{"id":"a-2011-40","name":"Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011","slug":"smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"act","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"40 of 2011","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":24306,"registerId":"act-a-2011-40-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011","content":"Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nSmoking in Cars with Children\n(Prohibition) Act 2011\nA2011-40\nRepublication No 4\nEffective: 18 April 2025\nRepublication date: 18 April 2025\nLast amendment made by A2025-8\n\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAbout this republication\nThe republished law\nThis is a republication of the Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011 (including\nany amendment made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 (Editorial changes)) as in force\non 18 April 2025. It also includes any commencement, amendment, repeal or expiry affecting\nthis republished law to 18 April 2025.\nThe legislation history and amendment history of the republished law are set out in endnotes 3\nand 4.\nKinds of republications\nThe Parliamentary Counsel’s Office prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws (see the ACT\nlegislation register at www.legislation.act.gov.au):\n• authorised republications to which the Legislation Act 2001 applies\n• unauthorised republications.\nThe status of this republication appears on the bottom of each page.\nEditorial changes\nThe Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel to make editorial\namendments and other changes of a formal nature when preparing a law for republication.\nEditorial changes do not change the effect of the law, but have effect as if they had been made by\nan Act commencing on the republication date (see Legislation Act 2001, s 115 and s 117). The\nchanges are made if the Parliamentary Counsel considers they are desirable to bring the law into\nline, or more closely into line, with current legislative drafting practice.\nThis republication does not include amendments made under part 11.3 (see endnote 1).\nUncommenced provisions and amendments\nIf a provision of the republished law has not commenced, the symbol U appears immediately\nbefore the provision heading. Any uncommenced amendments that affect this republished law\nare accessible on the ACT legislation register (www.legislation.act.gov.au). For more\ninformation, see the home page for this law on the register.\nModifications\nIf a provision of the republished law is affected by a current modification, the\nsymbol M appears immediately before the provision heading. The text of the modifying\nprovision appears in the endnotes. For the legal status of modifications, see the Legislation\nAct 2001, section 95.\nPenalties\nAt the republication date, the value of a penalty unit for an offence against this law is $160 for an\nindividual and $810 for a corporation (see Legislation Act 2001, s 133).\n\nR4\n18/04/25\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\ncontents 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nSmoking in Cars with Children\n(Prohibition) Act 2011\nContents\nPage\n1 Name of Act 2\n3 Dictionary 2\n4 Notes 2\n5 Offences against Act—application of Criminal Code etc 2\n6 Meaning of smoke 3\n7 Offence to smoke in a vehicle with a child 4\n8 Enforcement powers of police officers 4\nDictionary 6\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes 7\n2 Abbreviation key 7\n\nContents\nPage\ncontents 2 Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\nR4\n18/04/25\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n3 Legislation history 8\n4 Amendment history 8\n5 Earlier republications 9\n\nR4\n18/04/25\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\npage 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nSmoking in Cars with Children\n(Prohibition) Act 2011\nAn Act to prohibit smoking in cars when children are present\n\nSection 1\npage 2 Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\nR4\n18/04/25\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n1 Name of Act\nThis Act is the Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition)\nAct 2011.\n3 Dictionary\nThe dictionary at the end of this Act is part of this Act.\nNote 1 The dictionary at the end of this Act defines certain terms used in this\nAct, and includes references (signpost definitions) to other terms defined\nelsewhere.\nFor example, the signpost definition ‘road—see the Road Transport\n(General) Act 1999, dictionary.’ means that the term ’road’ is defined in\nthat dictionary and the definition applies to this Act.