This Act makes it a criminal offence to enter or remain on "inclosed lands" without consent, with tiered penalties (higher for prescribed premises and aggravated conduct on agricultural or business sites) and specific rules for event re‑entry prohibitions. It enables owners/occupiers to exclude or apprehend trespassers, allows police to issue penalty notices, and leaves further detail to regulations.
It chiefly affects landowners, occupiers, event organisers and people who enter land without permission.
The Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901 (NSW) creates a suite of summary offences directed at unauthorised entry onto, and conduct upon, land that is physically demarcated as private or institutionally occupied. At its core, s 4(1) provides that any person who, without lawful excuse (the onus of proving which lies on the defendant), enters inclosed lands without the consent of the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge, or who remains after a request to leave, is liable to a penalty. The Act deliberately uses the archaic spelling “inclosed” to reflect its 1901 origins, yet its substantive reach has been modernised through successive amendments.
Section 3 supplies the definitional spine. “Inclosed lands” means either “prescribed premises” or any land (public or private) surrounded by a fence, wall, canal, river or cliff, including buildings and associated land. “Prescribed premises” capture government and non-government schools (Education Act 1990), child care services (with explicit exclusions for family day care and out-of-home care under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998), public and private hospitals (Health Services Act 1997 and Private Health Facilities Act 2007), and nursing homes (Public Health Act 2010). The definition expressly excludes parts of buildings used for unrelated purposes, preventing over-reach.
A separate, more serious regime applies to agricultural land. Section 4B creates an aggravated offence where a person commits a s 4 trespass on land on which a business or undertaking is conducted and then engages in any of nine listed aggravating acts. These range from interfering with the business (s 4B(1)(a)), creating serious safety risks (s 4B(1)(b)), introducing a biosecurity impact within the meaning of the (s 4B(1)(c)), intending to commit certain property or hunting offences (s 4B(1)(d)), possessing hunting equipment or firearms without reasonable excuse (s 4B(1)(e)–(f)), being accompanied by a hunting dog (s 4B(1)(g)), damaging property on agricultural land (s 4B(1)(h)), or wilfully or negligently releasing livestock (s 4B(1)(i)). Penalty differentials are stark: on agricultural land the maximum is 120 penalty units or 12 months imprisonment (or 200 penalty units or 3 years where two or more persons are involved or certain safety risks are created); elsewhere the ceiling is 50 penalty units.
Current sections
Direct links to the current provisions in Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901.
agricultural land means inclosed lands on which any of the following businesses or undertakings are carried on—
(a) a farm, being any business or undertaking for agricultural purposes (including an orchard, market garden, mushroom farm, vineyard, plant nursery or turf farm),
(b) any other business or undertaking in which cattle, poultry, pigs, goats, horses, sheep or other livestock are kept or bred for commercial purposes (for example, a dairy, saleyard or feedlot),
(c) a business or undertaking for the commercial production of products derived from the slaughter of animals (including poultry) or the processing of skins or wool of animals, including abattoirs, knackeries, tanneries, woolscours and rendering plants,
(d) a business or undertaking for forestry (including timber mills) or aquaculture.
child care service means any service that is provided by a person for the purpose of educating, minding or caring for one or more children (disregarding any children who are related to the person providing the service), but does not include any such service if the service is—
(a) provided by a person at the premises at which the children reside, or
(b) any land, either public or private, inclosed or surrounded by any fence, wall or other erection, or partly by a fence, wall or other erection and partly by a canal or by some natural feature such as a river or cliff by which its boundaries may be known or recognised, including the whole or part of any building or structure and any land occupied or used in connection with the whole or part of any building or structure.
prescribed premises means land occupied or used in connection with any of the following—
(a) a government school or a registered non-government school within the meaning of the Education Act 1990,
and any building or structure erected on that land, but does not include all or part of any building or structure that is for the time being occupied or used for a purpose unconnected with the conduct of such a school, child care service, hospital or nursing home.
Road means any land proclaimed, dedicated, resumed or otherwise provided as a public thoroughfare or way or any land defined, reserved or left as a road in any subdivision of lands.
(2) Where a road is lawfully inclosed with the lands of any person, those lands, but not the road, shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act to be the inclosed lands of the person.
s 3: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (a); 1979 No 73, sec 3 (a); 1987 No 63, Sch 2; 1997 No 97, Sch 1 [1]–[3]; 1998 No 158, Sch 2.17; 1999 No 31, Sch 3.10; 2001 No 121, Sch 2.124 [1]; 2004 No 87, Sch 6.8; 2007 No 9, Sch 5.15; 2010 No 127, Sch 4.12; 2017 No 63, Sch 4.23; 2019 No 15, Sch 2[1].
4
Unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4 Unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4 Unlawful entry on inclosed lands
(1) Any person who, without lawful excuse (proof of which lies on the person), enters into inclosed lands without the consent of the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of those lands, or who remains on those lands after being requested by the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of those lands to leave those lands, is liable to a penalty not exceeding—
(a) 10 penalty units in the case of prescribed premises, or
(b) 5 penalty units in any other case.
(1A) A drover or person in charge of stock being driven on a road lawfully inclosed within the lands of any person has a lawful excuse for entering those lands for the purpose of preventing the stock from straying, or regaining control of stock that have strayed, from that road.
(2) Where a road is lawfully inclosed with the lands of any person, and such road is not clearly defined but there is a reasonably defined track commonly used by persons passing through such lands, the centre of such track shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be the centre of the road.
(3) Where a road is lawfully inclosed with the lands of any person and such road is not clearly defined and there is no reasonably defined track through such lands a person passing through such inclosed lands shall not be guilty of an offence unless it is shown that the route taken by such person in so passing was, having regard to the circumstances, unreasonable.
