Official Visitor Act 2012 (ACT)

The Official Visitor Act 2012 establishes a statutory framework in the Australian Capital Territory for the appointment, powers, duties and governance of official visitors to certain institutions and facilities mentioned in designated operational Acts. Mechanically, the Act:

defines who is an official visitor for a visitable place (s 6; s 9; s 9A);
requires the Minister to appoint a specified minimum number of official visitors for each category of visitable place under the listed operational Acts, with specified representational requirements for some categories (for example at least 2 official visitors for Children and Young People and Corrections places, including one who is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person) (s 10(1));
sets appointment conditions and term limits (maximum 3 years), reappointment rules and disqualification rules (including prohibition on appointing public servants and persons with conflicts of interest) (s 11; s 10(3));
prescribes functions and statutory duties of official visitors, including visiting, monitoring conditions and services, investigating and attempting to resolve complaints from or on behalf of entitled people, identifying systemic issues and reporting to Ministers and other entities (s 14; s 16; s 17);
grants official visitors entry and inspection powers at reasonable times, and limited rights to inspect health and other records with consent or under tightly circumscribed exceptions where the entitled person may not be able to consent (s 15(1)-(5)); and expressly excludes access to certain sensitive information under the Children and Young People Act when relevant (s 15(6));
imposes obligations on operating entities at visitable places to assist official visitors and to inform entitled persons about official visitors and complaint procedures (s 18; s 20; s 21);

Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Australian Capital Territory Official Visitor Act 2012 A2012-33 Republication No 16 Effective: 24 February 2026 Republication date: 24 February 2026 Last amendment made by A2026-4 (republication for expiry of validation provisions (pt 12))

Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au About this republication The republished law This is a republication of the Official Visitor Act 2012 (including any amendment made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 (Editorial changes)) as in force on 24 February 2026. It also includes any commencement, amendment, repeal or expiry affecting this republished law to 24 February 2026. The legislation history and amendment history of the republished law are set out in endnotes 3 and 4. Kinds of republications The Parliamentary Counsel’s Office prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws (see the ACT legislation register at www.legislation.act.gov.au): • authorised republications to which the Legislation Act 2001 applies • unauthorised republications. The status of this republication appears on the bottom of each page. Editorial changes The Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel to make editorial amendments and other changes of a formal nature when preparing a law for republication. Editorial changes do not change the effect of the law, but have effect as if they had been made by an Act commencing on the republication date (see Legislation Act 2001, s 115 and s 117). The changes are made if the Parliamentary Counsel considers they are desirable to bring the law into line, or more closely into line, with current legislative drafting practice. This republication does not include amendments made under part 11.3 (see endnote 1). Uncommenced provisions and amendments If a provision of the republished law has not commenced, the symbol U appears immediately before the provision heading. Any uncommenced amendments that affect this republished law are accessible on the ACT legislation register (www.legislation.act.gov.au). For more information, see the home page for this law on the register. Modifications If a provision of the republished law is affected by a current modification, the symbol M appears immediately before the provision heading. The text of the modifying provision appears in the endnotes. For the legal status of modifications, see the Legislation Act 2001, section 95. Penalties At the republication date, the value of a penalty unit for an offence against this law is $160 for an individual and $810 for a corporation (see Legislation Act 2001, s 133).

R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 contents 1 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Australian Capital Territory Official Visitor Act 2012 Contents Page Part 1 Preliminary 1 Name of Act 2 3 Dictionary 2 4 Notes 2 5 Offences against Act—application of Criminal Code etc 2 Part 2 Important concepts 6 Who is an official visitor? 3 7 What is an operational Act? 3 8 Who is an entitled person? 3 9 What is a visitable place? 4 9A Authorisation to visit places 4 Part 3 Appointment of official visitors 10 Appointment 5

Contents Page contents 2 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 11 Conditions of appointment 6 12 Ending appointment 6 13 Handover of records by official visitors 7 Part 4 Functions of official visitors 14 Official visitor functions 9 14A Independence of official visitors 10 14B Conflict of interest 10 15 Official visitor may enter visitable place etc 10 16 Official visitor must report non-compliant visitable places 12 17 Reporting of complaints 13 18 Assistance to official visitors 15 19 Offences—failure to provide assistance etc 15 Part 5 Visits and complaints 20 Operating entity must let entitled people know about official visitors 17 21 Requests to meet official visitor 17 22 Complaints to official visitors 18 Part 5A Official visitors board 23A Establishment of official visitors board 19 23B Membership of official visitors board 19 23C Official visitors board functions 20 23D Official visitors board procedure 21 23DA Board annual report 21 Part 6 Miscellaneous 23DB Register of visitable places 23 23E Voting at meetings 24 23F Minister may make guidelines 25 24 Protection of officials from liability 25 24A Protection from liability 26 25 Offences—use or divulge protected information 26 25A Information sharing between official visitors 28 26 Approved forms 29

Contents Page R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 contents 3 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 27 Regulation-making power 29 Dictionary 30 Endnotes 1 About the endnotes 32 2 Abbreviation key 32 3 Legislation history 33 4 Amendment history 35 5 Earlier republications 40 6 Expired transitional or validating provisions 42

R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 1 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Australian Capital Territory Official Visitor Act 2012 An Act to provide for the appointment of official visitors, and for other purposes

Part 1 Preliminary Section 1 page 2 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 1 Preliminary 1 Name of Act This Act is the Official Visitor Act 2012. 3 Dictionary The dictionary at the end of this Act is part of this Act. Note 1 The dictionary at the end of this Act defines certain terms used in this Act, and includes references (signpost definitions) to other terms defined elsewhere in this Act. For example, the signpost definition ‘operational Act—see section 7.’ means that the term ‘operational Act’ is defined in that section. Note 2 A definition in the dictionary (including a signpost definition) applies to the entire Act unless the definition, or another provision of the Act, provides otherwise or the contrary intention otherwise appears (see Legislation Act, s 155 and s 156 (1)). 4 Notes A note included in this Act is explanatory and is not part of this Act. Note See the Legislation Act, s 127 (1), (4) and (5) for the legal status of notes. 5 Offences against Act—application of Criminal Code etc Other legislation applies in relation to offences against this Act. Note 1 Criminal Code The Criminal Code, ch 2 applies to all offences against this Act (see Code, pt 2.1). The chapter sets out the general principles of criminal responsibility (including burdens of proof and general defences), and defines terms used for offences to which the Code applies (eg conduct, intention, recklessness and strict liability). Note 2 Penalty units The Legislation Act, s 133 deals with the meaning of offence penalties that are expressed in penalty units.

Important concepts Part 2 Section 6 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 3 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 2 Important concepts 6 Who is an official visitor? For this Act: official visitor, for a visitable place, means a person authorised to visit the place under section 9A. 7 What is an operational Act? Each of the following is an operational Act: (a) the Children and Young People Act 2008; (b) the Corrections Management Act 2007; (c) the Disability Services Act 1991; (d) the Housing Assistance Act 2007; (e) the Mental Health Act 2015. Note A reference to an Act includes a reference to the statutory instruments made or in force under the Act, including regulations (see Legislation Act, s 104). 8 Who is an entitled person? For this Act: entitled person, at a visitable place, means— (a) for a visitable place under the Children and Young People Act 2008—see that Act, section 37, definition of entitled person; and (b) for a visitable place under the Corrections Management Act 2007—see that Act, section 57, definition of entitled person; and (c) for a visitable place under the Disability Services Act 1991— see that Act, section 8A, definition of entitled person; and

Part 2 Important concepts Section 9 page 4 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (d) for a visitable place under the Housing Assistance Act 2007— see that Act, section 25V, definition of entitled person; and (e) for a visitable place under the Mental Health Act 2015— see that Act, section 208, definition of entitled person. 9 What is a visitable place? For this Act: visitable place means a place mentioned in each of the following: (a) the Children and Young People Act 2008, section 37, definition of visitable place; (b) the Corrections Management Act 2007, section 57, definition of visitable place; (c) the Disability Services Act 1991, section 8B; (d) the Housing Assistance Act 2007, section 25V, definition of visitable place; (e) the Mental Health Act 2015, section 208, definition of visitable place. 9A Authorisation to visit places (1) An official visitor appointed under section 10 (1) for a visitable place is authorised to visit the place. (2) An official visitor appointed under section 10 (1) for a visitable place is authorised to visit another visitable place if asked, in writing, to visit the place, or deal with an entitled person at the place, by— (a) an official visitor appointed under section 10 (1) for the place; or (b) the official visitors board.

Appointment of official visitors Part 3 Section 10 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 5 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 3 Appointment of official visitors 10 Appointment (1) The Minister must appoint the following: (a) for a visitable place under the Children and Young People Act 2008—at least 2 official visitors, including 1 official visitor who is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person; (b) for a visitable place under the Corrections Management Act 2007—at least 2 official visitors, including 1 official visitor who is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person; (c) for a visitable place under the Disability Services Act 1991— at least 1 official visitor; (d) for a visitable place under the Housing Assistance Act 2007— at least 1 official visitor; (e) for a visitable place under the Mental Health Act 2015—at least 1 official visitor. (2) The Minister may appoint a person as an official visitor for a visitable place only if— (a) the Minister has consulted the operational Minister for the place; and (b) satisfied on reasonable grounds that the person has suitable qualifications or experience to exercise the functions of an official visitor for the place. (3) However, the Minister must not appoint a person as an official visitor for a visitable place if the person— (a) is a public servant; or (b) has an actual or perceived conflict of interest that would prevent the official visitor from properly carrying out the functions of an official visitor for the place.

Part 3 Appointment of official visitors Section 11 page 6 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (4) An operational Act may prescribe additional requirements for deciding whether or not to appoint a person as an official visitor for a visitable place. (5) In this section: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person means a person who— (a) is a descendant of an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander person; and (b) identifies as an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander person; and (c) is accepted as an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander person by an Aboriginal community or Torres Strait Islander community. 11 Conditions of appointment (1) An appointment as an official visitor must not be for longer than 3 years. (2) The conditions of appointment of an official visitor are the conditions agreed between the Minister and the person, subject to any determination under the Remuneration Tribunal Act 1995. Note 1 For the making of appointments (including acting appointments), see the Legislation Act, pt 19.3. Note 2 Certain Ministerial appointments require consultation with an Assembly committee and are disallowable (see Legislation Act, div 19.3.3). Note 3 A person may be reappointed to a position if the person is eligible to be appointed to the position (see Legislation Act, s 208 and dict, pt 1, def appoint). 12 Ending appointment (1) The Minister may end a person’s appointment as an official visitor— (a) for misbehaviour; or

Appointment of official visitors Part 3 Section 13 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 7 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (b) if the person— (i) does not comply with any requirement in a guideline made under section 23F; and (ii) continues to fail to visit the visitable place as required for 4 consecutive weeks; or (c) if an operational Act prescribes requirements that the person must satisfy to be appointed as an official visitor—if the person no longer satisfies the criteria. (2) The Minister must end the person’s appointment as an official visitor— (a) for physical or mental incapacity, if the incapacity substantially affects the exercise of the person’s functions; or (b) if the person fails to take all reasonable steps to avoid being placed in a position where a conflict of interest arises during the exercise of the person’s functions. (3) A person’s appointment as an official visitor ends, by force of this section, if the person becomes a public servant. Note A person’s appointment also ends if the person resigns (see Legislation Act, s 210). 13 Handover of records by official visitors (1) This section applies if a person’s appointment as an official visitor ends. (2) The person must, not later than 7 days after the day the appointment ends, give any official visitor record held by the person in relation to a visitable place to— (a) the official visitors executive officer; or (b) another official visitor for the place.