\nNote 2 A definition in the dictionary (including a signpost definition) applies to\nthe entire Act unless the definition, or another provision of the Act,\nprovides otherwise or the contrary intention otherwise appears (see\nLegislation Act, s 155 and s 156 (1)).\n4 Notes\nA note included in this Act is explanatory and is not part of this Act.\nNote See the Legislation Act, s 127 (1), (4) and (5) for the legal status of notes.\n5 Offences against Act—application of Criminal Code etc\nOther legislation applies in relation to offences against this Act.\nNote 1 Criminal Code\nThe Criminal Code, ch 2 applies to all offences against this Act (see\nCode, pt 2.1).\nThe chapter sets out the general principles of criminal responsibility\n(including burdens of proof and general defences), and defines terms used\nfor offences to which the Code applies (eg conduct, intention,\nrecklessness and strict liability).\nNote 2 Penalty units\nThe Legislation Act, s 133 deals with the meaning of offence penalties\nthat are expressed in penalty units.\n\nSection 6\nR4\n18/04/25\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\npage 3\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n6 Meaning of smoke\n(1) For this Act, smoke means—\n(a) smoke from an ignited tobacco product or herbal product; or\n(b) vapour from an activated personal vaporiser or vaping good.\n(2) For this Act, a person smokes if the person—\n(a) directly puffs, draws or inhales smoke or vapour, whether or not\nthe person uses a device designed for the inhalation of smoke or\nvapour by a smoker; or\n(b) holds or has control over a smoking product while it is ignited\nor activated.\nExamples—devices—par (a)\n1 a cigarette holder\n2 a pipe (including a hookah, water pipe or bong)\n(3) In this section:\nherbal product—see the Tobacco and Other Smoking Products\nAct 1927, dictionary.\npersonal vaporiser—see the Tobacco and Other Smoking Products\nAct 1927, section 3B.\nsmoking product means any of the following:\n(a) a tobacco product;\n(b) a herbal product;\n(c) a personal vaporiser;\n(d) a vaping good.\ntobacco product—see the Tobacco and Other Smoking Products\nAct 1927, dictionary.\nvaping good—see the Tobacco and Other Smoking Products\nAct 1927, section 3C.\n\nSection 7\npage 4 Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\nR4\n18/04/25\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n7 Offence to smoke in a vehicle with a child\n(1) A person who is 16 years old, or older, commits an offence if—\n(a) the person smokes in a vehicle that is on a road or road related\narea; and\n(b) a child is in the vehicle.\nMaximum penalty: 50 penalty units.\nNote Child means a person under 16 years old (see dict).\n(2) An offence against this section is a strict liability offence.\n(3) In a prosecution for an offence against this section, evidence that a\nperson in the vehicle appeared to be under 16 years old is proof that\nthe person was under 16 years old, in the absence of evidence to the\ncontrary.\nNote The defendant has an evidential burden in relation to the matters\nmentioned in s (3) (see Criminal Code, s 58).\n8 Enforcement powers of police officers\n(1) If a police officer suspects on reasonable grounds that a person has\ncommitted an offence against section 7, the police officer may do 1 or\nmore of the following:\n(a) require the driver of the vehicle to—\n(i) stop the vehicle and produce the driver’s driver licence;\nand\n(ii) state the driver’s name, date of birth and home address;\n(b) require a person who is in the vehicle, and suspected of\ncommitting the offence, to—\n(i) stop smoking; and\n(ii) state the person’s name, date of birth and home address;\n\nSection 8\nR4\n18/04/25\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\npage 5\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n(c) require a person who is in the vehicle, and suspected of\ncommitting the offence, to produce an identification document\nif the person is carrying an identification document.\n(2) A person commits an offence if the person fails to comply with a\nrequirement made of the person by a police officer under\nsubsection (1) (a) or (b).\nMaximum penalty: 20 penalty units.\nNote It is an offence to produce false or misleading documents (see Criminal\nCode, s 339).\n(3) An offence against this section is a strict liability offence.\n(4) In this section:\nidentification document, includes the following:\n(a) an Australian driver licence or foreign driver licence;\n(b) a proof of identity card issued under the Liquor Act 2010,\nsection 210 (Proof of identity cards), or a corresponding\ndocument issued under the law of a State;\n(c) a passport;\n(d) a student card;\n(e) a document that contains a photograph that could reasonably be\ntaken to be the person and states the person’s name and date of\nbirth.