(4) In this section, stock includes horses, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and camels.
s 4: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (b); 1964 No 14, sec 2 (a); 1979 No 73, sec 3 (b); 1987 No 39, Sch 1 (1); 1989 No 199, Sch 1 (1); 1993 No 47, Sch 1; 1997 No 97, Sch 1 [4] [5].
4AA
Unlawful re-entry on inclosed lands
4AA Unlawful re-entry on inclosed lands
4AA Unlawful re-entry on inclosed lands
(1) A person who, without reasonable excuse, knowingly enters an event venue during an organised event in contravention of a re-entry prohibition given to the person is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty—10 penalty units.
(2) A re-entry prohibition is a direction given by a responsible authority for an organised event, after a person has been directed to leave the organised event, that directs the person—
(a) not to re-enter the event venue during the organised event, or
(b) not to enter any specified event venue during an organised event for which the responsible authority is the responsible authority,
or both.
(3) A re-entry prohibition may be given orally in person or in writing.
(4) The responsible authority must, at the time of giving the re-entry prohibition—
(a) specify the event venue or venues, and organised event or events, to which the re-entry prohibition applies, and
(b) specify the duration of the re-entry prohibition, and
(c) state the reason why the re-entry prohibition is being given, and
(d) warn the person subject to the re-entry prohibition that it is an offence to contravene the re-entry prohibition.
(5) Proof of reasonable excuse under this section lies on the person charged with the offence.
(6) If a person who enters an event venue in contravention of a re-entry prohibition is also prohibited or banned from entering the event venue under another Act or law, the person cannot be found guilty of both an offence under this Act and an offence under the other Act or law in respect of the same conduct.
(7) In this section—
event organiser in relation to an organised event means the person in charge or apparently in charge of the organised event and who has the power to admit persons to or exclude persons from attending the organised event.
event venue means that part of inclosed lands used for an organised event to which right of entry is conferred by a ticket, membership or similar arrangement.
organised event means—
(a) an organised sporting event, and includes any performance, ceremony or formalities conducted in conjunction with the event, or
(b) an organised public exhibition, fair, convention, performance, ceremony, festival or similar event, or
(c) an event of a kind prescribed by the regulations.
responsible authority for an organised event means—
(a) the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of the event venue used or to be used for the organised event, or
(b) the event organiser.
s 4AA: Ins 2014 No 59, Sch 1.9.
4A
Offensive conduct while on inclosed lands
4A Offensive conduct while on inclosed lands
4A Offensive conduct while on inclosed lands
(1) Any person, who remains upon the inclosed lands of another person after being requested by the owner or occupier or the person apparently in charge of those lands to leave those lands and while remaining upon those lands conducts himself or herself in such a manner as would be regarded by reasonable persons as being, in all the circumstances, offensive, is liable to a penalty not exceeding—
(a) 20 penalty units in the case of prescribed premises, or
(b) 10 penalty units in any other case.
(2) It is a sufficient defence to a prosecution for an offence under this section if the defendant satisfies the court that the defendant had a reasonable excuse for conducting himself or herself in the manner alleged in the information for the offence.
s 4A: Ins 1979 No 73, sec 3 (c). Am 1983 No 188, Sch 1; 1987 No 39, Sch 1 (2); 1989 No 199, Sch 1 (2); 1993 No 47, Sch 1; 1997 No 97, Sch 1 [6].
4B
Aggravated unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4B Aggravated unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4B Aggravated unlawful entry on inclosed lands
(1) A person is guilty of an offence under this section if the person commits an offence under section 4 in relation to inclosed lands on which any business or undertaking is conducted and, while on those lands—
(a) interferes with, or attempts or intends to interfere with, the conduct of the business or undertaking, or
(b) does anything that gives rise to a serious risk to the safety of the person or any other person on those lands, or
(c) introduces or increases a risk of a biosecurity impact (within the meaning of the Biosecurity Act 2015) for those inclosed lands, or
(d) intends to commit on those inclosed lands an offence under any of the following provisions—
(e) without reasonable excuse, possesses, places or uses any net, trap, snare, poison, explosive, ammunition, knife, hunting device or hunting equipment, or
(f) without reasonable excuse, possesses or discharges a firearm (within the meaning of the Firearms Act 1996) or a prohibited weapon (within the meaning of the Weapons Prohibition Act 1998), or
(g) is accompanied by a dog of a breed ordinarily used for hunting, or
(h) damages property on agricultural land, or
(i) wilfully or negligently releases any livestock.
Maximum penalty—
(a) for an offence that occurs on agricultural land—
(i) 120 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both, or
(ii) 200 penalty units or imprisonment for 3 years, or both if—
(A) the offender was accompanied by 2 or more persons when the offence occurred, or
(B) the aggravating circumstances were those set out in subsection (1)(b), or
(b) for an offence that occurs on land other than agricultural land—50 penalty units.
(2) If, on the trial of a person for an offence under this section, the court is not satisfied that the accused is guilty of the offence charged, but is satisfied that the accused is guilty of an offence under section 4, the court may find the accused not guilty of the offence charged but guilty of an offence under section 4, and the accused is liable to punishment accordingly.
(3) Proof of reasonable excuse under this section lies on the person charged with the offence.
s 4B: Ins 2016 No 7, Sch 1. Am 2017 No 62, Sch 1.4 [1] [2]; 2019 No 15, Sch 2[2] [3].
4C
Direct, incite, counsel, procure, commission or induce aggravated unlawful entry
A person must not direct, incite, counsel, procure, commission or induce the commission, on agricultural land, of an offence against section 4B.
