{"id":"sr:drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024","name":"Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024","slug":"drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"vic","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":183908,"registerId":"vic-sr:drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024","content":"Version No. 001\n\n**Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024**\n\n**S.R. No. 34/2024**\n\nVersion as at  \n1 June 2024\n\n**TABLE OF PROVISIONS**\n\n*Regulation Page*\n\n1 Objective 1\n\n2 Authorising provision 1\n\n3 Commencement 1\n\n4 Revocation 1\n\n5 Form of notice under section 81A of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 1\n\n6 Form of notice under section 81D of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 2\n\nSchedule 1—Forms 3\n\n═════════════\n\nEndnotes 7\n\n1 General information 7\n\n2 Table of Amendments 9\n\n3 Explanatory details 10\n\n**Version No.** **001**\n\n**Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024**\n\n**S.R. No. 34/2024**\n\nVersion as at  \n1 June 2024\n\n\t1 Objective\n\nThe objective of these Regulations is to prescribe forms for the purposes of sections 81A and 81D of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**.\n\n\t2 Authorising provision\n\nThese Regulations are made under section 132 of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**.\n\n\t3 Commencement\n\nThese Regulations come into operation on 1 June 2024.\n\n\t4 Revocation\n\nThe Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2014[[1]](#endnote-1) are **revoked**.\n\n\t5 Form of notice under section 81A of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981\n\nFor the purposes of section 81A(2)(b) of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**, the prescribed form is Form 1 of Schedule 1.\n\n\t6 Form of notice under section 81D of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981\n\nFor the purposes of section 81D(2)(b) of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**, the prescribed form is Form 2 of Schedule 1.\n\nSchedule 1—Forms\n\nFORM 1\n\nRegulation 5\n\n**NOTICE THAT SEIZED PROPERTY IS BEING HELD**\n\n**Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**—section 81A\n\nYou have received this notice because a magistrate has made a direction affecting property in which you have an interest.\n\nA warrant under section 81 of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981** was issued\n\n| at [*insert time*] on [*insert date*] | by | Magistrate [*insert name*]. |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n\n\nThe warrant was issued to—\n\n| Name, Rank, No. |  |\n| --- | --- |\n| Address |  |\n\n\nThe warrant authorised the seizure of property in connection with a criminal investigation. When the warrant was issued, the magistrate directed under section 81(1A) of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981** that the police officer who applied for the warrant hold or retain specified property seized under the warrant after it was no longer required for evidentiary purposes under that Act. The magistrate made this direction on the basis that the specified property was also ***tainted property*** under the **Confiscation Act 1997**.\n\nThe warrant was executed at [*insert address or description of land or premises*].\n\nWhen the warrant was executed, police seized property in which you have an interest. This property is described below.\n\nThis property is no longer required for evidentiary purposes under the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**. In accordance with the direction of the magistrate, the property will be held by the police and dealt with under the **Confiscation Act 1997**, as if it had been seized under a warrant under section 79 of that Act.\n\nProperty which will be held—\n\n| [*insert description of property*] |\n| --- |\n\n\nProperty seized under a warrant under section 79 of the **Confiscation Act 1997** may be returned to you in certain circumstances under section 97 of that Act.\n\nVictoria Police or the Asset Confiscation Operations business unit in the Department of Justice and Community Safety may be contacted for more information at [*insert contact details*].\n\nFORM 2\n\nRegulation 6\n\n**NOTICE THAT SEIZED PROPERTY IS BEING HELD**\n\n**Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**—section 81D\n\nYou have received this notice because the Magistrates' Court has made a direction affecting property in which you have an interest.\n\nA warrant under section 81 of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981** was issued\n\n| at [*insert time*] on [*insert date*] | by | Magistrate [*insert name*]. |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n\n\nThe warrant was issued to—\n\n| Name, Rank, No. |  |\n| --- | --- |\n| Address |  |\n\n\nThe warrant authorised the seizure of property in connection with a criminal investigation. When the warrant was executed, police seized property in which you have an interest. This property is described below.\n\nThe warrant was executed at [*insert address or description of land or premises*].\n\nWhen the warrant was returned to the Magistrates' Court, the Court directed under section 81C of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981** that a police officer hold or retain the property described below after it was no longer required for evidentiary purposes under that Act. The Magistrates' Court made this direction on the basis that this property was also ***tainted property*** under the **Confiscation Act 1997**.