By James Stevens, Director and Solicitor, Go To Court Lawyers. Last reviewed 10 April 2026.
Key points
- South Australia's register is for child sex offences. An adult sentenced for a class 1 or class 2 offence is registered automatically.
- How long: 8 years, 15 years or life, by the number and class of offences, never by the length of the sentence.
- Report contact with a child within 2 days; other changes within 7 days; trips of 7 or more days, or overseas, at least 7 days before.
- Breaches: $10,000 or 2 years; $25,000 or 5 years for not reporting contact with a child.
- A limited public register since 16 February 2026: wanted offenders, a Local Search and a parent's Disclosure Request.
- Child-related work is banned. Life registrants can ask the Supreme Court to suspend reporting after 15 years.
- For a lawyer, call 1800 577 015 at any hour: free general legal information, and a 60-minute consultation with a South Australian lawyer for a fixed $295.
In South Australia, an adult sentenced for a class 1 or class 2 child sex offence is registered automatically and must report to police for 8 years, 15 years or life, depending on the number and class of offences, and must report contact with a child within 2 days.
Checked on 23 October 2026 against the Child Sex Offenders Registration Act 2006 (SA, version of 16 February 2026) and its 2022 Regulations, the Child Safety (Prohibited Persons) Act 2016, the Commonwealth Criminal Code, SA Police, the Attorney-General's Department and the Legal Services Commission.
Who must register
- Automatically: anyone sentenced, in South Australia or elsewhere, for a class 1 or class 2 offence. Class 1 includes rape of a child, unlawful sexual intercourse with a child and sexual abuse of a child; class 2 includes indecent assault of a child, child exploitation material offences, procuring a child and communicating with a child with sexual intent. Some consensual conduct between teenagers close in age is excluded.
- Not automatically: offences committed as a child, and a single class 2 offence where the sentence had no jail and was not supervised (parole, home detention, community service or a strictly supervised bond).
- By court order: in those cases, or for other offences, a court can order registration if satisfied the person poses a risk to the safety and well-being of any child.
- From elsewhere: people registered in another state or country are registrable here. A pending appeal does not stop registration.
How long reporting lasts
| Offences (found guilty of, ever) | Reporting period |
|---|---|
| A single class 2 offence, where the sentence included jail or was a supervised sentence | 8 years |
| A single class 1 offence (other than sexual abuse of a child, section 50), or two class 2 offences | 15 years |
| Sexual abuse of a child (section 50); two or more class 1 offences; a class 1 and one or more class 2 offences; three or more class 2 offences | Life |
| Registered by a court order | The period the court sets |
| Registered in another state or country | That place's period (the longest, if several) |
The length of a jail sentence never sets the period; the number and class of offences do. Offences from one incident (the same person within 24 hours, or one act) count as one. Reporting starts on release from custody, or at sentence if you are not in custody, and the clock stops while you are in custody or outside South Australia.
What you must report, and when
| What | When |
|---|---|
| First report | Within 7 days after sentence (or a registration order), or after release from custody; someone arriving from elsewhere, within 7 days after being in South Australia 7 days in a row |
| Yearly report | Each year, on the date police set or in the anniversary month |
| Reportable contact with a child | Within 2 days of the contact |
| Any other change in your details | Within 7 days |
| Leaving South Australia for 7 or more days in a row, or any overseas trip | At least 7 days before (24 hours if 7 days is impracticable) |
| Back from reported travel | Within 7 days after being back 7 days in a row, with your passport if you went overseas |
What you report: names and former names; date of birth; home and postal addresses; the names and ages of children in your household, and of any child you are likely to have reportable contact with in the next 12 months; your work and workplaces; clubs with child members; vehicles; tattoos and permanent marks; findings of guilt elsewhere; time in custody; passports; regular interstate travel; phone and internet services; and your email addresses, passwords, social media accounts and user names. "Reportable contact" means physical contact, close proximity or any communication while visiting or living in a home, or supervising or caring for a child, or exchanging contact details, and it includes supervised contact.
Most reports are made in person, at a police station or another place police approve, with identification and a passport-style photograph; you can report out of public hearing with a support person, and someone more than 100 km from a station can phone ahead. Police can require "serious registrable offenders" (repeat offenders, or those the Commissioner declares at risk) to report more often, as often as monthly.
Penalties
| Offence | Maximum |
|---|---|
| Failing to comply with reporting obligations without a reasonable excuse | $10,000 or 2 years' jail |
| Failing to report reportable contact with a child | $25,000 or 5 years' jail |
| False or misleading information (about reportable contact) | $10,000 or 2 years ($25,000 or 5 years) |
| Applying for or doing child-related work | 5 years' jail |
| Not telling each parent before living in a home with a child, or staying overnight where a child stays | $25,000 or 5 years |
| Changing your name without the Commissioner's written permission | $10,000 or 2 years |
| Not giving police a device password or help | $25,000 or 5 years |
| Breaching a control order | 5 years' jail |
The court considers your age, any disability and whether the notice you were given was adequate, and it is a defence that you had not received notice and did not otherwise know of the obligation. Prosecutions must start within 2 years unless the Attorney-General authorises later.