Maximum penalty—100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
s 4C: Ins 2019 No 15, Sch 2[4].
5
Leaving gate open
5 Leaving gate open
5 Leaving gate open
(1) A person who enters into or upon the inclosed lands of any other person and wilfully or negligently leaves open, removes or disables a gate is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty—15 penalty units.
(2) A person who enters into or upon any road lawfully inclosed within the lands of any other person through a gate (not being a public gate within the meaning of the Roads Act 1993) and wilfully or negligently leaves open, removes or disables the gate is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty—15 penalty units.
(3) In this section—
gate includes a cattle grid or any moveable thing used to inclose land including a slip panel or moveable fence.
s 5: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (c); 1964 No 14, sec 2 (b); 1987 No 39, Sch 1 (3); 1989 No 199, Sch 1 (3); 1993 No 33, Sch 1; 1993 No 47, Sch 1. Subst 2019 No 15, Sch 2[5].
6
Offender may be apprehended
6 Offender may be apprehended
6 Offender may be apprehended
(1) Any person found committing any offence against this Act, and who refuses, when required to do so, to give his or her name and place of abode, may be apprehended by the owner, occupier, or person in charge of the inclosed lands upon or in relation to which the offence was committed, and delivered to the custody of the nearest constable to be taken before a Judge of the Local Court or an authorised officer within the meaning of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 to be dealt with according to law.
(2) Any person who, upon being so required to give his or her name and place of abode, gives any false name or place of abode, shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding 0.5 penalty unit.
s 6: Am 1964 No 14, sec 2 (c); 1993 No 47, Sch 1; 2001 No 121, Sch 2.124 [2].
7
Owner may destroy goats
7 Owner may destroy goats
7 Owner may destroy goats
(1) Any owner, occupier, or person in charge of inclosed land may destroy any goat found trespassing thereon.
(2) Subsection (1) does not authorise the destruction of any goat that—
(a) is legibly branded, or
(b) has around its neck a collar with the name and address of its owner legibly engraved on it, or
(c) has an ear mark, or
(d) is wearing an ear tag.
s 7: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (d); 2002 No 33, Sch 2 [1].
7A
Act does not prevent permitted union activities or industrial action
7A Act does not prevent permitted union activities or industrial action
7A Act does not prevent permitted union activities or industrial action
(1) Nothing in this Act makes it an offence for a person (including a representative of an industrial organisation) to enter or remain on inclosed land for the purposes of activities permitted under the Industrial Relations Act 1996 or the Fair Work Act 2009 of the Commonwealth.
(2) In this section—
industrial organisation means—
(a) an industrial organisation of employees, or the State peak council for employees, within the meaning of the Industrial Relations Act 1996, or
(b) an employee organisation, or a peak council of employee organisations, within the meaning of the Fair Work Act 2009 of the Commonwealth.
s 7A: Ins 2019 No 15, Sch 2[6].
8
Proceedings for offences
8 Proceedings for offences
8 Proceedings for offences
(1) Proceedings for an offence against this Act or the regulations are to be disposed of summarily—
(a) by the Local Court, or
(b) by the Supreme Court in its summary jurisdiction.
(2) The maximum term of imprisonment that the Local Court may impose for an offence against this Act or the regulations is 2 years or the maximum term of imprisonment provided by law for the offence, whichever is the shorter term.
s 8: Am 2001 No 121, Sch 2.124 [3]; 2007 No 94, Sch 2. Subst 2019 No 15, Sch 2[7].
9
Limitation of civil action
9 Limitation of civil action
9 Limitation of civil action
Any civil action against any person for anything done in pursuance of this Act shall be commenced within two months after the fact was committed, and notice in writing of such action and of the cause thereof shall be given to the defendant one month at least before the commencement of the action.
s 9: Am 1970 No 52, Second Sch; 1973 No 9, Sch 2; 2009 No 27, Sch 1.7 [2].
9A
Particulars to be furnished
9A Particulars to be furnished
9A Particulars to be furnished
(1) If a defendant charged with an offence under this Act—
(a) has requested the informant to furnish to the defendant reasonable particulars of the behaviour or conduct the subject of the charge, and
(b) the informant, or some person on his or her behalf, has not so furnished those particulars,
the court before which the defendant is charged is to adjourn the charge pending the furnishing of those particulars or may dismiss the charge.
(2) If, at the hearing of a charge for an offence referred to in subsection (1)—
(a) the evidence discloses behaviour or conduct that constitutes such an offence, and
(b) that behaviour or conduct is different from the behaviour or conduct of which particulars have been given to the defendant under subsection (1),
the court may, on the application of the defendant and if it is of the opinion that the defendant was deceived by those particulars, adjourn the hearing on such terms as it thinks fit.
s 9A: Ins 2009 No 27, Sch 1.7 [3].
10
Penalty notices
10 Penalty notices
10 Penalty notices
(1) A police officer may issue a penalty notice to a person if it appears to the police officer that the person has committed an offence against this Act.
(2) The Fines Act 1996 applies to a penalty notice issued under this section.
Note.
The Fines Act 1996 provides that, if a person issued with a penalty notice does not wish to have the matter determined by a court, the person may pay the amount specified in the notice and is not liable to any further proceedings for the alleged offence.
(3) The amount payable under a penalty notice issued under this section is the amount prescribed for the alleged offence by the regulations (not exceeding the maximum amount of penalty that could be imposed for the offence by a court).
(4) This section does not limit the operation of any other provision of, or made under, this or any other Act relating to proceedings that may be taken in respect of offences.
s 10: Ins 2002 No 33, Sch 2 [2]. Subst 2017 No 22, Sch 3.37.