\n\nDictionary\npage 6 Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\nR4\n18/04/25\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nDictionary\n(see s 3)\nNote 1 The Legislation Act contains definitions and other provisions relevant to\nthis Act.\nNote 2 For example, the Legislation Act, dict, pt 1, defines the following terms:\n• home address\n• police officer\n• proceeding.\nchild means a person who is under 16 years old.\ndriver—see the Road Transport (General) Act 1999, dictionary.\ndriver licence means—\n(a) an Australian driver licence under the Road Transport (Driver\nLicensing) Act 1999; or\n(b) an external driver licence under the Road Transport (Driver\nLicensing) Act 1999.\nroad—see the Road Transport (General) Act 1999, dictionary.\nroad related area—see the Road Transport (General) Act 1999,\ndictionary.\nsmoke—see section 6.\nvehicle—\n(a) means a motor vehicle under the Road Transport (General)\nAct 1999; but\n(b) does not include—\n(i) a campervan that is parked and set up as a place for living\nor sleeping; or\n(ii) a motorcycle.\n\nEndnotes\nAbout the endnotes 1\nR4\n18/04/25\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\npage 7\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes\nAmending and modifying laws are annotated in the legislation history and the\namendment history. Current modifications are not included in the republished law\nbut are set out in the endnotes.\nNot all editorial amendments made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 are\nannotated in the amendment history. Full details of any amendments can be\nobtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.\nUncommenced amending laws are not included in the republished law. The details\nof these laws are underlined in the legislation history. Uncommenced expiries are\nunderlined in the legislation history and amendment history.\nIf all the provisions of the law have been renumbered, a table of renumbered\nprovisions gives details of previous and current numbering.\nThe endnotes also include a table of earlier republications.\n2 Abbreviation key\nA = Act NI = Notifiable instrument\nAF = Approved form o = order\nam = amended om = omitted/repealed\namdt = amendment ord = ordinance\nAR = Assembly resolution orig = original\nch = chapter par = paragraph/subparagraph\nCN = Commencement notice pres = present\ndef = definition prev = previous\nDI = Disallowable instrument (prev...) = previously\ndict = dictionary pt = part\ndisallowed = disallowed by the Legislative r = rule/subrule\nAssembly reloc = relocated\ndiv = division renum = renumbered\nexp = expires/expired R[X] = Republication No\nGaz = gazette RI = reissue\nhdg = heading s = section/subsection\nIA = Interpretation Act 1967 sch = schedule\nins = inserted/added sdiv = subdivision\nLA = Legislation Act 2001 SL = Subordinate law\nLR = legislation register sub = substituted\nLRA = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 underlining = whole or part not commenced\nmod = modified/modification or to be expired\n\nEndnotes\n3 Legislation history\npage 8 Smoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\nR4\n18/04/25\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n3 Legislation history\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011 A2011-40\nnotified LR 1 November 2011\ns 1, s 2 commenced 1 November 2011 (LA s 75 (1))\nremainder commenced 1 May 2012 (s 2 and LA s 79)\nas amended by\nJustice Legislation Amendment Act 2016 A2016-7 sch 1 pt 1.10\nnotified LR 29 February 2016\ns 1, s 2 commenced 29 February 2016 (LA s 75 (1))\nsch 1 pt 1.10 commenced 29 August 2016 (s 2 and LA s 79)\nSmoke-Free Legislation Amendment Act 2016 A2016-20 pt 3\nnotified LR 13 April 2016\ns 1, s 2 commenced 13 April 2016 (LA s 75 (1))\npt 3 commenced 1 August 2016 (s 2 and CN2016-13)\nTobacco and Other Smoking Products (Vaping Goods) Amendment\nAct 2025 A2025-8 sch 1 pt 1.3\nnotified LR 17 April 2025\ns 1, s 2 commenced 17 April 2025 (LA s 75 (1))\nsch 1 pt 1.3 commenced 18 April 2025 (s 2)\n4 Amendment history\nCommencement\ns 2 om LA s 89 (4)\nMeaning of smoke\ns 6 hdg sub A2016-20 s 18\ns 6 am A2016-20 ss 19-21\nsub A2025-8 amdt 1.7\nEnforcement powers of police officers\ns 8 am A2016-7 amdt 1.23\nDictionary\ndict def herbal product om A2016-20 s 22\ndef personal vaporiser ins A2016-20 s 23\nom A2025-8 amdt 1.8\ndef smoking product sub A2016-20 s 24\nom A2025-8 amdt 1.8\ndef tobacco product om A2016-20 s 25\n\nEndnotes\nEarlier republications 5\nR4\n18/04/25\nSmoking in Cars with Children (Prohibition) Act 2011\nEffective: 18/04/25\npage 9\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n5 Earlier republications\nSome earlier republications were not numbered. The number in column 1 refers to\nthe publication order.