Part 3 Appointment of official visitors Section 13 page 8 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (3) In this section: official visitor record held by a person, means— (a) a record made or received by the person because of the person’s functions as an official visitor; or (b) information held by the person because of the person’s functions as an official visitor.

Functions of official visitors Part 4 Section 14 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 9 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 4 Functions of official visitors 14 Official visitor functions (1) An official visitor for a visitable place has the following functions: (a) to visit the place and meet entitled people at the place; (b) to monitor conditions, services and practices in the place; (c) to investigate and seek to resolve complaints from, or on behalf of, entitled people at the place; (d) to identify and report on systemic issues adversely affecting entitled people at the place; (e) if appropriate, to refer complaints or issues from, or on behalf of, entitled people at the place to relevant investigative entities; (f) to report to the Minister and operational Minister for the place as required under this Act; (g) to exercise any other function given to an official visitor under this Act, an operational Act or another territory law. (2) An official visitor must, in exercising the official visitor’s functions— (a) respect and promote the human rights of entitled people; and (b) promote the provision of services to, and care and treatment of, entitled people that is high quality and centres on the needs of entitled people; and (c) have regard to the wishes of entitled people in relation to visits to visitable places and how complaints from or on behalf of entitled people are dealt with; and

Part 4 Functions of official visitors Section 14A page 10 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (d) encourage the early resolution of complaints from, or on behalf of, entitled people whenever reasonable and practicable to do so; and (e) have regard to the objects and principles in operational Acts. 14A Independence of official visitors Except as provided in this Act or another territory law, an official visitor is not subject to the direction of anyone else in relation to the exercise of a function under this Act. 14B Conflict of interest (1) An official visitor must take all reasonable steps to avoid being placed in a position where a conflict of interest arises during the exercise of the official visitor’s functions. (2) An official visitor must give written notice of the following to the official visitors board: (a) any paid employment the official visitor proposes to undertake; (b) any activity the official visitor proposes to undertake that may give rise to a conflict of interest during the exercise of the official visitor’s functions. 15 Official visitor may enter visitable place etc (1) An official visitor for a visitable place may, at any reasonable time, enter the visitable place following a complaint or at the official visitor’s own initiative. Example—time that would not be reasonable a time that would hinder a search, or coincide with an escape attempt, at a visitable place

Functions of official visitors Part 4 Section 15 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 11 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (2) The official visitor may, when at the visitable place, inspect any health record or any other record relating to an entitled person at the visitable place if— (a) the official visitor has the entitled person’s— (i) written consent; or (ii) oral consent, if a written record of the consent is made by a person who heard the consent being given; or (b) the official visitor— (i) has taken reasonable steps to find out if the entitled person consents; and (ii) reasonably believes the entitled person may not be able to make a decision about consent or communicate that decision; and (iii) reasonably believes that access to the record is necessary and appropriate to allow the official visitor to exercise the official visitor’s functions under this Act; and (iv) the entitled person has not told, or otherwise indicated to, the official visitor that the person does not consent. Examples—other record relating to an entitled person for an entitled person in a mental health facility—dietary plans, behavioural plans, records about seclusion or chemical restraint, day plans, lists of rostered carers (3) If subsection (2) (b) applies and an official visitor inspects a record, the official visitor must, as soon as practicable, take reasonable steps to make the entitled person aware that the records were inspected. (4) The operating entity for a visitable place must keep a record of each time an official visitor accesses a record in accordance with subsection (2) (b). (5) The official visitor may also, when at the visitable place, inspect any other record required to be kept under the operational Act.

Part 4 Functions of official visitors Section 16 page 12 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (6) Subsection (2) (b) does not apply to any sensitive information (as defined under the Children and Young People Act 2008, section 845) included in a record. Note The Children and Young People Act 2008, s 39 also deals with access to sensitive information by an official visitor. (7) Without limiting this section, the operational Act may prescribe minimum requirements for— (a) a visit by the official visitor to the visitable place; and (b) inspecting records under this section. 16 Official visitor must report non-compliant visitable places (1) This section applies if an official visitor for a visitable place believes on reasonable grounds that any of the following is not in accordance with the operational Act for the place: (a) the care and other services provided to an entitled person at the place; (b) the living conditions and activities of an entitled person at the place; (c) if an entitled person is detained under the operational Act at the place—the detention of the person at the place (including any aspect of the treatment, living conditions, work or activities of the detainee). (2) The official visitor— (a) must report the belief to the operational Minister; and (b) may report the belief to— (i) the relevant director-general; and (ii) the public advocate; and

Functions of official visitors Part 4 Section 17 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 13 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (iii) if the entitled person is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child or young person—the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner; and (iv) the official visitors board; and (v) the senior practitioner. (3) An operational Act may prescribe other reporting requirements for the visitable place. 17 Reporting of complaints (1) An official visitor for a visitable place must prepare for each quarter— (a) a written report (a full report) stating— (i) the number and kinds of complaints received by the official visitor in relation to the place; and (ii) the action taken on the complaints received; and (iii) the number of visits by the official visitor to the place; and (iv) the number and kinds of matters referred by the official visitor to an investigative entity; and (v) any systemic issues identified by the official visitor; and (vi) the number of times the official visitor inspected records in accordance with section 15 (2) (b); and (b) a written report (a summary report) summarising the matters mentioned in paragraph (a). (2) The full report may include— (a) comments by the official visitor about anything in relation to a complaint mentioned in the report; and

Part 4 Functions of official visitors Section 17 page 14 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (b) recommendations about any systemic issues identified by the official visitor. (3) The official visitor must give a copy of— (a) the full report, as soon as practicable after the end of each quarter, to— (i) the operational Minister for the visitable place; and (ii) if the official visitor makes a recommendation in relation to the administrative unit responsible for administering the operational Act for the place—the relevant director-general for the place; and (b) the summary report, as soon as practicable after the end of each quarter, to the following: (i) the Minister; (ii) the official visitors board; (iii) the official visitors executive officer. (4) The official visitor may also give a copy of the report to any of the following: (a) the relevant director-general for the visitable place; (b) the public advocate; (c) if the report includes matters in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children or young people—the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner; (d) if the report includes matters in relation to an administrative unit or operational Act for which another Minister is responsible— the other Minister. (5) Information that identifies an entitled person at the visitable place— (a) must not be included in a report to the Minister; and

Functions of official visitors Part 4 Section 18 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 15 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (b) for any other report—may only be included in the report if the official visitor considers it necessary to deal with a complaint mentioned or issue raised in the report. (6) In this section: investigative entity means an entity with power to require the production of documents or the answering of questions including, for example, the chief police officer, the human rights commission, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner, the ombudsman and the integrity commissioner. 18 Assistance to official visitors (1) An operating entity for a visitable place must give an official visitor for the place any reasonable assistance the official visitor asks for to exercise the official visitor’s functions at the place. Examples 1 giving access to documents and records relating to a complaint 2 answering reasonable questions about the facts of a complaint 3 giving reasonable access to facilities Note The Legislation Act, s 170 deals with the application of the privilege against self-incrimination. (2) An operating entity may only give an official visitor access to an entitled person’s health record if the official visitor has complied with section 15 (2) (a) or (b). 19 Offences—failure to provide assistance etc (1) A person in charge of an operating entity for a visitable place must not, without reasonable excuse— (a) refuse or neglect to render assistance if asked by an official visitor under section 18; or

Part 4 Functions of official visitors Section 19 page 16 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (b) fail to answer any question if asked by an official visitor in the exercise of the official visitor’s functions. Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units. (2) A person in charge of an operating entity for a visitable place must not, without reasonable excuse, obstruct or hinder an official visitor in the exercise of the official visitor’s functions. Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units, imprisonment for 6 months or both. (3) A person in charge of an operating entity for a visitable place must keep a record of each visit by an official visitor to the visitable place. Maximum penalty: 5 penalty units. (4) In this section: person in charge, of an operating entity, means— (a) if the operating entity is the Territory—the relevant director-general; and (b) in any other case—the person in charge of the entity.

Visits and complaints Part 5 Section 20 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 17 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 5 Visits and complaints 20 Operating entity must let entitled people know about official visitors (1) An operating entity for a visitable place must tell an entitled person at the visitable place, or a person acting on the entitled person’s behalf, about— (a) the functions of an official visitor; and (b) how the official visitor may be contacted. (2) Without limiting subsection (1), an operating entity for a visitable place must, not later than when an entitled person first enters the place, give the person information about their right to make complaints under this Act in a way that is accessible to the person. Examples—giving information 1 if an entitled person is likely to go to a common area in a visitable place— a notice in a prominent position on the wall in the area 2 if it is not practicable or appropriate to put up a notice in a visitable place— give an entitled person a pamphlet 3 if an entitled person is not able to see or understand information in writing— tell the person orally 4 if an entitled person is not able to understand the information—give written information to the person’s legal guardian 21 Requests to meet official visitor (1) This section applies if an entitled person at a visitable place tells the operating entity for the place that the person wants to meet an official visitor. (2) The operating entity must ensure that an official visitor for the visitable place is told of the request as soon as practicable, but not later than 24 hours after the request is made.

Part 5 Visits and complaints Section 22 page 18 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (3) An operating entity must not ask an entitled person, and the person need not explain to the operating entity, why the person wants to meet an official visitor. 22 Complaints to official visitors (1) An entitled person at a visitable place, or anyone else, may complain to an official visitor for the place about any aspect of the person’s accommodation including— (a) the conditions of accommodation of an entitled person; or (b) the care or services provided to an entitled person at the place; or (c) the activities available to an entitled person at the place; or (d) how the place is conducted. (2) The entitled person may make the complaint to the official visitor personally or through someone else. (3) The entitled person may ask to make a complaint— (a) to the official visitor with no-one else present; and (b) to an official visitor of the same gender. (4) If the official visitor agrees that the complaint may be made with only the entitled person present, the operating entity must provide reasonably private facilities for the complaint to be made. (5) In this section: accommodation, of an entitled person, includes, if an entitled person is detained or confined under an operational Act at a visitable place, the person’s detention or confinement.