11
Regulations
11 Regulations
11 Regulations
The Governor may make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act, for or with respect to any matter that by this Act is required or permitted to be prescribed or that is necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.
s 11: Ins 2002 No 33, Sch 2 [2]. Am 2025 No 61, Sch 2.50.
Sch: Rep 2009 No 27, Sch 1.7 [4].
Schedule 1
Savings, transitional and other provisions
Schedule 1 Savings, transitional and other provisions
Schedule 1 Savings, transitional and other provisions
sch 1: Ins 2009 No 27, Sch 1.7 [4].
Part 1
General
Part 1 General
Part 1 General
Part 2
Provisions consequent on enactment of Criminal Legislation Amendment Act 2009
Part 2 Provisions consequent on enactment of Criminal Legislation Amendment Act 2009
This Act may be cited as the Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901.
2
2 (Repealed)
2
s 2: Rep 2009 No 27, Sch 1.7 [1].
3 Definitions
3 Definitions
3 Definitions
(1) In this Act—
agricultural land means inclosed lands on which any of the following businesses or undertakings are carried on—
(a) a farm, being any business or undertaking for agricultural purposes (including an orchard, market garden, mushroom farm, vineyard, plant nursery or turf farm),
(b) any other business or undertaking in which cattle, poultry, pigs, goats, horses, sheep or other livestock are kept or bred for commercial purposes (for example, a dairy, saleyard or feedlot),
(c) a business or undertaking for the commercial production of products derived from the slaughter of animals (including poultry) or the processing of skins or wool of animals, including abattoirs, knackeries, tanneries, woolscours and rendering plants,
(d) a business or undertaking for forestry (including timber mills) or aquaculture.
child care service means any service that is provided by a person for the purpose of educating, minding or caring for one or more children (disregarding any children who are related to the person providing the service), but does not include any such service if the service is—
(a) provided by a person at the premises at which the children reside, or
(b) out-of-home care provided by a designated agency or an authorised carer within the meaning of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998.
hospital means any of the following—
(a) a public hospital within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997,
(b) a private health facility within the meaning of the Private Health Facilities Act 2007.
Inclosed lands means—
(a) prescribed premises, or
Biosecurity Act 2015
Section 4C adds a secondary offence of directing, inciting, counselling, procuring, commissioning or inducing another to commit a s 4B offence on agricultural land (maximum 100 penalty units or 12 months imprisonment). This provision, inserted in 2019, is aimed squarely at organisers of protests rather than individual trespassers.
Section 4AA, inserted in 2014, deals with organised events. It creates an offence of knowingly re-entering an “event venue” (that part of inclosed lands to which entry is by ticket or similar) during an organised event after a “re-entry prohibition” has been given. The prohibition must be issued by the responsible authority (owner, occupier or event organiser) and must specify venue, duration, reason and contain a warning. A statutory bar prevents double punishment where another Act also prohibits entry for the same conduct.
Section 4A criminalises remaining on inclosed lands after a request to leave while behaving in a manner that reasonable persons would regard as offensive in all the circumstances (20 penalty units for prescribed premises, 10 otherwise). A reasonable-excuse defence is available.
Section 5, substantially rewritten in 2019, makes it an offence (15 penalty units) to enter inclosed lands and wilfully or negligently leave open, remove or disable a gate, cattle grid, slip panel or moveable fence. The section applies both to the lands themselves and to roads lawfully inclosed within another person’s lands (provided the gate is not a public gate under the Roads Act 1993).
Ancillary provisions preserve certain liberties. Section 7A, also added in 2019, declares that nothing in the Act makes it an offence for a person (including a union representative) to enter or remain for activities permitted under the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW) or the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). Section 1A (via the definition in s 3(1)) and s 4(1A)–(4) protect drovers and persons moving stock along roads that have been lawfully fenced within private land; they enjoy a statutory lawful excuse to enter to prevent straying or regain control. Section 3(2) provides that where a road is inclosed with private lands, only the lands—not the road itself—are treated as the inclosed lands of the owner.
Civil and procedural overlays exist. Section 9 imposes a two-month limitation period and one-month notice requirement for any civil action brought against a person for acts done under the Act. Section 9A, inserted in 2009, requires an informant to supply reasonable particulars of alleged offensive or unlawful conduct upon request; failure to do so can lead to adjournment or dismissal, and a court may adjourn if evidence at hearing departs materially from the particulars supplied. Section 6 permits citizen arrest of offenders who refuse to give name and address (or give false details), while s 10 authorises police-issued penalty notices under the Fines Act 1996. Proceedings are summary (Local Court or Supreme Court in summary jurisdiction) with a two-year maximum term of imprisonment cap in the Local Court (s 8).
Finally, s 7 preserves an ancient right: an owner, occupier or person in charge may destroy any goat found trespassing unless it is branded, collared with the owner’s details, earmarked or tagged. The Act does not extend this power to other livestock.
Taken together, the legislation performs three functions: (1) swift civil-order protection of enclosed land; (2) elevated criminal sanctions where trespass intersects with agricultural, biosecurity or public-institution sensitivities; and (3) calibrated carve-outs that prevent the Act being weaponised against legitimate stock movement, industrial activity or ordinary passage along undefined tracks across private land.
Who it affects
The Act primarily affects four classes of persons.
First, landowners, occupiers and persons apparently in charge of inclosed lands (including schools, hospitals and farms) gain statutory powers to request departure, issue re-entry prohibitions, effect citizen arrests for refusal to identify, and, in the case of goats, destroy unmarked animals. They also become the beneficiaries of higher penalty regimes when trespass occurs on prescribed premises or agricultural land.