\n\nThis property is no longer required for evidentiary purposes. In accordance with the direction of the Magistrates' Court, the property will be held by the police and dealt with under the **Confiscation Act 1997**, as if it had been seized under a warrant under section 79 of that Act.\n\nProperty which will be held—\n\n| [*insert description of property*] |\n| --- |\n\n\nProperty seized under a warrant under section 79 of the **Confiscation Act 1997** may be returned to you in certain circumstances under section 97 of that Act.\n\nVictoria Police or the Asset Confiscation Operations business unit in the Department of Justice and Community Safety may be contacted for more information at [*insert contact details*].\n\n═════════════\n\nEndnotes\n\n1 General information\n\nSee [www.legislation.vic.gov.au](http://www.legislation.vic.gov.au) for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.\n\nThe Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024, S.R. No. 34/2024 were made on 21 May 2024 by the Lieutenant-Governor as the Governor's deputy, with the advice of the Executive Council, under section 132 of the **Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981**, No. 9719/1981 and came into operation on 1 June 2024: regulation 3.\n\nThe Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024 will sunset 10 years after the day of making on 21 May 2034 (see section 5 of the **Subordinate Legislation Act 1994**).\n\nINTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)\n\nStyle changes\n\nSection 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.\n\nReferences to ILA s. 39B\n\nSidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided regulation, rule or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subregulations, subrules or subclauses the original regulation, rule or clause becomes subregulation, subrule or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression \"(1)\" at the beginning of the original regulation, rule or clause.\n\nInterpretation\n\nAs from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:\n\n• Headings\n\nAll headings included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after  \n1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any heading inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.  \nThis includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; Orders; Parts into which an Order is divided; clauses; regulations; rules; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms.  \nSee section 36(1A)(2A)(2B).\n\n• Examples, diagrams or notes\n\nAll examples, diagrams or notes included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Statutory Rule. See section 36(3A).\n\n• Punctuation\n\nAll punctuation included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after  \n1 January 2001 forms part of that Statutory Rule. Any punctuation inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.  \nSee section 36(3B).\n\n• Provision numbers\n\nAll provision numbers included in a Statutory Rule form part of that Statutory Rule, whether inserted in the Statutory Rule before, on or after  \n1 January 2001. Provision numbers include regulation numbers, rule numbers, subregulation numbers, subrule numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).\n\n• Location of \"legislative items\"\n\nA \"legislative item\" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of a Statutory Rule is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.\n\n• Other material\n\nAny explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of a Statutory Rule. See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).\n\n2 Table of Amendments\n\nThere are no amendments made to the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances (Confiscation) Regulations 2024 by statutory rules, subordinate instruments and Acts.\n\n3 Explanatory details\n\n1. Reg. 4: S.R. No. 50/2014 as amended by S.R. No. 50/2014. [↑](#endnote-ref-1)","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available information, the regulation appears to be narrowly focused on its stated purpose: the confiscation of drugs, poisons, and controlled substances. There is no evidence from the provided text that the scope has broadened or shifted from the original regulatory intent. However, the absence of full substantive content means this assessment is made with limited certainty."},"complexity_factors":["Operates as a subordinate instrument under a parent Act (Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act), requiring understanding of both documents together","Involves multiple regulated categories (drugs, poisons, controlled substances) each with potentially different legal thresholds and definitions","Affects a wide range of people differently — from criminal suspects to licensed medical and scientific professionals","Confiscation powers typically intersect with constitutional rights (e.g. property rights, search and seizure protections), adding legal nuance","Full substantive content was not available for analysis, limiting confidence in complexity assessment — actual score may be higher depending on procedural detail"],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set out how authorities may seize and confiscate drugs, poisons and controlled substances, applying to law enforcement and authorised officials as well as anyone who possesses such substances — legally (pharmacists, medical professionals) or illegally — and businesses that handle them.