\nSince 12 September 2001 every authorised republication has been published in\nelectronic pdf format on the ACT legislation register. A selection of authorised\nrepublications have also been published in printed format. These republications are\nmarked with an asterisk (*) in column 1. Electronic and printed versions of an\nauthorised republication are identical.\nRepublication\nNo and date\nEffective Last\namendment\nmade by\nRepublication\nfor\nR1\n1 May 2012\n1 May 2012–\n31 July 2016\nnot amended new Act\nR2\n1 Aug 2016\n1 Aug 2016–\n28 Aug 2016\nA2016-20 amendments by\nA2016-20\nR3\n29 Aug 2016\n29 Aug 2016–\n17 Apr 2025\nA2016-20 amendments by\nA2016-7\n© Australian Capital Territory 2025","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original 2011 Act prohibited only tobacco smoking. Amendments in 2016 and 2025 expanded the scope to include vaping and personal vaporisers, reflecting evolving public health concerns and new nicotine delivery technologies. However, the core purpose — protecting children from second-hand emissions in vehicles — remains unchanged."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute with only 8 operative sections plus dictionary","Minimal defined terms (only 6 substantive definitions in dictionary: child, driver, driver licence, road, road related area, vehicle)","Simple conditional structure: single offence with two elements (smoking + child present)","Cross-references limited to external definitions in Road Transport legislation and Tobacco and Other Smoking Products Act","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic — only straightforward exclusions for campervans and motorcycles in vehicle definition","Strict liability offence with minimal evidentiary provisions (appearance of age sufficient proof)","Recent amendments (2025) updated definitions to include vaping but maintained simple structure"],"plain_english_summary":"This law makes it an offence for anyone aged 16+ to smoke or vape in a vehicle on a road or road-related area when a child under 16 is present, protecting kids from concentrated second‑hand smoke and vapour. Police may stop vehicles and direct occupants to stop smoking.\n\nBreach carries substantial fines (up to 50 penalty units — currently $8,000; lesser fines for non‑compliance with police), with limited exceptions (e.g., parked campervans, motorcycles, private property)."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"Yes. The Act's substantive scope was broadened after enactment: section 6 now expressly includes vapour from \"personal vaporisers\" and \"vaping goods\" (see s 6), and related dictionary entries were amended. Enforcement provisions were also amended (s 8). The legislation history records amendments in 2016 and 2025 (Endnotes 3–4) that expanded regulated products and updated enforcement references."},"complexity_factors":["Strict‑liability offence with evidential burden about age (s 7(2)–(3)): lowers prosecution fault element but shifts evidential burden to defendant.","Police enforcement powers and associated offence for non‑compliance (s 8(1)–(2)): stop vehicle, require licence/ID, require person to stop smoking.","Cross‑references and signpost definitions: key terms (personal vaporiser, vaping good, herbal product, tobacco product, road, driver, vehicle) refer to other Acts/dictionaries (s 6(3), dictionary, s 3).","Broad definition of \"smoke\" that explicitly includes vapour from vaping devices (s 6(1)–(2)): expands regulated conduct beyond traditional smoking.","Specified vehicle exclusions and scope limits in the dictionary (vehicle excludes parked campervan set up for living and motorcycles): affects applicability.","Penalty structure expressed in penalty units and subject to external valuation (penalty unit value noted in republication header and Legislation Act reference).","Multiple amendment layers (2016 and 2025) affecting definitions and enforcement (Endnotes 3–4), requiring attention to amendment history for current scope."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act makes it an offence for anyone aged 16 or older to smoke in a motor vehicle on a road or road-related area when a child (under 16) is present. \"Smoke\" covers smoke from ignited tobacco or herbal products and vapour from activated personal vapourisers or vaping goods. The law creates strict-liability offences, gives police powers to stop vehicles, require ID and order people to stop smoking, and sets maximum fines (up to 50 penalty units). It affects drivers and passengers who smoke and police who enforce the rule."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011","history":"/api/acts/smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011/history","analysis":"/api/acts/smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/smoking-in-cars-with-children-prohibition-act-2011/documents"}}