Corrective Services Act 2006

Adult prisoners in Queensland custody, the chief executive of Queensland Corrective Services, the commissioner of the Queensland Police Service (for transfer custody), corrective services officers and staff members, the Parole Board Queensland and its president and deputy president, members of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community providing cultural support (elders, respected persons and spiritual healers under Chapter 6), official visitors and inspectors, engaged service providers contracted to deliver corrective services functions, authorised practitioners providing health services, volunteers, family members of prisoners (visiting, communications), entities applying for grants of financial assistance under section 248, and people on or near corrective services land who could be affected by the offences in Chapter 3.

The chief executive must ensure new prisons make appropriate provision for the matters in section 150: a meeting place for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners that promotes communication and endorses indigenous cultural heritage; for prisons accommodating female prisoners, accommodation units that allow prisoners to care for young children; areas suitable for children visiting their parents; facilities for prisoners experiencing psychological crises; accommodation and access requirements for older prisoners and prisoners with disabilities; and videoconferencing technology to maintain family contact and for court appearances. Section 150 was amended in 2017.

Corrective services officers must produce or display their identity card before exercising a power (section 278), unless it is not practicable. The chief executive must issue an identity card containing the officer's photograph, signature, identification as a corrective services officer, and an expiry date (section 277).

Under section 113, a corrective services officer must not start proceedings against a prisoner for a breach of discipline if the prisoner's act or omission was referred to the commissioner under section 114(5), unless the commissioner has advised the chief executive that the matter is not to be prosecuted as an offence. The chief executive must refer to the commissioner within 48 hours under section 114(5) any matter that could be a sexual offence in schedule 1 or an offence with a maximum penalty of 14 years or more, and must tell the prisoner that the matter has been referred.

Under section 176A, the Parole Board Queensland must refuse a restricted prisoner's exceptional circumstances parole order unless all three statutory grounds are satisfied: imminent danger of dying or incapacitation, no unacceptable risk to the public, and the order being justified in the circumstances. If the board grants parole, it must give the chief executive written notice as soon as practicable.

Section 149 lets the Governor in Council declare a place to be a prison and assign it a name, where "place" includes premises and parts of premises. Section 151 gives the Minister power, by gazette notice, to declare community corrections centres and work camps and to assign them names; "place" there extends to vehicles.

Section 113 gives a corrective services officer a discretion not to start proceedings for a breach of discipline if the breach is trivial, or because of the circumstances surrounding the commission of the breach, or the prisoner's previous conduct. The officer also chooses whether to proceed against the prisoner for a major or minor breach of discipline, except where the matter has been referred to the commissioner and not prosecuted as an offence, in which case the officer may only choose major breach.

Section 176 lets a prisoner apply for an exceptional circumstances parole order at any time, subject to sections 176B and 176C. Sections 205 to 211 give the Parole Board Queensland power to amend, suspend, cancel parole orders and issue warrants for the arrest of prisoners whose orders have been amended, suspended or cancelled. Section 208B provides for suspension by a prescribed board member, and section 208C provides for review of that suspension by the parole board.

Section 250 lets the chief executive approve a grant of financial assistance for programs or services that will promote prisoner welfare or help former prisoners reintegrate after release, taking into account whether the program or service is currently provided for and whether the entity is receiving financial assistance from another source.

Section 276 gives a corrective services officer the powers given by an Act, subject to chief executive directions, with power-limiting tools including regulations, conditions of appointment and written notices.

Chapter 3 contains the offence creation provisions. Section 124 catches "other offences". Sections 126 to 133 list specific offences against corrective services administration: helping a prisoner at large (section 126); obstructing a staff member or proper officer of a court (section 127); taking a prohibited thing into a corrective services facility or giving a prohibited thing to a prisoner (section 128); removing things from a corrective services facility (section 129); unlawful entry (section 130); killing or injuring a corrective services dog (section 131); interviewing and photographing prisoners other than as permitted (section 132); and interfering with records (section 133).

Chapter 3 Part 1 deals with breaches of discipline by prisoners. Section 113 and section 114 set the procedural rules. Internal proceedings for breach of discipline run separately from criminal proceedings, with reference to the commissioner where the conduct could be an offence with significant maximum penalty.

Chapter 3 Part 5 (seizing property) and Part 6 (use of force) confer further enforcement-style powers. Use of force provisions sit at section 366689 in the source layout, and structure the lawful use of force on prisoners.

Detention of a sentenced prisoner in a watch house is capped at 21 days under section 6. Where the period of imprisonment is more than 21 days, the prisoner can be detained in a watch house only until they can be conveniently taken to a corrective services facility.