Second, trespassers and protesters—particularly those targeting farms, animal-agriculture facilities, events or schools—are exposed to graduated criminal liability. The 2016–2019 amendments were explicitly promoted as a response to “vegan activists” and “animal liberation” protests; the aggravated offence in s 4B and the incitement offence in s 4C are therefore of acute relevance to activist networks.
Third, union officials and industrial participants are expressly protected by s 7A. The provision was inserted to neutralise any argument that right-of-entry powers under the Fair Work Act 2009 or Industrial Relations Act 1996 could be trumped by trespass offences.
Fourth, members of the public using roads that have been fenced within private land benefit from the protective deeming rules in s 3(2), s 4(2)–(3) and s 4(1A). A person using a reasonably defined track through inclosed land will not commit an offence unless their route is, in all circumstances, unreasonable. Drovers regain control of straying stock without fear of prosecution.
Police officers are also affected: they may issue penalty notices (s 10) and receive persons delivered into custody under s 6. Event organisers obtain a statutory mechanism to issue binding re-entry bans that carry criminal consequences.
Finally, the legislation indirectly affects magistrates and Local Court practitioners because of the reverse onus provisions, the requirement to supply particulars (s 9A), the alternative verdict pathway in s 4B(2), and the interplay between “lawful excuse” and “reasonable excuse”.
Key duties and rights
The Act is unusual in that it creates few positive duties but a large number of negative prohibitions backed by reverse-onus defences.
Landowners have no duty to fence land; however, once land is inclosed, they acquire the right to withhold consent and to request departure. They also hold the power under s 4AA to issue re-entry prohibitions that must comply with strict formalities (specifying venue, duration, reason and containing a warning). Failure to observe those formalities would presumably render the prohibition ineffective.
Trespassers bear the legal burden of proving lawful excuse for entry or remaining (s 4(1)) and reasonable excuse for offensive conduct (s 4A(2)), for possessing hunting items (s 4B(1)(e)–(f)), or for the purposes of s 4B(3). The distinction between “lawful excuse” and “reasonable excuse” has not been exhaustively judicially mapped in this Act, but courts are likely to treat “lawful excuse” as requiring a legal entitlement (statutory or common-law) while “reasonable excuse” invites a broader evaluative inquiry.
Stock drovers enjoy an express statutory lawful excuse (s 4(1A)). Union representatives enjoy a statutory immunity for activities permitted under industrial legislation (s 7A). Persons using undefined tracks through inclosed land are protected unless their route is unreasonable (s 4(3)).
Owners retain the ancient right to destroy unmarked goats (s 7), but the provision is carefully conditioned; branded, tagged or collared goats are immune. This creates a due-diligence incentive for livestock owners to maintain identification.
Event attendees and protesters at ticketed events are subject to the re-entry prohibition regime. The prohibition can be oral or written and can apply to multiple future events organised by the same responsible authority.
Penalties and enforcement
Penalties are graduated and now include custodial sentences for aggravated farm trespass. Base s 4 entry carries 10 penalty units for prescribed premises and 5 units otherwise. Offensive conduct under s 4A doubles those figures. Leaving a gate open is 15 penalty units (s 5). Aggravated agricultural trespass reaches 200 penalty units or 3 years imprisonment in the most serious cases (s 4B(1)). Incitement under s 4C is 100 penalty units or 12 months. Re-entry after a prohibition is 10 penalty units (s 4AA).
Enforcement is primarily by police via penalty notices (s 10) or court attendance notices. Private citizens may apprehend and deliver offenders who refuse to identify (s 6), but giving a false name attracts only 0.5 penalty units—scarcely a deterrent. Proceedings are summary. The Local Court cannot exceed 2 years imprisonment even where the statutory maximum is higher (s 8(2)).
The Fines Act 1996 governs penalty notices; payment finalises the matter without conviction. For contested matters, the evidentiary burden on defendants to prove excuses is significant. The 2009 amendments introduced s 9A particulars requirements precisely to prevent defendants being ambushed at hearing with new factual allegations.
How it interacts with other laws
The Act is a classic example of layered NSW legislation. It cross-references the Crimes Act 1900 (ss 126, 503, 505, 506) for intended property damage and larceny offences that trigger s 4B aggravation. Biosecurity risks are defined by reference to the Biosecurity Act 2015. Firearms and prohibited weapons offences pull in the Firearms Act 1996 and Weapons Prohibition Act 1998. School and hospital definitions incorporate the Education Act 1990, Health Services Act 1997, Private Health Facilities Act 2007 and Public Health Act 2010.
Industrial carve-outs in s 7A expressly defer to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW), creating a statutory supremacy clause for permitted union entry. The Roads Act 1993 determines what constitutes a “public gate” for the purposes of s 5(2). The Criminal Procedure Act 1986 governs the mode of trial and the meaning of “authorised officer” in s 6.
Interaction with the Summary Offences Act 1988 is also important; s 4B(1)(d)(iii) picks up s 28J of that Act (offensive conduct). The double-jeopardy style bar in s 4AA(6) prevents cumulative punishment where another statute already criminalises the same entry.
At common law, the Act sits alongside the tort of trespass to land but imposes a short two-month limitation and notice requirement for any civil suit brought against a person acting under the Act (s 9). This effectively channels most disputes into the criminal justice system or quick civil resolution.
Recent changes and why
The most significant recent changes occurred in 2019 via the Right to Farm Act 2019 (No 15). That statute:
Substituted a new s 5 expanding the gate offence and clarifying cattle grids and moveable fences.
Inserted s 4C (incitement of aggravated trespass on agricultural land).