Official visitors board Part 5A Section 23A R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 19 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 5A Official visitors board 23A Establishment of official visitors board The official visitors board is established. 23B Membership of official visitors board (1) The official visitors board is made up of— (a) the public trustee and guardian; and (b) at least 1 commissioner under the Human Rights Commission Act 2005 nominated by the commissioners under that Act; and (c) 2 official visitors elected by the official visitors; and (d) any other members appointed by the Minister under subsection (2). (2) The Minister— (a) must appoint the chair of the board; and (b) may appoint other members of the board as the Minister considers appropriate. Note 1 For the making of appointments (including acting appointments), see the Legislation Act, pt 19.3. Note 2 In particular, a person may be appointed for a particular provision of a law (see Legislation Act, s 7 (3)) and an appointment may be made by naming a person or nominating the occupant of a position (see Legislation Act, s 207). Note 3 Certain Ministerial appointments require consultation with an Assembly committee and are disallowable (see Legislation Act, div 19.3.3). (3) The Minister may determine procedures for subsection (1) (c). (4) A determination is a notifiable instrument.

Part 5A Official visitors board Section 23C page 20 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 23C Official visitors board functions (1) The official visitors board has the following functions: (a) to oversee the exercise of functions by official visitors under this Act, an operational Act or another territory law; (b) to arrange for the recruitment, induction, training and support of official visitors; (c) to provide support for and manage the exercise of functions by official visitors under this Act, an operational Act or another territory law; (d) to consider and try to resolve any complaints about official visitors; (e) to exercise any other function given to the board under this Act, an operational Act or another territory law. (2) The chair of the board may arrange with the head of service to use the services of a public servant (the official visitors executive officer) to— (a) provide support to the board in the exercise of the board’s functions; and (b) exercise any other function given to the official visitors executive officer under this Act, an operational Act or another territory law. Note The head of service may delegate powers in relation to the management of public servants to a public servant or another person (see Public Sector Management Act 1994, s 18). (3) The chair of official visitors board may delegate the board’s functions under this Act, an operational Act or another territory law to the official visitors executive officer or another public servant. Note For the making of delegations and the exercise of delegated functions, see the Legislation Act, pt 19.4.

Official visitors board Part 5A Section 23D R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 21 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 23D Official visitors board procedure (1) Meetings of the official visitors board are to be held when and where it decides. (2) However— (a) the official visitors board must meet at least quarterly; and (b) the chair of the board may, by reasonable written notice given to the other board members, call a meeting. (3) The official visitors board may conduct its proceedings (including its meetings) as it considers appropriate. 23DA Board annual report (1) The official visitors board must give the Minister, within 3 months after the end of a financial year, a written report for the financial year about— (a) the number of— (i) visits by official visitors to visitable places; and (ii) complaints received by official visitors in relation to visitable places; and (iii) referrals of complaints to investigative entities; and (b) the action taken on the complaints received; and (c) any systemic issues in relation to the operation of the Act identified by the board; and (d) the number and kinds of matters referred by an official visitor to an investigative entity; and (e) the number of times an official visitor inspected records in accordance with section 15 (2) (b).

Part 5A Official visitors board Section 23DA page 22 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (2) The Minister must present the report to the Legislative Assembly within 6 sitting days after being given a copy of the report by the board. (3) The Minister must give additional public notice of the report. Note Public notice means notice on an ACT government website or in a daily newspaper circulating in the ACT (see Legislation Act, dict, pt 1). The requirement in s (3) is in addition to the requirement for the Minister to present the report to the Legislative Assembly under s (2). (4) In this section: investigative entity means an entity with power to require the production of documents or the answering of questions including, for example, the chief police officer, the human rights commission, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner, the ombudsman and the integrity commissioner.

Miscellaneous Part 6 Section 23DB R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 23 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Part 6 Miscellaneous 23DB Register of visitable places (1) The relevant director-general for a visitable place must keep a register of each visitable place mentioned under the relevant operational Act. (2) The register— (a) must include— (i) the address of each visitable place; and (ii) if relevant for a visitable place—the contact details of a person who can provide access to the place; and (iii) any information prescribed by an operational Act; and (b) may include— (i) the name of each entitled person at each visitable place; and (ii) the name and contact details of each operating entity for each visitable place; and (iii) if an operating entity for a visitable place is not an individual—the name, phone number and email address of the following: (A) an employee or volunteer based at the place; (B) 2 employees of the entity. (3) The relevant director-general for a visitable place must, on request, give information on the register to any of the following: (a) an official visitor for the place; (b) the official visitors board; (c) the official visitors executive officer;

Part 6 Miscellaneous Section 23E page 24 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (d) the public advocate; (e) the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner; (f) a commissioner under the Human Rights Commission Act 2005; (g) the senior practitioner. (4) The relevant director-general for a visitable place may, on request, give the information mentioned in subsection (2) (a) to any of the following people, if satisfied giving the information is reasonable in the circumstances: (a) a person exercising a function under this Act or the operational Act; (b) a member of the emergency services under the Emergencies Act 2004; (c) an entitled person at the place; (d) a carer or legal representative of an entitled person at the place; (e) anyone else approved by the relevant director-general. (5) In this section: carer—see the Guardianship and Management of Property Act 1991, section 6. legal representative, of an entitled person who does not have legal capacity, means the person’s parent or guardian. 23E Voting at meetings (1) At an official visitors board meeting, each board member has a vote on each question to be decided. (2) A question is to be decided by a majority of the votes of the official visitors board members present and voting but, if the votes are equal, the chair of the board has a deciding vote.

Miscellaneous Part 6 Section 23F R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 25 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 23F Minister may make guidelines (1) The Minister may— (a) after consulting the operational Minister for a visitable place, make guidelines about— (i) visits by an official visitor for the place; and (ii) the inspection by an official visitor for the place of records relating to entitled people at the place, including requirements and guidance for compliance with section 15 (2) (a) and (b) and (3); and (iii) the handling of complaints, and referral of complaints to investigative entities, by an official visitor for the place; and (iv) any other matter relating to the place or official visitor for the place; and (b) make guidelines about any other matter. (2) A guideline is a disallowable instrument. 24 Protection of officials from liability (1) An official is not civilly liable for anything done or omitted to be done honestly and without recklessness— (a) in the exercise of a function under this Act; or (b) in the reasonable belief that the act or omission was in the exercise of a function under this Act. (2) Any civil liability that would, apart from subsection (1), attach to an official attaches instead to the Territory.

Part 6 Miscellaneous Section 24A page 26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (3) In this section: official means— (a) an official visitor; or (b) an official visitors board member; or (c) the official visitors executive officer; or (d) a person authorised under this Act to do or not to do a thing. Note A reference to an Act includes a reference to the statutory instruments made or in force under the Act, including any regulation (see Legislation Act, s 104). 24A Protection from liability (1) An entitled person at a visitable place, or anyone else, who takes any of the following actions honestly and without recklessness does not incur civil or criminal liability only because of taking the action: (a) making a complaint under section 22 to an official visitor; (b) making a statement, or giving a document or information, as required or allowed under a territory law, to an official visitor. (2) Also, taking an action mentioned in subsection (1) honestly and without recklessness is not a breach of— (a) confidence; or (b) professional etiquette or ethics; or (c) a rule of professional conduct. 25 Offences—use or divulge protected information (1) A person to whom this section applies commits an offence if— (a) the person uses information; and (b) the information is protected information about someone else; and

Miscellaneous Part 6 Section 25 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 27 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (c) the person is reckless about whether the information is protected information about someone else. Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units, imprisonment for 6 months or both. (2) A person to whom this section applies commits an offence if— (a) the person does something that divulges information; and (b) the information is protected information about someone else; and (c) the person is reckless about whether— (i) the information is protected information about someone else; and (ii) doing the thing would result in the information being divulged to someone else. Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units, imprisonment for 6 months or both. (3) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply if the information is used or divulged— (a) under this Act or another territory law; or (b) in relation to the exercise of a function, as a person to whom this section applies, under this Act or another territory law; or (c) in a court proceeding. (4) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to the using or divulging of protected information about a person with the person’s consent. Note The defendant has an evidential burden in relation to the matters mentioned in ss (3) and (4) (see Criminal Code, s 58).

Part 6 Miscellaneous Section 25A page 28 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (5) A person to whom this section applies need not divulge protected information to a court, or produce a document containing protected information to a court, unless it is necessary to do so for this Act or another law applying in the territory. (6) In this section: court includes a tribunal, authority or person having power to require the production of documents or the answering of questions. divulge includes— (a) communicate; or (b) publish. person to whom this section applies means— (a) a person who is or has been an official visitor; or (b) anyone else who has exercised a function under this Act. produce includes allow access to. protected information means information about a person that is disclosed to, or obtained by, a person to whom this section applies because of the exercise of a function under this Act by the person or someone else. use information includes make a record of the information. 25A Information sharing between official visitors (1) An official visitor may give official visitor information to another official visitor (the receiving official visitor), and a receiving official visitor may use the information, if the information is necessary for the effective exercise of a function under this Act.

Miscellaneous Part 6 Section 26 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 29 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au (2) If a receiving official visitor uses official visitor information given to them under subsection (1)— (a) a secrecy requirement is taken to apply to the receiving official visitor in relation to the information; and (b) the receiving official visitor is taken to be a person engaged in the administration of the law that contains the secrecy requirement. (3) In this section: official visitor information means information disclosed to, or obtained by, an official visitor in the exercise of a function under this Act. secrecy requirement means a prohibition on the disclosure of information that applies to an official visitor in relation to official visitor information, whether the prohibition is absolute or subject to stated exceptions or qualifications. 26 Approved forms (1) The Minister may approve forms for this Act. (2) If the Minister approves a form for a particular purpose, the approved form must be used for that purpose. (3) An approved form is a notifiable instrument. 27 Regulation-making power The Executive may make regulations for this Act.

Dictionary page 30 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Dictionary (see s 3) Note 1 The Legislation Act contains definitions and other provisions relevant to this Act. Note 2 For example, the Legislation Act, dict, pt 1 defines the following terms: • appoint • director-general (see s 163) • exercise • function • integrity commissioner • Minister (see s 162) • public advocate • public trustee and guardian. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner means the person appointed as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Commissioner under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Commissioner Act 2022, section 10. Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child or young person means a child or young person who is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person. Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person—see the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Commissioner Act 2022, dictionary. entitled person, at a visitable place—see section 8. health record—see the Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997, dictionary. official visitor, for a visitable place—see section 6. official visitors board means the official visitors board established under section 23A.

Dictionary R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 31 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au official visitors executive officer—see section 23C (2). operating entity, for a visitable place, means— (a) if the Territory operates the place—the relevant director-general; or (b) in any other case—the entity that operates the place. operational Act—see section 7. operational Minister, for a visitable place, means the Minister responsible for the operational Act under which the visitable place is mentioned. relevant director-general, for a visitable place, means the director-general of the administrative unit responsible for the operational Act under which the place is mentioned. senior practitioner means the Senior Practitioner under the Senior Practitioner Act 2018. visitable place—see section 9.

