

Daley noted that repeat offending by adults attracts the ‘show cause’ provisions, which make it harder for a repeat offender to obtain bail. However, these provisions do not apply to accused young persons. For this reason, the additional bail threshold was introduced for repeat offenders who are aged 14 to 18. It was introduced only for a 12-month period because of concern about the potential for higher incarceration rates for youth, and in particular, for Indigenous youth.

Responses to the changes

The reforms have been criticised by the legal and Indigenous communities for neglecting the root causes of youth crime and for being unlikely to lead to a reduction in such crime. Concerns have been voiced that the laws will lead to higher rates of youth incarceration and to many of these youths remaining involved in the criminal justice system in the long term.  

Similar ‘posting and boasting’ laws have been passed in the Northern Territory. South Australia is also about to introduce legislation to criminalise promoting and glorifying criminal offending.   

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