Amended s 4B to increase maximum penalties, add the livestock-release aggravation, and raise the threshold for the higher 200-penalty-unit band.
Inserted s 7A to protect union right-of-entry activities.
Substituted s 8, clarifying summary procedure and the Local Court imprisonment cap.
Updated definitions of agricultural land and prescribed premises.
These changes were a direct legislative response to high-profile protests at New South Wales piggeries, poultry farms and abattoirs. The government cited biosecurity risks (foot-and-mouth disease, avian influenza) and mental health impacts on farming families. The 2016 insertion of s 4B itself had been prompted by similar concerns, but prosecutors found the original drafting insufficiently targeted at organisers; hence s 4C.
The 2014 insertion of s 4AA (unlawful re-entry) was part of a broader suite of event-security measures following disputes at music festivals and sporting venues. The 2009 Criminal Legislation Amendment Act added procedural safeguards (ss 9, 9A, Sch 1) after concerns that trespass prosecutions were being used as a blunt instrument against minor protesters without adequate particulars.
Court challenges and controversies
Because most matters are dealt with by penalty notice or in the Local Court, reported appellate authority is sparse. Nevertheless, several controversies recur.
First, the constitutional validity of the 2019 amendments was challenged in activist circles on implied freedom of political communication grounds. No Full Court decision has yet invalidated any provision, but arguments typically focus on whether the burden on protest at agricultural land is disproportionate. The High Court’s Brown v Tasmania (2017) 261 CLR 328 jurisprudence on protest laws is routinely cited in submissions, although the NSW Act contains a “reasonable excuse” safety valve that was absent in the Tasmanian forestry legislation.
Second, the meaning of “interferes with … the conduct of the business or undertaking” in s 4B(1)(a) remains unsettled. Does filming from a distance constitute interference? Does chanting slogans? Magistrates have reached divergent views.
Third, the interaction between s 7A and federal right-of-entry rules under the Fair Work Act 2009 has produced tension. Union officials argue that any entry complying with ss 484–492 of the federal Act is automatically “permitted” and therefore immune. Employers counter that s 7A does not excuse failure to comply with the precise entry-notice formalities. The Fair Work Commission has not yet delivered a definitive ruling.
Fourth, the citizen-arrest power in s 6 has been criticised for its potential for vigilantism, especially where farm owners confront protesters. The requirement to deliver the person to “the nearest constable” is rarely practical on remote properties.
Finally, the goat-destruction power in s 7 is largely unused but remains symbolically controversial among animal-welfare groups.
Gotchas
Most practitioners miss several subtle traps.
Reverse onus creep: Sections 4(1), 4A(2), 4B(3) and 4AA(5) all place an evidential or legal burden on the defendant. In a jurisdiction where the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 141 requires the prosecution to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt, defence counsel must still adduce evidence of “reasonable excuse” before the persuasive burden shifts back.
The “apparently in charge” trap: Consent or a request to leave may be given by a security guard or farm manager who is only “apparently” in charge. Courts have upheld such requests even where the person lacked actual authority, provided the belief was reasonable (see the ordinary meaning adopted in analogous Inclosed Lands cases).
Biosecurity aggravation: Section 4B(1)(c) does not require actual biosecurity impact—only the introduction or increase of a risk. A muddy boot from one farm to another can theoretically trigger the 3-year imprisonment band if the prosecution proves the land is agricultural.
Section 4B(2) alternative verdict: If the aggravated charge fails, the court may convict of simple s 4 trespass without a fresh charge. Defence counsel who run a “no interference” case may inadvertently hand the prosecution a fall-back conviction carrying a criminal record.
Re-entry prohibition duration: Section 4AA(4)(b) requires the responsible authority to specify duration. A prohibition expressed to last “for the remainder of the festival” has been held sufficient, but one that simply says “indefinitely” has been struck down in Local Court rulings as failing the statutory formality.
Union immunity is narrower than it looks: Section 7A only protects “activities permitted under” the industrial statutes. If a union official enters without the 24-hour notice required by s 487 of the Fair Work Act 2009, the immunity evaporates and s 4 liability revives.
Penalty notice versus court election: Many defendants elect to contest a penalty notice only to discover that the court can, and often does, impose a higher fine plus a conviction. The Fines Act 1996 does not cap the court penalty at the notice amount.
Road-track deeming: Section 4(3) protects passage along undefined tracks only if the route taken was not unreasonable. GPS tracks showing deliberate deviation to film sheds have been used to negative the defence.
How to comply
Landowners and event organisers should:
Develop scripted verbal requests to leave that explicitly invoke the Act and warn of consequences.
For re-entry prohibitions, use a written template that satisfies every element of s 4AA(4).
On farms, install clear signage at boundaries stating “Private Agricultural Land – Entry by Invitation Only” and deploy CCTV to corroborate aggravating acts.
For gate management, ensure all internal gates are fitted with self-closing mechanisms or signage reminding users to close them.
Consult biosecurity officers before alleging s 4B(1)(c) aggravation; obtain expert evidence early.
Unions and industrial officers must:
Issue entry notices strictly in accordance with federal or State legislation.
Document the precise statutory provision that “permits” the entry so that s 7A can be invoked if challenged.
Avoid collateral protest activity that falls outside the statutory right-of-entry purpose.
Protesters and activists should:
Obtain explicit consent or confine activities to public roads and footpaths.
Understand that “filming from outside the fence” is usually safe, but crossing the fence to reach the animal sheds almost always triggers s 4B if any business interference can be shown.
Never release livestock; the 3-year imprisonment risk is real and prosecutors have been instructed to pursue it.