Endnotes 1 About the endnotes page 32 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Endnotes 1 About the endnotes Amending and modifying laws are annotated in the legislation history and the amendment history. Current modifications are not included in the republished law but are set out in the endnotes. Not all editorial amendments made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 are annotated in the amendment history. Full details of any amendments can be obtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office. Uncommenced amending laws are not included in the republished law. The details of these laws are underlined in the legislation history. Uncommenced expiries are underlined in the legislation history and amendment history. If all the provisions of the law have been renumbered, a table of renumbered provisions gives details of previous and current numbering. The endnotes also include a table of earlier republications. 2 Abbreviation key A = Act NI = Notifiable instrument AF = Approved form o = order am = amended om = omitted/repealed amdt = amendment ord = ordinance AR = Assembly resolution orig = original ch = chapter par = paragraph/subparagraph CN = Commencement notice pres = present def = definition prev = previous DI = Disallowable instrument (prev...) = previously dict = dictionary pt = part disallowed = disallowed by the Legislative r = rule/subrule Assembly reloc = relocated div = division renum = renumbered exp = expires/expired R[X] = Republication No Gaz = gazette RI = reissue hdg = heading s = section/subsection IA = Interpretation Act 1967 sch = schedule ins = inserted/added sdiv = subdivision LA = Legislation Act 2001 SL = Subordinate law LR = legislation register sub = substituted LRA = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 underlining = whole or part not commenced mod = modified/modification or to be expired

Endnotes Legislation history 3 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 33 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 3 Legislation history Official Visitor Act 2012 A2012-33 notified LR 15 June 2012 s 1, s 2 commenced 15 June 2012 (LA s 75 (1)) remainder commenced 1 September 2013 (s 2 (as am by A2013-22 s 4)) as amended by Official Visitor Amendment Act 2013 A2013-22 notified LR 17 June 2013 s 1, s 2 commenced 17 June 2013 (LA s 75 (1)) remainder commenced 1 September 2013 (s 2 and see A2012-33 s 2 as am by this Act) Mental Health Act 2015 A2015-38 sch 2 pt 2.4 div 2.4.12 notified LR 7 October 2015 s 1, s 2 commenced 7 October 2015 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 2 pt 2.4 div 2.4.12 commenced 1 March 2016 (s 2 (1) and see Mental Health (Treatment and Care) Amendment Act 2014 A2014-51, s 2 (as am by A2015-38 amdt 2.54)) Protection of Rights (Services) Legislation Amendment Act 2016 (No 2) A2016-13 sch 1 pt 1.29 notified LR 16 March 2016 s 1, s 2 commenced 16 March 2016 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 1 pt 1.29 commenced 1 April 2016 (s 2 and see Protection of Rights (Services) Legislation Amendment Act 2016 A2016-1 s 2) Statute Law Amendment Act 2017 (No 2) A2017-28 sch 3 pt 3.10 notified LR 27 September 2017 s 1, s 2 commenced 27 September 2017 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 3 pt 3.10 commenced 11 October 2017 (s 2) Integrity Commission Act 2018 A2018-52 sch 1 pt 1.18 (as am by A2019-18 s 4) notified LR 11 December 2018 s 1, s 2 commenced 11 December 2018 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 1 pt 1.18 commenced 1 December 2019 (s 2 (2) (a) as am by A2019-18 s 4)

Endnotes 3 Legislation history page 34 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Integrity Commission Amendment Act 2019 A2019-18 notified LR 14 June 2019 s 1, s 2 commenced 14 June 2019 (LA s 75 (1)) s 3, s 4 commenced 15 June 2019 (s 2 (1)) Note This Act only amends the Integrity Commission Act 2018 A2018-52. Official Visitor Amendment Act 2019 A2019-29 notified LR 2 October 2019 s 1, s 2 commenced 2 October 2019 s 7, s 9, s 10 (so far as it inserts s 15 (2)-(7)), s 16, s 19, ss 25-30, ss 32-35, s 37 commenced 2 April 2020 (s 2 (1) and LA s 79) remainder commenced 3 October 2019 (s 2 (2)) COVID-19 Emergency Response Act 2020 A2020-11 sch 1 pt 1.15 notified LR 7 April 2020 s 1, s 2 commenced 7 April 2020 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 1 pt 1.15 commenced 8 April 2020 (s 2 (1)) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Commissioner Act 2022 A2022-25 sch 1 pt 1.5 notified LR 14 December 2022 s 1, s 2 commenced 14 December 2022 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 1 pt 1.5 commenced 15 December 2022 (s 2) Justice and Community Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2025 A2025-2 pt 6 notified LR 20 February 2025 s 1, s 2 commenced 20 February 2025 (LA s 75 (1)) pt 6 commenced 27 February 2025 (s 2 (1)) Statute Law Amendment Act 2025 A2025-29 sch 4 pt 4.132 notified LR 6 November 2025 s 1, s 2 commenced 6 November 2025 (LA s 75 (1)) sch 4 pt 4.132 commenced 26 December 2025 (s 2 (7)) Justice and Community Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2026 A2026-4 pt 12 notified LR 16 February 2026 s 1, s 2 commenced 16 February 2026 (LA s 75 (1)) pt 12 commenced 23 February 2026 (s 2)

Endnotes Amendment history 4 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 35 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 4 Amendment history Commencement s 2 sub A2013-22 s 4 om LA s 89 (4) Who is an official visitor? s 6 sub A2019-29 s 4 What is an operational Act? s 7 am A2015-38 amdt 2.81 Who is an entitled person? s 8 sub A2019-29 s 5 What is a visitable place? s 9 sub A2019-29 s 5 Authorisation to visit places s 9A ins A2019-29 s 5 Appointment s 10 am A2015-38 amdt 2.81 sub A2019-29 s 6 am A2026-4 s 38, s 39 Ending appointment s 12 am A2013-22 s 5, s 24; A2019-29 s 7, s 8; A2026-4 s 40 Handover of records by official visitors s 13 am A2019-29 s 9 Official visitor functions s 14 am A2013-22 s 24 sub A2019-29 s 10 Independence of official visitors s 14A ins A2019-29 s 10 Conflict of interest s 14B ins A2026-4 s 41 Official visitor may enter visitable place etc s 15 hdg sub A2013-22 s 6; A2019-29 s 10 s 15 am A2013-22 s 7; ss renum R1 LA sub A2019-29 s 10 Official visitor must report non-compliant visitable places s 16 am A2013-22 s 8; A2019-29 ss 11-13; A2022-25 amdt 1.79; pars renum R12 LA

Endnotes 4 Amendment history page 36 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Reporting of complaints s 17 am A2013-22 s 9; A2017-28 amdt 3.30; A2019-29 s 14, s 15; A2018-52 amdt 1.96 sub A2019-29 s 16 am A2022-25 amdt 1.80, amdt 1.81; pars renum R12 LA Assistance to official visitors s 18 am A2013-22 s 10, s 11; A2019-29 s 17, s 18; A2019-29 s 19; ss renum R9 LA Offences—failure to provide assistance etc s 19 am A2013-22 s 12; A2025-29 amdt 4.133 Visits and complaints pt 5 hdg sub A2013-22 s 13 Operating entity must let entitled people know about official visitors s 20 am A2019-29 s 20 Requests to meet official visitor s 21 am A2013-22 s 14; A2019-29 s 21, s 22 Complaints to official visitors s 22 am A2019-29 s 23, s 24 Visit and complaint guidelines s 23 hdg sub A2013-22 s 15 s 23 am A2013-22 s 16, s 24 om A2019-29 s 25 Official visitors board pt 5A hdg ins A2013-22 s 17 Establishment of official visitors board s 23A ins A2013-22 s 17 Membership of official visitors board s 23B ins A2013-22 s 17 am A2016-13 amdts 1.98-1.100; pars renum R4 LA; A2017-28 amdt 3.31; A2019-29 s 26, s 27; A2025-29 amdt 4.133 Official visitors board functions s 23C ins A2013-22 s 17 sub A2019-29 s 28 Official visitors board procedure s 23D ins A2013-22 s 17 am A2016-13 amdt 1.101; A2019-29 s 29

Endnotes Amendment history 4 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 37 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Board annual report s 23DA ins A2019-29 s 30 am A2020-11 amdt 1.61 (3A), (3B) exp 8 October 2020 (s 23DA (3B)) am A2022-25 amdt 1.82 Register of visitable places s 23DB ins A2019-29 s 31 am A2019-29 s 32; pars renum R9 LA; A2022-25 amdt 1.83; pars renum R12 LA Voting at meetings s 23E ins A2016-13 amdt 1.102; A2019-29 s 33 Minister may make guidelines s 23F ins A2019-29 s 34 am A2025-29 amdt 4.133 Protection of officials from liability s 24 am A2013-22 s 18; pars renum R1 LA; A2019-29 s 35; pars renum R9 LA Protection from liability s 24A ins A2025-2 s 40 Offences—use or divulge protected information s 25 am A2013-22 s 19 Information sharing between official visitors s 25A ins A2025-2 s 41 Approved forms s 26 am A2017-28 amdt 3.32; A2025-29 amdt 4.133 Regulation-making power s 27 am A2025-29 amdt 4.133 Legislation amended—sch 1 s 28 om LA s 89 (3) Transitional pt 10 hdg exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) Definitions—pt 10 s 50 exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) def commencement day exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) def operational Act exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) Unfinished complaints to official visitors s 51 exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) Existing appointments s 52 exp 1 September 2015 (s 54)

Endnotes 4 Amendment history page 38 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Transitional regulations s 53 exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) Expiry—pt 10 s 54 exp 1 September 2015 (s 54) Transitional—Mental Health Act 2015 pt 11 hdg ins A2015-38 amdt 2.82 exp 1 September 2016 (s 62) Definitions—pt 11 s 60 ins A2015-38 amdt 2.82 exp 1 September 2016 (s 62) def commencement day ins A2015-38 amdt 2.82 exp 1 September 2016 (s 62) def repealed Act ins A2015-38 amdt 2.82 exp 1 September 2016 (s 62) Continued appointment s 61 ins A2015-38 amdt 2.82 exp 1 September 2016 (s 62) Expiry—pt 11 s 62 ins A2015-38 amdt 2.82 exp 1 September 2016 (s 62) Validation pt 12 hdg ins A2026-4 s 42 exp 23 February 2026 (s 64) Validation of appointment of official visitor s 63 ins A2026-4 s 42 exp 23 February 2026 (s 64) Expiry—pt 12 s 64 ins A2026-4 s 42 exp 23 February 2026 (s 64) Consequential amendments sch 1 hdg om LA s 89 (3) Children and Young People Act 2008 sch 1 pt 1.1 om LA s 89 (3) Corrections Management Act 2007 sch 1 pt 1.2 om LA s 89 (3) Disability Services Act 1991 sch 1 pt 1.3 om LA s 89 (3) New section 9A sch 1 amdt 1.27 om A2013-22 s 20