Where the chief executive must refer a matter to the commissioner (section 114(5)), the referral and notice to the prisoner must occur within 48 hours after the corrective services officer informed the chief executive of the matter.

Parole order administration runs through the Parole Board Queensland (Chapter 5 Part 2). Sections 205 and 206 set the amendment, suspension, cancellation and arrest warrant process. Section 211 sets the effect of cancellation. Sections 208B and 208C cover prescribed board member suspension and review by the board.

Section 490ZP (inserted in 2025) is a saving provision: it deems valid any parole board decisions made between 3 July 2017 and the commencement of section 208C, where a prescribed board member made a decision under section 208B and the parole board purported to review and confirm, set aside, or substitute its own decision to suspend or cancel a parole order. The decision is taken to have always been as valid as if made under new section 208C, and anything done in reliance on it is taken to have always been valid and lawful, even if a proceeding is on foot.

Section 6 expressly applies subject to the Criminal Code, the Youth Justice Act 1992, the Mental Health Act 2016, and the Parliament of Queensland Act 2001 section 40(4)(a) (proceedings for punishment by the Legislative Assembly for contempt). The Corrective Services Act 2000 (the 2000 Act) is the predecessor; Chapter 7 transitional provisions read 2000 Act actions and things across with necessary changes (section 357). Section 358 and section 360 carry forward custody and the role of the commissioner. Section 359 carries forward custody held by the chief executive.

The Public Service Act 2008 governs the chief executive and staff appointments, with Chapter 6 Part 7 extending into police-service-style integrity provisions. Schedule 1 references sexual offences for the purposes of section 114(3).

The Federal Court of Australia recognised the Corrective Services Act 2006 (Qld) section 276 as the source of corrective services officers' powers when considering a Federal Circuit Court contempt warrant in Stradford v Vasta [2023] FCA 1020. The High Court in Queensland v Stradford [2025] HCA 3 referenced Chapter 2 Part 1 (custody and admission of prisoners) in setting out the framework under which Mr Stradford was detained.

The Act's structure means that the most consequential operational rules sit deep in the section sequence. Sections 205, 206 and 211 (parole order amendment, suspension, cancellation, warrant for arrest, and effect of cancellation) are drawn on by criminal courts when determining sentence calculations and the legal status of a prisoner at large, including in interstate proceedings such as Krzykalski v R [2023] NSWCCA 32.

Section 490ZP's deeming language is unusual. It declares decisions of the parole board "valid as it would have been if the decision were made under new section 208C", and adds "even if a proceeding relating to the decision of the parole board has been commenced in a court". Practitioners with parole board judicial review on foot should test the section's reach against Kirk principles before assuming any pending proceeding is dead.

Restricted prisoner declarations operate as a hard refusal on parole applications by the named prisoner. The Parole Board Queensland's discretion under section 176A is functionally a denial unless all three of the medical, risk and justification limbs are made out.

Section 113 makes the choice between major and minor breach of discipline a discretion of the corrective services officer. The decision flips to "major only" once the conduct has been referred to the commissioner and is not to be prosecuted as an offence, which can lock a prisoner into a major-breach hearing for conduct the commissioner declined to prosecute.

Section 6's watch house cap is 21 days, not 14 days. The longer-period limb of section 6 says only that the prisoner may be detained in a watch house until they can be conveniently taken to a corrective services facility, with no fixed cap, leaving "convenience" as the operative restraint.

A federal warrant of commitment for contempt that directs delivery of a person to "the Commissioner of Queensland Corrective Services" is given operational effect through Chapter 2 Part 1 of this Act. The Federal Court analysed this chain in Stradford v Vasta [2023] FCA 1020, naming section 276 in the legislation list. The High Court considered the appeal in Queensland v Stradford [2025] HCA 3, with Chapter 2 Part 1 as the framework citation.

A New South Wales sentencing court taking into account a prisoner's status under a Queensland parole order will rely on sections 205, 206 and 211 to characterise whether a parole order was amended, suspended or cancelled, and whether a warrant for arrest had issued. Krzykalski v R [2023] NSWCCA 32 has those sections in the stored case_legislation_citations row.

A community organisation seeking funds for a prison reintegration program lodges a written application under section 248 to the chief executive. The chief executive may approve under section 250 if satisfied the program will promote prisoner welfare or help former prisoners reintegrate, having regard to whether the program is already provided and whether the entity has other funding.

A new women's prison being commissioned must include accommodation units for prisoners caring for young children, areas suitable for visiting children, facilities for prisoners experiencing psychological crises, access for older prisoners and prisoners with disabilities, and videoconferencing for family contact and court appearances. These are not aspirational; section 150 expresses them as ensuring "appropriate provision is made".