The public register
South Australia's public register started on 16 February 2026. It does not give general access; it works in three ways, all through SA Police's online service and, at present, free:
- Wanted offenders (since 2014): photos and details of adult registrants who have failed to report or given false information and cannot be found.
- Local Search: a South Australian resident can see images of serious adult registrants living in their own suburb or town (repeat offenders, people on an extended supervision order, and those the Commissioner finds a risk).
- Disclosure Request: a parent or guardian can ask whether a named adult who has had unsupervised contact with their child on at least 3 days in 12 months is a registrant, and for what.
Children are never included, and registrants are not told who applied. Publishing the information without the Minister's approval carries up to 2 years' jail, and harassing an identified registrant up to 10 years.
Other restrictions
- Child-related work is banned (up to 5 years' jail): kindergartens, child care, schools, clubs with many child members, religious organisations, tutoring, babysitting, camps, children's transport, and, since 1 July 2025, businesses that employ children; and taxi and hire car work whether or not children are involved. Police can exempt some people in narrow cases. A person found guilty of a prescribed offence as an adult is also a prohibited person under the working with children law.
- Telling parents: before living in a home with a child, or staying overnight where a child stays, you must tell each parent or guardian that you are a registrant, and of what.
- Control orders: the Magistrates Court can restrict contact with people, places and kinds of work for up to 5 years. Serious registrable offenders can be required to wear a tracking device.
- Police powers: police can enter and search premises they reasonably suspect a registrant occupies, stop and search the registrant, and inspect devices, to check compliance.
- Changing your name needs the Commissioner's written permission.
- Leaving Australia needs written permission from a competent authority. Leaving without it while you have reporting obligations is a Commonwealth offence with a maximum of 5 years' jail, and your passport can be refused or cancelled. A state travel report is a separate duty and is not the same as permission.
Ending or changing reporting
- Life registrants only can apply to the Supreme Court, after 15 years since they were last sentenced or released (and not on parole). The court must be satisfied the person does not pose a risk to the safety and well-being of any child. If refused, wait 5 years. A suspension ends if the person is charged with or found guilty of another class 1 or 2 offence.
- Police (the Commissioner) can modify reporting or exempt someone from the work ban in narrow cases (some offences only, after 12 months' compliance, where no risk), and can suspend reporting for a person whose disability makes compliance impossible. Appeals go to the District Court within 1 month.
- A spent conviction does not end registration.
Young people
Offences committed as a child are not registered automatically; a court can order registration on sentencing if satisfied of a risk to children. A child reports with a parent or guardian present, and children are never part of the public register.
Recent changes
On 1 July 2025 businesses that employ children became child-related work. On 20 November 2025 any sexual abuse of a child (section 50) began to bring life reporting, social media accounts became reportable, and the password offence rose to $25,000 or 5 years. The public register opened on 16 February 2026. No change yet to start was shown on the official register on 23 October 2026.
Free legal help in South Australia
| Service | Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Legal Services Commission Legal Helpline | 1300 366 424 | 9am to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday |
| Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement | (08) 8113 3777, or free call 1800 643 222 (SA only) | Offices 9am to 5pm weekdays; emergency and criminal help 24 hours, 7 days |
The Legal Services Commission also has duty lawyers at many courts; it says to contact it before you go to court.
How Go To Court Lawyers can help
Our free line, 1800 577 015, answers at any hour. Jen, our AI legal information assistant, gives general legal information and takes your details; Jen is not a lawyer and does not give advice about your case. A 60-minute consultation with a lawyer who practises in South Australia is a fixed $295, by phone, video or in person where the lawyer offers it. The lawyer can advise whether a charge or sentence brings registration, a Supreme Court suspension application, and what to do about a missed report or a breach charge. Requests are taken at any hour; how soon a lawyer can see you depends on who is available. Request a $295 consultation.
General information only, not legal advice. Updated 23 October 2026. Checked against the Child Sex Offenders Registration Act 2006 (SA), version of 16 February 2026, and its amending Acts of 2024 and 2025, the Child Sex Offenders Registration Regulations 2022, the Child Safety (Prohibited Persons) Act 2016, the Legislation Interpretation Act 2021, the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) section 271A.1, SA Police's register pages and FAQs (February to March 2026), the Attorney-General's Department, the Legal Services Commission and the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, on 23 October 2026.