Endnotes Amendment history 4 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 39 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au New section 11 sch 1 amdt 1.28 om A2013-22 s 20 Housing Assistance Act 2007 sch 1 pt 1.4 om LA s 89 (3) Legislation Act 2001 sch 1 pt 1.5 om LA s 89 (3) Mental Health (Treatment and Care) Act 1994 sch 1 pt 1.6 om LA s 89 (3) Territory Records Regulation 2009 sch 1 pt 1.7 om LA s 89 (3) Dictionary dict am A2013-22 s 21; A2016-13 amdt 1.103; A2018-52 amdt 1.97 def Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner ins A2022-25 amdt 1.84 def Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child or young person ins A2022-25 amdt 1.84 def Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person ins A2022-25 amdt 1.84 def entitled person sub A2019-29 s 36 def health record ins A2013-22 s 22 def investigative entity am A2016-13 amdt 1.104 om A2017-28 amdt 3.33 def official visitor sub A2019-29 s 36 def official visitors board ins A2013-22 s 22 def official visitors executive officer ins A2019-29 s 37 def operating entity am A2013-22 s 23 def operational Minister sub A2019-29 s 38 def relevant director-general sub A2019-29 s 38 def senior practitioner ins A2019-29 s 39 def visitable place sub A2019-29 s 40

Endnotes 5 Earlier republications page 40 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 5 Earlier republications Some earlier republications were not numbered. The number in column 1 refers to the publication order. Since 12 September 2001 every authorised republication has been published in electronic pdf format on the ACT legislation register. A selection of authorised republications have also been published in printed format. These republications are marked with an asterisk (*) in column 1. Electronic and printed versions of an authorised republication are identical. Republication No and date Effective Last amendment made by Republication for R1 1 Sept 2013 1 Sept 2013– 1 Sept 2015 A2013-22 new Act and amendments by A2013-22 R2 2 Sept 2016 2 Sept 2015– 29 Feb 2016 A2013-22 expiry of transitional provisions (pt 10) R3 1 Mar 2016 1 Mar 2016– 31 Mar 2016 A2015-38 amendments by A2015-38 R4 1 Apr 2016 1 Apr 2016– 1 Sep 2016 A2016-13 amendments by A2016-13 R5 2 Sept 2016 2 Sept 2016– 10 Oct 2017 A2016-13 expiry of transitional provisions (pt 11) R6 11 Oct 2017 11 Oct 2017– 2 Oct 2019 A2017-28 amendments by A2017-28 R7 3 Oct 2019 3 Oct 2019– 30 Nov 2019 A2019-29 amendments by A2019-29 R8 1 Dec 2019 1 Dec 2019– 1 Apr 2020 A2019-29 amendments by A2018-52 as amended by A2019-18 R9 2 Apr 2020 2 Apr 2020– 7 Apr 2020 A2019-29 amendments by A2019-29 R10 8 Apr 2020 8 Apr 2020– 8 Oct 2020 A2020-11 amendments by A2020-11

Endnotes Earlier republications 5 R16 24/02/26 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 page 41 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au Republication No and date Effective Last amendment made by Republication for R11 9 Oct 2020 9 Oct 2020– 14 Dec 2022 A2020-11 expiry of provisions (s 23DA (3A), (3B)) R12 15 Dec 2022 15 Dec 2022– 26 Feb 2025 A2022-25 amendments by A2022-25 R13 27 Feb 2025 27 Feb 2025– 25 Dec 2025 A2025-2 amendments by A2025-2 R14 26 Dec 2025 26 Dec 2025– 22 Feb 2026 A2025-29 amendments by A2025-29 R15 23 Feb 2026 23 Feb 2026– 23 Feb 2026 A2026-4 amendments by A2026-4

Endnotes 6 Expired transitional or validating provisions page 42 Official Visitor Act 2012 Effective: 24/02/26 R16 24/02/26 Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au 6 Expired transitional or validating provisions This Act may be affected by transitional or validating provisions that have expired. The expiry does not affect any continuing operation of the provisions (see Legislation Act 2001, s 88 (1)). Expired provisions are removed from the republished law when the expiry takes effect and are listed in the amendment history using the abbreviation ‘exp’ followed by the date of the expiry. To find the expired provisions see the version of this Act before the expiry took effect. The ACT legislation register has point-in-time versions of this Act. © Australian Capital Territory 2026

The Act organises its architecture around a small set of defined legal concepts. These are central to construing powers and duties:

Official visitor, for a visitable place (s 6). The Act defines an official visitor as a person authorised under s 9A and appointed under s 10. The role is functional, linked to a particular visitable place under the operational Acts. The dictionary cross-references the definition (dict).
Operational Act (s 7). The Act identifies five operational Acts that determine which locations and classes of people may be visited: Children and Young People Act 2008, Corrections Management Act 2007, Disability Services Act 1991, Housing Assistance Act 2007 and Mental Health Act 2015. A reference to an Act includes its statutory instruments (s 7 note). Operational Acts may also prescribe additional appointment requirements and reporting rules (s 10(4); s 16(3)).
Entitled person (s 8). The Act does not re-define the term generically; instead it delegates to the operational Acts for definitions of “entitled person” at each visitable place. The consequence is that who may be the subject of visits and complaints is defined by the underlying operational legislation (s 8).
Visitable place (s 9). The Act identifies “visitable places” by referring to definitions in each operational Act. This creates a dependency, where the scope of official visitors’ physical jurisdiction follows the operational Acts (s 9). Section 9A clarifies authorisation to visit: appointment under s 10(1) for a visitable place authorises visits to that place; an official visitor appointed for one place may be asked in writing to visit another by the official visitors board or another official visitor for that other place (s 9A(1)-(2)).
Operating entity and relevant director-general (dict; s 23DB). An “operating entity” is the body that operates the visitable place, or the relevant director-general if the Territory operates the place. The relevant director-general has particular registry and disclosure duties (s 23DB).
Official visitors board and official visitors executive officer (Pt 5A; ss 23A-23C). The board’s composition mixes ex-officio public office-holders (the public trustee and guardian), commissioners nominated under the Human Rights Commission Act, elected official visitors, and ministerially appointed members including a ministerially appointed chair (s 23B). The official visitors executive officer is a public servant who can provide support to the board and exercise delegated functions (s 23C(2)-(3)).
Information concepts: protected information, official visitor information and secrecy requirement (s 25; s 25A). Protected information means information about a person disclosed to, or obtained by, an official visitor because of the exercise of a function under the Act (s 25(6)). The Act creates criminal offences for reckless use or divulging of such protected information (s 25(1)-(2)), while authorising sharing and use between official visitors where necessary for performance of functions (s 25A).
Independence and conflict rules. The Act provides that, except as otherwise provided, an official visitor is not subject to direction in relation to the exercise of a function (s 14A). It also requires official visitors to take reasonable steps to avoid conflicts of interest and to notify the official visitors board about certain proposed paid employment or activities that may give rise to conflicts (s 14B).
Reporting and oversight. Official visitors must produce quarterly full and summary reports with enumerated content (s 17). The official visitors board must provide an annual report to the Minister and that report must be presented to the Legislative Assembly and publicly advertised (s 23DA).

These concepts are interlinked. The Act deliberately folded statutory functions into the operational Acts by cross-reference to allow official visitors to operate only in places and with entitled people specified by those Acts, while setting uniform procedural safeguards, reporting obligations and offences in the Official Visitor Act itself. The dependency on operational Acts means that actual coverage, rights of entitled persons and minimum appointment numbers are driven by both the Official Visitor Act and the relevant operational Act provisions (ss 7-9).

The Act establishes duties and rights that directly affect multiple classes of actors. Below I identify who is concretely affected and how, referencing the relevant provisions.

Entitled people at visitable places. The Act confers a statutory channel for persons defined as “entitled” under the operational Acts to request meetings with official visitors (s 21), to make complaints confidentially and without explaining reasons to the operating entity (s 21(3); s 22(1)-(3)), and to be informed about the existence and contact details of official visitors at the time they enter the place (s 20(1)-(2)). Entitled people also benefit from protections that remove civil or criminal liability for making complaints honestly and without recklessness (s 24A(1)).
Operating entities and persons in charge. An “operating entity” is either the relevant director-general if the Territory operates the place, or the entity that operates the place (dict). Operating entities are obliged to give reasonable assistance to official visitors when asked (s 18(1)), to provide access to records only in accordance with s 15(2), to keep a record of each visit by an official visitor (s 19(3); maximum penalty applies), to tell entitled people about official visitors and complaint rights (s 20), and to ensure that requests by entitled persons to meet an official visitor are passed on within 24 hours (s 21(2)). Persons in charge who obstruct or unreasonably refuse assistance face criminal penalties (s 19(1)-(2)).
Official visitors. Individuals appointed under s 10 are the principal operational actors. Their functions are statutory (s 14), they enjoy independence in exercising functions subject to the Act (s 14A), and must avoid conflicts of interest and notify the board about potential paid employment or activities that could create conflict (s 14B). They have express powers of entry at reasonable times (s 15(1)), conditional rights to inspect health and other records (s 15(2)-(5)), duties to report non-compliance to the operational Minister and other specified entities (s 16(1)-(2)), and quarterly reporting obligations (s 17). Official visitors are protected from civil liability for honest, non-reckless acts done in the exercise of functions (s 24(1)-(2)).
The Minister and operational Ministers. The Minister must appoint official visitors with minimum numerical and representational requirements for certain visitable places (s 10(1)). The Minister also appoints the chair of the official visitors board and may appoint other members (s 23B(2)). The Minister is empowered to make guidelines about visits and record inspection and these guidelines are disallowable instruments (s 23F). Operational Ministers must be consulted before appointments may be made (s 10(2)(a)), and official visitors report non-compliance to operational Ministers (s 16(2)).
Official visitors board, the official visitors executive officer and administrative support staff. The board oversees recruitment, induction, training and support of official visitors (s 23C(1)(b)), handles complaints about official visitors (s 23C(1)(d)), and must submit an annual report for tabling in the Assembly (s 23DA). The official visitors executive officer, a public servant, may provide support and exercise delegated functions (s 23C(2)-(3)).
Investigative entities and other oversight bodies. The Act contemplates referrals to investigative entities such as the human rights commission, ombudsman, chief police officer, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner and integrity commissioner (s 17(6); s 16(2)(b)(i-v)). Official visitors may refer complaints or systemic issues to these entities (s 14(1)(e); s 17(1)(a)(iv)).
Third parties with register access or information needs. The relevant director-general must maintain a register of visitable places and provide register information to official visitors, the board, the executive officer and specified office-holders on request (s 23DB(1)-(3)). The director-general may supply certain information to other parties in specified circumstances if reasonable (s 23DB(4)).
Persons who receive or handle protected information. The Act criminalises reckless use or divulgence of protected information obtained because of functions exercised under the Act (s 25(1)-(2)). The duty applies to official visitors and to “anyone else who has exercised a function under this Act” (s 25(6)). Section 25(3) lists exceptions, including disclosures under the Act or other territory laws, and disclosures with the subject’s consent.