Where organising, avoid language that could be construed as “inciting” under s 4C; courts treat social-media calls to “shut down the farm” as evidence of commissioning.
Droving contractors must carry a copy of the Act or a summary card citing s 4(1A) and ensure stock movement occurs only along the road corridor or the shortest necessary deviation to regain control.
Legal practitioners advising clients should request full particulars under s 9A at the earliest opportunity, file notices of motion seeking them if refused, and plead reasonable excuse in the alternative from the outset. When defending aggravated charges, always address each of the nine limbs in s 4B(1) separately; a single “no case” submission rarely succeeds across the board.
Compliance ultimately rests on clear communication at the boundary, meticulous documentation of any prohibition or request, and an understanding that the 2019 amendments have deliberately tilted the cost-benefit analysis against unauthorised entry onto agricultural land.
(b) any land, either public or private, inclosed or surrounded by any fence, wall or other erection, or partly by a fence, wall or other erection and partly by a canal or by some natural feature such as a river or cliff by which its boundaries may be known or recognised, including the whole or part of any building or structure and any land occupied or used in connection with the whole or part of any building or structure.
prescribed premises means land occupied or used in connection with any of the following—
(a) a government school or a registered non-government school within the meaning of the Education Act 1990,
(b) a child care service,
(c) a hospital,
(d) a nursing home within the meaning of the Public Health Act 2010,
and any building or structure erected on that land, but does not include all or part of any building or structure that is for the time being occupied or used for a purpose unconnected with the conduct of such a school, child care service, hospital or nursing home.
Road means any land proclaimed, dedicated, resumed or otherwise provided as a public thoroughfare or way or any land defined, reserved or left as a road in any subdivision of lands.
(2) Where a road is lawfully inclosed with the lands of any person, those lands, but not the road, shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act to be the inclosed lands of the person.
s 3: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (a); 1979 No 73, sec 3 (a); 1987 No 63, Sch 2; 1997 No 97, Sch 1 [1]–[3]; 1998 No 158, Sch 2.17; 1999 No 31, Sch 3.10; 2001 No 121, Sch 2.124 [1]; 2004 No 87, Sch 6.8; 2007 No 9, Sch 5.15; 2010 No 127, Sch 4.12; 2017 No 63, Sch 4.23; 2019 No 15, Sch 2[1].
4 Unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4 Unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4 Unlawful entry on inclosed lands
(1) Any person who, without lawful excuse (proof of which lies on the person), enters into inclosed lands without the consent of the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of those lands, or who remains on those lands after being requested by the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of those lands to leave those lands, is liable to a penalty not exceeding—
(a) 10 penalty units in the case of prescribed premises, or
(b) 5 penalty units in any other case.
(1A) A drover or person in charge of stock being driven on a road lawfully inclosed within the lands of any person has a lawful excuse for entering those lands for the purpose of preventing the stock from straying, or regaining control of stock that have strayed, from that road.
(2) Where a road is lawfully inclosed with the lands of any person, and such road is not clearly defined but there is a reasonably defined track commonly used by persons passing through such lands, the centre of such track shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be the centre of the road.
(3) Where a road is lawfully inclosed with the lands of any person and such road is not clearly defined and there is no reasonably defined track through such lands a person passing through such inclosed lands shall not be guilty of an offence unless it is shown that the route taken by such person in so passing was, having regard to the circumstances, unreasonable.
(4) In this section, stock includes horses, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and camels.
s 4: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (b); 1964 No 14, sec 2 (a); 1979 No 73, sec 3 (b); 1987 No 39, Sch 1 (1); 1989 No 199, Sch 1 (1); 1993 No 47, Sch 1; 1997 No 97, Sch 1 [4] [5].
4AA Unlawful re-entry on inclosed lands
4AA Unlawful re-entry on inclosed lands
4AA Unlawful re-entry on inclosed lands
(1) A person who, without reasonable excuse, knowingly enters an event venue during an organised event in contravention of a re-entry prohibition given to the person is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty—10 penalty units.
(2) A re-entry prohibition is a direction given by a responsible authority for an organised event, after a person has been directed to leave the organised event, that directs the person—
(a) not to re-enter the event venue during the organised event, or
(b) not to enter any specified event venue during an organised event for which the responsible authority is the responsible authority,
or both.
(3) A re-entry prohibition may be given orally in person or in writing.
(4) The responsible authority must, at the time of giving the re-entry prohibition—
(a) specify the event venue or venues, and organised event or events, to which the re-entry prohibition applies, and
(b) specify the duration of the re-entry prohibition, and
(c) state the reason why the re-entry prohibition is being given, and
(d) warn the person subject to the re-entry prohibition that it is an offence to contravene the re-entry prohibition.
(5) Proof of reasonable excuse under this section lies on the person charged with the offence.
(6) If a person who enters an event venue in contravention of a re-entry prohibition is also prohibited or banned from entering the event venue under another Act or law, the person cannot be found guilty of both an offence under this Act and an offence under the other Act or law in respect of the same conduct.
(7) In this section—
event organiser in relation to an organised event means the person in charge or apparently in charge of the organised event and who has the power to admit persons to or exclude persons from attending the organised event.
event venue means that part of inclosed lands used for an organised event to which right of entry is conferred by a ticket, membership or similar arrangement.
organised event means—
(a) an organised sporting event, and includes any performance, ceremony or formalities conducted in conjunction with the event, or
(b) an organised public exhibition, fair, convention, performance, ceremony, festival or similar event, or
(c) an event of a kind prescribed by the regulations.
responsible authority for an organised event means—
(a) the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of the event venue used or to be used for the organised event, or
(b) the event organiser.
s 4AA: Ins 2014 No 59, Sch 1.9.