\n\nIt matters because it defines who can take substances, under what circumstances, and clarifies seizure boundaries for legitimate handlers; full substantive text wasn’t supplied, so this reflects likely scope from the title."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulations maintain their original narrow purpose: prescribing forms for notices under specific sections of the Drugs Act. The 2024 version simply updates the 2014 regulations without expanding scope."},"complexity_factors":["Only 6 regulations total, with minimal text","No defined terms section — relies entirely on definitions in the parent Act (Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981)","Simple, linear structure: objective, commencement, revocation, and two form-prescription provisions","No conditional logic, exceptions, or nested provisions","Cross-references are limited to specific sections (81A, 81D, 132) of a single parent Act","Forms are template documents with fill-in-the-blank fields rather than complex legal provisions"],"plain_english_summary":"This legislation is a set of regulations that creates two official forms for police to use when they seize property during drug investigations.\n\n**What it does:**\nWhen police investigate drug crimes, they sometimes seize property (like cash, cars, or other assets) that might be connected to the crime. Normally, once that property is no longer needed as evidence in the drug case, it would be returned. But sometimes that same property is also suspected of being \"tainted property\" — meaning it's believed to be the proceeds of crime or used in crime under the **Confiscation Act 1997**.\n\nThese regulations create two specific notice forms that police must send to property owners in this situation:\n\n- **Form 1**: Used when a magistrate gives a direction *at the time* the original search warrant is issued (under section 81A of the Drugs Act)\n- **Form 2**: Used when the Magistrates' Court gives a direction *after* the warrant has been executed and returned (under section 81D of the Drugs Act)\n\nBoth forms tell the property owner:\n- That their property is being held even though it's no longer needed for the drug investigation\n- That it will now be dealt with under the Confiscation Act 1997 (which allows the government to permanently seize crime-related assets)\n- That they may be able to get their property back under certain circumstances\n- Who to contact for more information\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- People whose property has been seized during drug investigations\n- Police officers who must issue these notices\n- The courts that make directions about holding property\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis ensures people are properly notified when their seized property moves from being \"evidence in a drug case\" to \"potentially forfeited under proceeds of crime laws.\" It protects property rights by ensuring transparency and giving people information about how to potentially recover their property."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument retains a narrow procedural scope: it prescribes the text of notices for use when seized property is held for confiscation and revokes the 2014 regulations (reg 1; reg 4; regs 5–6). It does not create new powers for magistrates or police in the seizure/confiscation process; substantive decision‑making and definitions remain governed by the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 and the Confiscation Act 1997 (Forms)."},"complexity_factors":["Narrow, procedural subject matter—only prescribes two notice forms and attendant text (reg 1; regs 5–6; Schedule 1).","Cross‑statutory interaction—forms trigger application of the Confiscation Act 1997 and refer to evidentiary stages of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Forms; regs 5–6).","Legal dependence on external definitions and tests—meaning and effect of 'tainted property' and returnability depend on the Confiscation Act 1997 (Forms reference Confiscation Act 1997).","Administrative detail—forms require insertion of specific operational data (times, names, property descriptions, contact details), imposing record‑keeping requirements on police (Schedule 1 forms).","Transitional/legal housekeeping—revocation of the 2014 Regulations requires practitioners to adopt the new forms (reg 4).","Temporal limit—statutory rule will sunset in 10 years, affecting medium‑term planning (Endnotes)."],"plain_english_summary":"These Regulations prescribe two official notice forms that police must use when property seized under the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 is held for possible confiscation under the Confiscation Act 1997 (Forms for s81A and s81D). They revoke the 2014 confiscation regulations and commence 1 June 2024. Who decides: a magistrate or the Magistrates' Court directs that property be held (regs 5–6). Who pays: property owners may face delay or loss while police hold property. Compliance: police must use the prescribed forms and give notice to people with an interest."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024","history":"/api/acts/drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024/history","analysis":"/api/acts/drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-confiscation-regulations-2024/documents"}}