Who bears enforcement and compliance costs. Operating entities bear the immediate compliance costs of providing assistance, facilitating visits, recording access to records and informing entitled persons, as well as potential legal exposure under s 19. The relevant director-general bears maintaining the register duty (s 23DB) and disclosure decisions. The Minister and board bear appointment, training and oversight responsibilities, while official visitors bear obligations of conduct, record-handover on exit (s 13) and reporting.

The Act therefore involves both public sector entities and private service operators depending on who operates a particular visitable place, as the definition of operating entity contemplates both Territory-operated places and others (dict). The Act’s effects are concrete and distributed across roles, with the most immediate burdens on operating entities and the Minister/board in creating and sustaining the official visitors system.

This section summarises concrete statutory duties and rights created by the Act, citing specific provisions.

Official visitors: duties and rights

Functions. Official visitors must visit the place, meet entitled people, monitor conditions, investigate and try to resolve complaints, identify systemic issues, refer matters to investigative entities where appropriate, and report to Ministers and the board (s 14(1)(a)-(g)). They must respect and promote human rights, centre services on entitled people’s needs, and have regard to operational Acts and the wishes of entitled people (s 14(2)(a)-(e)).
Independence. Official visitors are not subject to direction by anyone else in exercising a function under this Act except as provided elsewhere in the Act or another territory law (s 14A).
Entry and inspection rights. An official visitor may at any reasonable time enter a visitable place following a complaint or at their own initiative (s 15(1)). They may inspect health records or other records relating to an entitled person where written consent exists, or where oral consent is obtained and recorded, or where reasonable steps to find consent have been taken and the official visitor reasonably believes the entitled person may not be able to consent and that access is necessary and appropriate (s 15(2)(a)-(b); s 15(3)). The official visitor must take steps to make the person aware where records were inspected under the consent-exception path (s 15(3)). Subsection (6) excludes sensitive information under the Children and Young People Act from the consent-exception path.
Reporting non-compliance and complaints. Where the official visitor reasonably believes care, services, living conditions or detention are not in accordance with the operational Act, they must report to the operational Minister and may report to the director-general, public advocate, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner, the board and the senior practitioner (s 16(1)-(2)). Official visitors must prepare quarterly full reports and summary reports with specified content and distribute them to the operational Minister, Minister, board and executive officer as required (s 17).

Operating entities and persons in charge: duties and rights

Assistance and cooperation. Operating entities must give any reasonable assistance requested by an official visitor to enable exercise of functions (s 18(1)). Assistance examples include giving access to documents and records, answering reasonable questions about facts of a complaint and giving reasonable access to facilities (s 18 examples).
Record-keeping and access to health records. Operating entities may only give an official visitor access to an entitled person’s health record if the official visitor has complied with s 15(2)(a) or (b) (s 18(2)). Operating entities must keep a record of each time an official visitor accesses a record pursuant to s 15(2)(b) (s 15(4)). Section 19 imposes penalties for refusal to assist or obstruction.
Notification of official visitors. Operating entities must tell entitled persons or their representatives about the functions of official visitors and how to contact them, and must give information about complaint rights at the point of entry in an accessible form (s 20(1)-(2)). If an entitled person requests to meet an official visitor, the operating entity must tell an official visitor as soon as practicable, and no later than 24 hours (s 21(2)). The operating entity must not ask why the person wants to meet an official visitor and the entitled person need not explain (s 21(3)). If an official visitor permits a complaint to be made with only the entitled person present, the operating entity must provide reasonably private facilities (s 22(4)).

Ministers, the board and the executive officer

Appointment powers. The Minister must appoint official visitors for each class of visitable place with minimum numbers and representation, but may appoint only after consulting the operational Minister and on reasonable grounds of suitable qualifications or experience (s 10(1)-(2)). The Minister must not appoint public servants or persons with an actual or perceived conflict of interest (s 10(3)).
Oversight and support. The official visitors board oversees the exercise of functions by official visitors, arranges recruitment, induction, training and support, considers complaints about official visitors, and may exercise other functions given under this Act (s 23C(1)). The board’s chair may arrange for a public servant to be an official visitors executive officer to support the board and exercise delegated functions (s 23C(2)-(3)).
Guidelines and forms. The Minister may make guidelines after consulting the operational Minister about visits, inspection of records, complaint handling and other matters (s 23F(1)(a)(i)-(iv)); guidelines are disallowable instruments (s 23F(2)). The Minister may approve forms and approved forms must be used where specified (s 26).

Information and privacy duties

Protected information and secrecy. A person to whom s 25 applies (official visitors and others who have exercised a function under the Act) commits an offence if they use protected information or divulge protected information while reckless as to its protected status (s 25(1)-(2)). There are exceptions where disclosure is permitted under the Act or another territory law, for exercise of a function under law, in court proceedings or with the person’s consent (s 25(3)-(4)). A person need not divulge protected information to a court unless necessary for the Act or another law (s 25(5)).
Information sharing between official visitors. Official visitors may give official visitor information to another official visitor where necessary to exercise functions; the receiving official visitor is then subject to secrecy requirements and treated as engaged in administration of the law for that secrecy requirement (s 25A(1)-(2)).

Liability protections and penalties

Protection of officials. Officials are not civilly liable for acts done honestly and without recklessness in the exercise of functions under the Act, and liability attaches instead to the Territory (s 24(1)-(2)). The definition of “official” includes official visitors, board members, the executive officer and others authorised under the Act (s 24(3)).
Protection for those making complaints. Persons making complaints or providing statements or documents to official visitors honestly and without recklessness do not incur civil or criminal liability solely because of taking that action. Such conduct is also not a breach of confidence, professional etiquette or conduct rules if done honestly and without recklessness (s 24A(1)-(2)).
Criminal penalties. Section 19 creates penalties for refusal to provide assistance or obstructing official visitors (maximum 50 penalty units for refusal; maximum 50 penalty units and up to 6 months imprisonment for obstruction). Section 25 creates maximum penalties of 50 penalty units and up to 6 months imprisonment for use or divulgence of protected information. The Act’s front matter records the value of a penalty unit at the republication date: $160 for an individual and $810 for a corporation (Legislation Act, s 133 note in front matter).

These duties and rights create a system in which official visitors have defined powers to enter and investigate, operating entities have affirmative duties to assist and inform, and various reporting and privacy protections govern the flow of information. The Act balances entry and investigatory rights with privacy safeguards and criminal sanctions to deter misuse of information.

The Act combines administrative mechanisms, reporting duties and criminal sanctions to enforce cooperation and protect confidentiality. Enforcement originates from statutory offences, record-keeping obligations with penalties, and reporting and referral pathways to investigative entities.

Criminal and penalty-unit provisions

Obstruction and failure to assist. Section 19 makes it an offence for a person in charge of an operating entity to refuse or neglect reasonable assistance requested by an official visitor, or to fail to answer questions asked by an official visitor in the exercise of their functions. The maximum penalty for refusal or neglect under s 19(1) is 50 penalty units. For obstructing or hindering an official visitor the maximum penalty is 50 penalty units, imprisonment for 6 months, or both (s 19(2)). The Act defines “person in charge” as the relevant director-general for Territory-run places or the person in charge of the entity otherwise (s 19(4)).
Record-keeping breach. A person in charge must keep a record of each visit by an official visitor to the visitable place; failure to do so attracts a maximum penalty of 5 penalty units (s 19(3)).
Use or divulgence of protected information. Section 25 makes it an offence for persons to use protected information about someone else where the person is reckless as to whether the information is protected; maximum penalty is 50 penalty units and 6 months imprisonment, or both (s 25(1)). An offence is also created for doing something that divulges protected information where the person is reckless about the protected nature and the effect of the action (s 25(2)). The Act specifies exceptions in s 25(3)-(5) for use/divulgence under the Act or other territory law, in relation to exercise of a function, in court proceedings, or with the person’s consent.
Penalty unit values. The front matter states the value of a penalty unit at the republication date: $160 for an individual and $810 for a corporation (Legislation Act, s 133 reference). Practitioners should confirm current penalty unit values at the time of enforcement, since the Legislation Act governs their monetary value and changes over time.

Administrative enforcement and oversight

Reporting duties as enforcement triggers. Official visitors must report non-compliant practices or conditions to the operational Minister (mandatory) and may report to the director-general, public advocate, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner, the board and the senior practitioner (s 16). These reports may prompt administrative or investigative action by the operational Minister or referral to entities with statutory investigatory powers (s 16(2)).
Referral to investigative entities. The quarterly reports that official visitors must prepare include the number and kinds of matters referred to investigative entities, and the board’s annual report must enumerate referrals and action taken (s 17; s 23DA). Investigative entities include the chief police officer, human rights commission, ombudsman, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner and the integrity commissioner as examples (s 17(6); s 23DA(4) note).
Board oversight and complaints about official visitors. The official visitors board is expressly empowered to consider and try to resolve complaints about official visitors (s 23C(1)(d)). The Minister may end an appointment for misbehaviour, failure to comply with guideline requirements plus not visiting for 4 consecutive weeks, physical or mental incapacity affecting performance, or failure to avoid conflicts of interest (s 12(1)-(2)).
Civil liability substitution. Section 24 protects officials from civil liability for honest, non-reckless acts done in the exercise of functions under the Act, and any civil liability otherwise attaching to an official attaches instead to the Territory (s 24(1)-(2)). This shifts civil exposure from individual officials to the Territory and may affect the remedies available to injured parties and the internal risk management of the Territory.

Practical enforcement mechanics

Criminal enforcement will require prosecution, proof of recklessness for s 25 or intention/recklessness for other offences under the Criminal Code as applied (s 5 notes on application of Criminal Code). The Act points users to the Criminal Code for general principles of criminal responsibility such as burdens and defences (s 5 note 1).
Administrative enforcement relies on reporting outlets and the board. An official visitor’s report to the operational Minister or referrals to investigative entities is the statutory mechanism designed to trigger action outside the official visitor system (s 16; s 17).
Compliance record-keeping and registers. The relevant director-general’s duty to maintain a register of visitable places (s 23DB) and operating entities’ duty to log visits and record access to health records under s 15(4) produce auditable traces for enforcement and oversight.
Non-criminal remedies. The Act does not itself spell out civil remedies for a person harmed by misuse of information beyond recognising that officials have protection from civil liability and that liability shifts to the Territory (s 24(2)). For misuse of protected information that does not meet the criminal threshold, victims would need to explore civil avenues, but the Act does not create or limit such remedies beyond s 24.

Risk and burden

The combination of criminal penalties, administrative reporting and board oversight indicates a mixed enforcement regime where compliance is enforced both by criminal sanction against obstructive conduct and by administrative pressure via reporting and referrals. Operating entities face immediate compliance and record-keeping obligations, while the Minister and board execute oversight via appointments, guidelines and public reporting. Penalty unit valuations are governed by the Legislation Act and must be checked for current amounts when assessing exposure.

The Official Visitor Act is explicitly structured to operate alongside and in support of several operational Acts. The Act cross-references and defers to those Acts on key matters. Interactions take the form of delegated scope, privacy constraints, referral routes to investigative entities, and administrative interfaces.