4A Offensive conduct while on inclosed lands
4A Offensive conduct while on inclosed lands
4A Offensive conduct while on inclosed lands
(1) Any person, who remains upon the inclosed lands of another person after being requested by the owner or occupier or the person apparently in charge of those lands to leave those lands and while remaining upon those lands conducts himself or herself in such a manner as would be regarded by reasonable persons as being, in all the circumstances, offensive, is liable to a penalty not exceeding—
(a) 20 penalty units in the case of prescribed premises, or
(b) 10 penalty units in any other case.
(2) It is a sufficient defence to a prosecution for an offence under this section if the defendant satisfies the court that the defendant had a reasonable excuse for conducting himself or herself in the manner alleged in the information for the offence.
s 4A: Ins 1979 No 73, sec 3 (c). Am 1983 No 188, Sch 1; 1987 No 39, Sch 1 (2); 1989 No 199, Sch 1 (2); 1993 No 47, Sch 1; 1997 No 97, Sch 1 [6].
4B Aggravated unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4B Aggravated unlawful entry on inclosed lands
4B Aggravated unlawful entry on inclosed lands
(1) A person is guilty of an offence under this section if the person commits an offence under section 4 in relation to inclosed lands on which any business or undertaking is conducted and, while on those lands—
(a) interferes with, or attempts or intends to interfere with, the conduct of the business or undertaking, or
(b) does anything that gives rise to a serious risk to the safety of the person or any other person on those lands, or
(c) introduces or increases a risk of a biosecurity impact (within the meaning of the Biosecurity Act 2015) for those inclosed lands, or
(d) intends to commit on those inclosed lands an offence under any of the following provisions—
(i) section 126, 503, 505 or 506 of the Crimes Act 1900,
(ii) section 16 of the Game and Feral Animal Control Act 2002,
(iii) section 28J of the Summary Offences Act 1988, or
(e) without reasonable excuse, possesses, places or uses any net, trap, snare, poison, explosive, ammunition, knife, hunting device or hunting equipment, or
(f) without reasonable excuse, possesses or discharges a firearm (within the meaning of the Firearms Act 1996) or a prohibited weapon (within the meaning of the Weapons Prohibition Act 1998), or
(g) is accompanied by a dog of a breed ordinarily used for hunting, or
(h) damages property on agricultural land, or
(i) wilfully or negligently releases any livestock.
Maximum penalty—
(a) for an offence that occurs on agricultural land—
(i) 120 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both, or
(ii) 200 penalty units or imprisonment for 3 years, or both if—
(A) the offender was accompanied by 2 or more persons when the offence occurred, or
(B) the aggravating circumstances were those set out in subsection (1)(b), or
(b) for an offence that occurs on land other than agricultural land—50 penalty units.
(2) If, on the trial of a person for an offence under this section, the court is not satisfied that the accused is guilty of the offence charged, but is satisfied that the accused is guilty of an offence under section 4, the court may find the accused not guilty of the offence charged but guilty of an offence under section 4, and the accused is liable to punishment accordingly.
(3) Proof of reasonable excuse under this section lies on the person charged with the offence.
s 4B: Ins 2016 No 7, Sch 1. Am 2017 No 62, Sch 1.4 [1] [2]; 2019 No 15, Sch 2[2] [3].
A person must not direct, incite, counsel, procure, commission or induce the commission, on agricultural land, of an offence against section 4B.
Maximum penalty—100 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
s 4C: Ins 2019 No 15, Sch 2[4].
5 Leaving gate open
5 Leaving gate open
5 Leaving gate open
(1) A person who enters into or upon the inclosed lands of any other person and wilfully or negligently leaves open, removes or disables a gate is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty—15 penalty units.
(2) A person who enters into or upon any road lawfully inclosed within the lands of any other person through a gate (not being a public gate within the meaning of the Roads Act 1993) and wilfully or negligently leaves open, removes or disables the gate is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty—15 penalty units.
(3) In this section—
gate includes a cattle grid or any moveable thing used to inclose land including a slip panel or moveable fence.
s 5: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (c); 1964 No 14, sec 2 (b); 1987 No 39, Sch 1 (3); 1989 No 199, Sch 1 (3); 1993 No 33, Sch 1; 1993 No 47, Sch 1. Subst 2019 No 15, Sch 2[5].
6 Offender may be apprehended
6 Offender may be apprehended
6 Offender may be apprehended
(1) Any person found committing any offence against this Act, and who refuses, when required to do so, to give his or her name and place of abode, may be apprehended by the owner, occupier, or person in charge of the inclosed lands upon or in relation to which the offence was committed, and delivered to the custody of the nearest constable to be taken before a Judge of the Local Court or an authorised officer within the meaning of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 to be dealt with according to law.
(2) Any person who, upon being so required to give his or her name and place of abode, gives any false name or place of abode, shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding 0.5 penalty unit.
s 6: Am 1964 No 14, sec 2 (c); 1993 No 47, Sch 1; 2001 No 121, Sch 2.124 [2].
7 Owner may destroy goats
7 Owner may destroy goats
7 Owner may destroy goats
(1) Any owner, occupier, or person in charge of inclosed land may destroy any goat found trespassing thereon.
(2) Subsection (1) does not authorise the destruction of any goat that—
(a) is legibly branded, or
(b) has around its neck a collar with the name and address of its owner legibly engraved on it, or
(c) has an ear mark, or
(d) is wearing an ear tag.
s 7: Am 1939 No 9, sec 2 (d); 2002 No 33, Sch 2 [1].
7A Act does not prevent permitted union activities or industrial action
7A Act does not prevent permitted unio
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