Dependence on operational Acts for scope and definitions

The Act relies on the operational Acts to define who is an “entitled person” and what constitutes a “visitable place” (ss 7-9). For example, s 7 lists the Children and Young People Act 2008; Corrections Management Act 2007; Disability Services Act 1991; Housing Assistance Act 2007; and Mental Health Act 2015. Section 8 directs readers to the relevant definitions in those operational Acts for entitled persons. Section 9 lists the visitable place definitions in those Acts. As a result, the scope of official visitor powers and the identity of people entitled to protections or to make complaints depend on the provisions and definitions contained in those operational Acts.

Privacy, health records and sensitive information

The Act’s inspection regime for health and other records is conditioned by the Act’s own consent rules (s 15(2)) and by the operational Acts’ prescription of sensitive information. Section 15(6) excludes sensitive information as defined in the Children and Young People Act 2008, s 845 from the consent-exception path. Moreover, the operating entity may only give access to an entitled person’s health record if the official visitor has complied with s 15(2)(a) or (b) (s 18(2)). Practitioners must therefore reconcile the Official Visitor Act’s inspection rules with the privacy and health record statutes such as the Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997 (dict references).

Referral to investigative entities created elsewhere

The Act contemplates referral and reporting to entities with statutory powers created in other laws. “Investigative entity” is defined in s 17(6) by example and includes bodies such as the present chief police officer, human rights commission, ombudsman, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner and the integrity commissioner. These bodies’ investigatory powers derive from their own statutory frameworks (s 17(6)). The Act therefore provides a channel from official visitors into the investigative and enforcement regimes of those other statutes.

Protection of officials, civil liability and administrative law

Section 24 shifts civil liability from officials to the Territory where acts are done honestly and without recklessness in the exercise of functions. This interacts with common law and statutory civil liability frameworks, and may have implications for litigation about official visitor conduct. The Act also applies the Criminal Code to offences against the Act (s 5), tying the criminal responsibility framework to the Criminal Code’s definitions and concepts.

Ministerial guideline-making power and disallowable instruments

The Minister may make guidelines about visits, inspection of records and handling of complaints under s 23F. Those guidelines are disallowable instruments, meaning they are subject to parliamentary oversight and possible disallowance under the Legislation Act. This creates an interaction between the Act and administrative law principles governing delegated instruments.

Registers, public sector management and information sharing

The relevant director-general must keep a register of visitable places and may disclose information to a range of public offices and other authorised persons under s 23DB. Where the chair of the board arranges with the head of service to use a public servant as the official visitors executive officer, that person operates under public sector management powers and may be delegated functions (s 23C(2); notes about Public Sector Management Act 1994). The Act therefore interacts with the Public Sector Management Act for delegation and staffing mechanics.

Other cross-references and embedded delegation

The Act points readers to the Legislation Act for many interpretive rules, appointment mechanics and penalties (see notes in ss 1 and 5; dictionary notes). It also relies on the Guardianship and Management of Property Act 1991 for “carer” definition in s 23DB(5), and references the Senior Practitioner Act 2018 in s 23DB(5). These cross-references affect how the Official Visitor Act will be applied in practice; practitioners must consult the cited statutes to understand the full legal regime around entitled persons, carers, and information sharing.

Amendment-driven interactions

The amendment history shows that provisions have been added or modified to reflect developments in other statutes, for example the creation of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner in 2022 (A2022-25) which inserted new dictionary definitions and referral points (amendment history entries). The Act therefore evolves alongside changes in the legal ecosystem, and interactions will vary as the operational Acts change.

Practical consequence for practitioners

Lawyers and compliance officers working with operating entities should treat the Official Visitor Act as an overlay: it imposes duties that rely on the definitions and constraints in the operational Acts. Privacy and health record access must be coordinated with other applicable privacy statutes. Referrals to investigative entities will transfer matters into the investigative regimes of other laws, so operational procedures should incorporate workflows for such referrals and record-keeping that support those processes. The Minister’s guideline power and the disallowable nature of guidelines also create a democratically reviewable administrative instrument to be monitored.

The Act has been subject to multiple amending Acts since its enactment. The endnotes and the legislation history list the sequence of amendments, commencement dates and specific insertions or deletions. Below is a chronology of the principal legislative changes and the provisions they affected, drawn from the Act’s endnotes and amendment history.

Key enactment and early amendments

Original enactment: Official Visitor Act 2012 A2012-33, notified 15 June 2012, with remainder commencing 1 September 2013 (legislation history).
Official Visitor Amendment Act 2013 A2013-22, notified 17 June 2013, introduced substantial amendments that came into effect in 2013 and 2014; this Act added provisions such as s 15 redrafting and created Pt 5A in later amendments (amendment history entries).

Subsequent material amendments

Mental Health Act 2015 A2015-38 amended s 7 (operational Act list) and related provisions to include the Mental Health Act 2015 (amendment history s 7 am A2015-38).
Protection of Rights (Services) Legislation Amendment Act 2016 A2016-13 and subsequent Statute Law Amendment Acts made technical and procedural amendments including to the board membership and voting (amendment history).
Integrity Commission Act and subsequent amendments in 2018 and 2019 (A2018-52 and A2019-18) made consequential changes aligning referral points and investigative entity lists (amendment history entries).
Official Visitor Amendment Act 2019 A2019-29 (notified 2 October 2019) made multiple substantive changes, including:
- substitution of definitions for “entitled person” and “visitable place” to refer to the operational Acts (s 8; s 9) (amendment history s 36; s 40);
- insertion of s 9A authorising official visitors to visit other visitable places on request (s 9A ins A2019-29 s 5);
- introduction of s 14A establishing independence of official visitors and other modernisations (s 14A ins A2019-29 s 10);
- insertion of Pt 5A (Official visitors board) with ss 23A-23DA to establish board functions, annual reporting and structure (A2019-29 s 17 et seq).
COVID-19 Emergency Response Act 2020 A2020-11 introduced temporary adjustments affecting the board’s reporting provisions as recorded in amendment history (A2020-11 sch 1 pt 1.15 and s 23DA amendments).
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Commissioner Act 2022 A2022-25 inserted new dictionary definitions for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people commissioner and related references (amendment history entries).
Justice and Community Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2025 A2025-2 and Statute Law Amendment Act 2025 A2025-29 made further changes, including provisions later re-enacted or commenced in late 2025 and early 2026 (legislation history).
Justice and Community Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2026 A2026-4 (notified 16 February 2026), inserted validation provisions and, per the amendment history, amended s 10 and s 12 among others (A2026-4 pt 12; amendment history s 38-41). Part 12 contained validation provisions that expired 23 February 2026 (amendment history shows pt 12 exp 23 February 2026).

Specific provision insertions and renumberings

The amendment history records the insertion of s 9A (authorisation to visit places) by A2013-22 and later re-insertions in A2019-29 (sch 1 amdt 1.27).
Section 11 (conditions of appointment) was introduced in sch 1 amdt 1.28 under A2013-22 and subsequently adjusted.
Section 14A (independence of official visitors) was inserted by A2019-29 s 10.
Section 14B (conflict of interest) was inserted by A2026-4 s 41.
Sections on information sharing (s 25A) and protection from liability for complainants (s 24A) were inserted in 2025 by A2025-2 and A2025-29 respectively, and amendments adjusting the regulation-making power and approved forms were enacted by A2025-29 (amendment history).

Transitional and expiry provisions

The Act contains several transitional provisions and expired transitional parts, recorded in the amendment history as expiring on specific dates; for instance, transitional provisions tied to the Mental Health Act amendments were time-limited (amendment history pt 11 exp 1 September 2016). Part 12 of A2026-4 inserted validation provisions which expired 23 February 2026 (amendment history s 64).

Practical reading point

For practitioners, the amendment history indicates the Act is regularly adjusted to accommodate new oversight roles, newly created statutory offices and administrative needs. The changes have added an explicit board structure, strengthened independence language for official visitors, inserted conflict of interest obligations, clarified inspection powers, provided for information sharing among official visitors, and added protections for complainants. The endnotes list precise commencement dates, which should be checked in regulatory practice to determine which version of the Act applies at a given time.

The statutory text and endnotes supplied contain no references to litigation or judicial decisions interpreting the Official Visitor Act 2012. The Act’s endnotes provide a detailed legislation and amendment history, but do not record any case law, court judgments or tribunal decisions arising under the Act. There are therefore no cases named within the provided material to cite.

Consequently, practitioners seeking judicial interpretation or precedent will need to search case law databases and court records external to the Act itself to establish if any decisions have interpreted the entry, record-inspection, reporting, confidentiality or appointment provisions. The Act itself refers to general application of the Criminal Code and to the Legislation Act for interpretive mechanisms (s 5 notes; s 3 dictionary notes). Any litigation that does arise will be decided against the statutory text reproduced here and against applicable general administrative law, civil liability and criminal law principles. For matters involving privacy, health records and sensitive information, litigation may also engage provisions and case law under the Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997, the relevant operational Acts, and common law privacy or negligence claims, none of which appear in the Act’s endnotes as litigated history.

If litigation is a live concern in ongoing matters, practitioners should consider:

searching the ACT courts and tribunal databases for decisions post-dating this republication;
reviewing decisions concerning the operational Acts identified in s 7, since those decisions may engage official visitor activities in practice; and
monitoring administrative review and judicial review avenues that may arise from contested appointment, refusal of access, or disclosure decisions related to protected information under s 25.

The Act contains several practical traps and detail points that can catch practitioners and operating entities if not operationalised. These are matters where the Act’s procedural rules, definitions, timing and cross-references create concrete obligations or limits that warrant attention.

Appointment disqualifications and representational minima (s 10)

The Minister must appoint specified minimum numbers of official visitors for certain visitable places and include at least one Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person for Children and Young People and Corrections places (s 10(1)). At the same time the Minister must not appoint a public servant or a person with an actual or perceived conflict of interest (s 10(3)). The practical trap is simultaneous compliance with representational requirements while respecting the prohibition on appointing public servants and conflicts. Operational Ministers must be consulted prior to appointment (s 10(2)(a)).

Short maximum appointment term and handover timing (s 11; s 13)

An appointment cannot exceed 3 years (s 11(1)). When an appointment ends, the departing official visitor must hand over official visitor records within 7 days to the executive officer or another official visitor for the place (s 13(2)). Failure to manage record transfers promptly risks non-compliance with s 13 and loss of institutional memory.

Independence but ministerial appointment and guideline powers (s 14A; s 23B; s 23F)

Official visitors are statutorily independent in exercising functions (s 14A), but the Minister appoints the chair and may appoint other board members (s 23B(2)), and the Minister may make guidelines on visits and record inspection (s 23F). The practical consequence is that independence in day-to-day exercise of functions exists, but the Minister retains influence through appointments and disallowable guidelines. Practitioners must be attentive to guidelines as they can create binding procedural duties (s 23F(1)).

Record inspection constraints and notification duties (s 15)

Official visitors may inspect health or other records in limited circumstances: written consent, oral consent recorded by a witness, or where reasonable steps to find consent have been taken and the official visitor reasonably believes the person may not be able to decide and that access is necessary and appropriate (s 15(2)(a)-(b)). If the consent-exception applies and records are inspected, the official visitor must, as soon as practicable, take steps to make the entitled person aware the records were inspected (s 15(3)). Operating entities must keep a record of each time a record is accessed under s 15(2)(b) (s 15(4)). Confidential and sensitive information may be excluded (s 15(6)). These multiple conditional steps create a compliance trap for operating entities and official visitors if consent, recording or notification steps are omitted.

Sensitive information exclusion (s 15(6))

Subsection (6) excludes sensitive information as defined in the Children and Young People Act 2008, s 845. It therefore limits official visitor access to certain categories of information and requires careful cross-reference to the Children and Young People Act where relevant.

Timely response to requests to meet (s 21)

If an entitled person requests to meet an official visitor, the operating entity must tell an official visitor as soon as practicable and no later than 24 hours after the request (s 21(2)). Failure to meet that timeline exposes the operating entity to compliance risk, including potential offences under s 19 if refusal or neglect is unreasonable.

Confidentiality offences and recklessness standard (s 25)

Section 25 sets criminal offences for using or divulging protected information where the person is reckless about whether the information is protected. Recklessness is a specific mental state under the Criminal Code, and prosecutions will turn on proof of that mental element. Practitioners must be clear that the standard is not knowledge but recklessness, and that exceptions apply where disclosure is under territory law or consented to (s 25(3)-(4)).

Record-keeping penalty is not trivial and is auditable (s 19(3); s 15(4))

Operating entities must keep a record of each official visitor visit and must keep a record of instances where official visitors access records under the consent-exception route (s 15(4); s 19(3)). Failure to keep visit logs attracts a penalty (5 penalty units). These records are likely to be discoverable or reviewable by the board and investigative entities.

Board composition and election mechanics (s 23B(1)(c); s 23B(3))

The board includes 2 official visitors elected by the official visitors and the Minister appoints the chair and may appoint other members (s 23B(1)-(2)). The Minister may determine procedures for election of official visitors to the board; that determination is a notifiable instrument (s 23B(3)). The election mechanism and the ministerial appointment powers can result in potential ambiguity about representation and require careful attention to the notifiable instrument implementing the election procedure.

Shifting civil liability to the Territory for officials (s 24)

Section 24 removes civil liability from officials where they act honestly and without recklessness and attaches that liability to the Territory. This has implications for risk allocation and potential claims management, as claimants may need to pursue remedies against the Territory, not individual officials.

Disclosure to courts is limited (s 25(5))

A person to whom s 25 applies need not divulge protected information to a court or produce documents containing it unless necessary for the Act or another law. This creates a limited privilege that may require litigants to seek judicial directions; practitioners must assess the threshold for necessity carefully.

The relevant director-general’s register may include the name of each entitled person, operating entity details and contact information for employees or volunteers. Disclosure of register information to various parties is permitted on request but must be reasonable in the circumstances (s 23DB(3)-(4)). Handling of register data requires privacy-compliant protocols.

Divergence across operational Acts

The Act delegates significant matters to the operational Acts (who is an entitled person; what is a visitable place; and possibly additional appointment or reporting requirements) (ss 7-9; s 10(4)). Practitioners must consult the relevant operational Act to determine the precise rights and persons covered at a particular facility.

In sum, small procedural failures , failure to record access to records, missing a 24-hour transmission of a meeting request, misapplying the consent rules for health records, or incorrectly handling protected information , can convert routine operational choices into prosecutable offences or administrative breaches. Entities should map the Act’s conditional procedures into operational protocols and train staff accordingly.

Compliance under the Act requires a mix of governance, administrative processes, staff training, record-keeping and legal safeguards. Below are practical steps, mapped to statutory provisions, that operating entities, relevant director-generals, official visitors and the Minister/board should take to operationalise compliance.

For operating entities and persons in charge

Develop and publish an official visitors notice and accessible information pack (s 20)

Provide entitled persons, or their representatives, with information about the functions of official visitors and how to contact them at the time the person first enters the place (s 20(1)-(2)). Use accessible formats and modalities as exemplified in the Act: wall notices in common areas, pamphlets, orally for those who cannot read, and giving written information to legal guardians where the person cannot understand written material (s 20 examples).

Create a request-to-meet protocol with 24-hour transmission (s 21)

Institute an internal hotline or digital forwarding protocol so that any request by an entitled person to meet an official visitor is delivered to the official visitor within 24 hours, and sooner where practicable. Ensure staff are trained not to ask why the person desires to meet the official visitor, consistent with s 21(3).

Assistance and access processes (s 18; s 19)

Create standard operating procedures for responding to reasonable assistance requests from official visitors. These should detail how to provide access to documents, how to answer factual questions about complaints, and how to provide reasonable access to facilities. Train managers on what constitutes a reasonable excuse to avoid incurring offences under s 19(1)-(2).

Record-keeping of visits and record inspections (s 15(4); s 19(3))

Maintain an auditable log for each official visitor visit, including date, time, official visitor name, purpose of visit, and any records accessed under s 15(2)(b). Ensure logs are retained per record-keeping policies and available for review by the official visitors board or investigative entities as allowed (s 23DB(3)).

Health record access and consent compliance (s 15; s 18(2))

Only provide official visitors access to health records under the pathways in s 15(2): written consent, witnessed oral consent recorded contemporaneously, or after taking reasonable steps and satisfying the reasonable belief tests in s 15(2)(b)(i)-(iv). Where access is provided under the consent-exception, follow the notification duty in s 15(3) by making the entitled person aware as soon as practicable that records were inspected.

Privacy and information security practices (s 25)

Implement strict information security measures to prevent unauthorised use or divulgence of protected information. Educate staff about the criminal offence in s 25 for reckless use or divulgence of protected information. Log access to sensitive records and have clear protocols for permissible disclosures under the Act or other laws.

For relevant director-generals

Maintain the register of visitable places (s 23DB)

Keep and update a register containing the address of each visitable place, contact details for access, any operational-Act prescribed information, and other optional items such as names of entitled persons or operating entity contacts where appropriate (s 23DB(2)). Establish procedures to respond promptly to requests for register information from authorised persons (s 23DB(3)) and to evaluate “reasonableness” when disclosing register content to other parties (s 23DB(4)).

Disclosure governance

Implement decision workflows for disclosures from the register, including risk assessment and approval processes. Consider data minimisation and consent where register entries include personal details.

For official visitors

File declarations and conflict avoidance (s 14B)

Take steps to avoid conflicts of interest. Provide the board written notice about any proposed paid employment or activities that may give rise to a conflict, as required by s 14B(2). Maintain contemporaneous records documenting steps taken to avoid conflicts.

Exercise entry and record access responsibly (s 15)

When inspecting records under the consent-exception, follow the statutory steps: take reasonable steps to find out if the entitled person consents, form a reasonable belief that the person may be unable to consent, and record the basis for believing that access is necessary and appropriate (s 15(2)(b)). Ensure oral consents are documented contemporaneously by a third party where oral consent is the path used (s 15(2)(a)(ii)).

Reporting and documentation discipline (s 16; s 17)

Prepare quarterly full and summary reports with the specific content required in s 17(1)(a) and distribute them to the operational Minister, Minister, board and executive officer as stipulated (s 17(3)). Preserve working files and evidence supporting investigations, complaint handling and referrals.

Handover obligations on termination (s 13)

On ending appointment, hand over official visitor records within 7 days to the official visitors executive officer or another official visitor for the place, and ensure records are complete and accessible.

For the official visitors board and chair

Oversight, recruitment, training and induction (s 23C)

Arrange and document recruitment, induction and ongoing training for official visitors. Provide guidance and accessible templates for quarterly reports and for record-handling consistent with s 15 and s 17. Delegate administrative support to the official visitors executive officer where necessary (s 23C(2)).

Annual reporting and public notice (s 23DA)

Compile and submit the annual report to the Minister within 3 months after the end of the financial year, ensuring it contains the enumerated items in s 23DA(1). Work with the Minister to ensure the report is presented to the Legislative Assembly within 6 sitting days and that additional public notice is given (s 23DA(2)-(3)).

Complaint handling about official visitors (s 23C(1)(d))

Establish transparent procedures for receiving and resolving complaints about official visitors. Ensure fairness and natural justice in complaints processes and record outcomes for board reporting.

For the Minister and operational Ministers

Appointment processes (s 10)

Implement a documented appointment process that records consultation with the operational Minister, establishes reasonable grounds for suitability, and ensures compliance with disqualifications (no public servants; no actual or perceived conflicts). Observe the representational minimums in s 10(1) and conditions of appointment under s 11.

Guidelines and disallowable instruments (s 23F)

When making guidelines about visits, record and publish consultation with operational Ministers as required. Because guidelines are disallowable instruments, coordinate drafting and tabling with the parliamentary and legal teams to support scrutiny and avoid procedural invalidity.

Cross-cutting operational and compliance elements

Training and induction. Everyone interacting with official visitors,staff, managers, clinical teams,should receive training on the Act’s procedures, consent pathways for record access, confidentiality obligations, complaint facilitation requirements and the penalties for non-compliance (ss 15; 18-19; 25).
Record retention schedule. Ensure retention policies support the logs and reports required by ss 15(4), 17 and 19(3), and that records can be produced to investigative entities or the board when lawfully requested.
Privacy impact assessment. Before including personal details on the register (s 23DB(2)), execute a privacy impact assessment to determine whether names or contact details may be included and whether consent is required.
Coordination with operational Acts. Map the Official Visitor Act obligations against the specific operational Act governing the place. Because definitions of “entitled person” and “visitable place” are defined in those Acts (s 8; s 9), design place-level procedures that incorporate both statutes.

Checklist summary (practical minimum)

Maintain a visit log and record-access log for each official visitor visit (s 15(4); s 19(3)).
Provide accessible information to entitled people at entry about official visitors and complaints (s 20).
Ensure requests to meet an official visitor are passed to the visitor within 24 hours (s 21(2)).
Only provide health records to visitors where the statutory consent conditions are satisfied (s 15(2); s 18(2)).
Train staff on confidentiality obligations and the offence regime for protected information (s 25).
Keep appointment and handover obligations for outgoing official visitors (s 11; s 13).
Cooperate with board-led recruitment and training processes (s 23C).

Adopting these processes will assist operating entities and official visitors to meet statutory duties, document reasonable steps taken in borderline decisions, and reduce exposure to criminal or administrative sanctions under the Act.

Official Visitor Act 2012

Plain English Summary

Deep Dive

What it does

Current sections

Official Visitor Act 2012

Source text: opening excerpt

Main concepts

Who it affects

Key duties and rights

Penalties and enforcement

How it interacts with other laws

Amendment history

Litigation history

Gotchas

How to comply