Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 (Northern Territory)

This Act provides the Northern Territory framework for transferring prisoners between the Territory and participating Australian States or other Territories, and for the treatment of sentences that cross borders. It establishes who decides, what procedural steps must be taken, which courts have roles, and how sentences are to be treated on transfer. The Act must be applied with the modifications set out in section 13 of the Cross-border Justice Act 2009, as noted at the start of the instrument; regulations under the Cross-border Justice Regulations 2009 may prescribe further modifications (note at top).

Mechanically, the Act does the following:

Defines the terminology and scope for transfer arrangements, including who is a "Territory prisoner", a "joint prisoner", and what a "translated sentence" is (s 3).
Authorises the Administrator to declare State laws to be interstate laws and to nominate corresponding Territory courts (s 4). Declarations require the Administrator to be satisfied that the State law "substantially corresponds" to this Act (s 4(2)).
Creates two principal transfer routes: transfer at the request of the prisoner (Part II, s 5-9A) and transfer for purposes of being dealt with according to law, for example for trial (Part III, s 10-17). Each route has distinct decision-makers and conditions.
Allocates decision-making power: the Minister (responsible for Territory transfers out and acceptance of transfers in certain cases) and the Attorney-General (in Part III matters and in responding to incoming requests) have statutory roles. The Local Court and, on review, the Supreme Court have roles in authorising transfers for trial (s 11-14).
Provides that certain Ministerial decisions are not reviewable by a court or tribunal (s 5(6)), while other decisions by courts are subject to judicial review and rehearing provisions (s 14).

Note In order to give effect to the Cross-border Justice Act 2009, this law must be applied with the modifications mentioned in section 13 of the Cross-border Justice Act 2009 as if this law had been altered in that way. For modifications of this law prescribed by regulation, see Part 3, Division 13 of the Cross-border Justice Regulations 2009. NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA PRISONERS (INTERSTATE TRANSFER) ACT 1983 As in force at 21 April 2023 Table of provisions Part I Preliminary 1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1 2 Commencement .............................................................................. 1 3 Interpretation ................................................................................... 1 4 Corresponding courts and interstate laws ....................................... 5 4B Jurisdiction of Local Court ............................................................... 5 Part II Transfer at request of prisoner 5 Requests for, and orders of, transfer ............................................... 6 6 Effect of orders under this part on joint prisoners ............................ 8 7 Repeated requests for transfer ........................................................ 8 8 Receipt of request for transfer to the Territory ................................. 8 9 Reports ............................................................................................ 8 9A Matters the Minister may have regard to ......................................... 9 Part III Transfer for trial 10 Request for transfer of prisoner to participating State or another Territory .............................................................................. 9 11 Necessary consents ...................................................................... 10 12 Prisoner to be brought before Local Court ..................................... 11 13 Order of transfer ............................................................................ 11 14 Review of decision of Local Court ................................................. 11 14A Effect of orders under this part on joint prisoners .......................... 12 15 Prisoner brought to be returned to custody.................................... 12 16 Request for transfer of imprisoned person to the Territory ............ 13 17 Request for transfer to the Territory by imprisoned person ........... 13

Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 ii Part IV Transfer back to original State or Territory 18 Return of prisoner if no sentence or shorter sentence in the Territory ......................................................................................... 13 19 Effect of orders under this Part on joint prisoners .......................... 14 21 Provisions ancillary to section 18................................................... 15 Part V Effect of order of transfer 22 Transfer in custody of escort ......................................................... 17 23 Transfer of sentence with prisoner ................................................ 17 24 Information to be sent to participating State .................................. 18 25 Sentence deemed to have been imposed in the Territory ............. 19 26 Provisions relating to translated sentences ................................... 19 27 Translated sentences – default imprisonment ............................... 21 Part VI Miscellaneous 28 Notification to prisoners of certain decisions.................................. 22 29 Lawful custody for transit through the Territory.............................. 22 30 Escape from custody of person being transferred ......................... 22 31 Escape from custody – penalty...................................................... 24 32 Revocation of order of transfer on escape from custody ............... 24 33 Regulations.................................................................................... 25 ENDNOTES

NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA

As in force at 21 April 2023

PRISONERS (INTERSTATE TRANSFER) ACT 1983 An Act relating to the transfer between the Territory and a State or another Territory of the Commonwealth of prisoners Part I Preliminary 1 Short title This Act may be cited as the Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983. 2 Commencement This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the Administrator by notice in the Gazette. 3 Interpretation (1) In this Act: another Territory and other Territory mean the Jervis Bay Territory, the Territory of Norfolk Island, the Territory of Christmas Island, the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands or any prescribed external Territory to which the provisions of the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth have been extended. arrest warrant means a warrant to apprehend, a warrant to arrest or a warrant to commit a person to prison, but does not include: (a) such a warrant, where the term of imprisonment which the person to be apprehended, arrested or committed under the warrant is liable to serve is default imprisonment; or (b) a warrant to secure the attendance of a witness. Attorney-General, in relation to a participating State, means the person who is designated for the time being as holder of the office of Attorney-General for that State.

Part I Preliminary Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 2 Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment means a sentence of imprisonment for an offence against a law of the Commonwealth or of another Territory. corresponding court of the Territory, in relation to a court of a participating State, means a court of the Territory that is, under an order in force under section 4(1), declared to be a corresponding court in relation to the court of the participating State. corresponding Minister, in relation to a participating State, means the Minister of the Crown of that State charged for the time being with the administration of the interstate law of that State. default imprisonment means imprisonment in default of: (a) payment of any fine, penalty, costs or other amount of money of any kind imposed or ordered to be paid by a court on the finding of guilt of a person for an offence; or (b) entering into a recognizance to keep the peace or to be of good behaviour. indeterminate sentence means a sentence of or order or direction for imprisonment or detention for life or during the pleasure of the Sovereign or during the pleasure of the Governor-General, the Administrator or the Governor of a participating State, and includes such a sentence, order or direction imposed, made or given by, or by the operation of, an Act or other law. interstate law means a law that, under a declaration in force under section 4(1), is declared to be an interstate law for the purposes of this Act. joint prisoner means a person upon whom both: (a) a Territory sentence of imprisonment (as defined by this Act) or a State sentence of imprisonment (as defined by an interstate law); and (b) a Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment, have been imposed. order of transfer means an order issued under section 5, 13, 14(6) or 18 for the transfer of a prisoner to a participating State. participating State means a State of the Commonwealth in which there is in force an interstate law.

Part I Preliminary Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 3 prison means: (a) in the Territory – a custodial correctional facility (as defined in section 11(1)(a) of the Correctional Services Act 2014); or (b) in a participating State or another Territory – a prison or other correctional facility (however described). prison officer means: (a) in the Territory – a correctional services officer (as defined in section 16 of the Correctional Services Act 2014); or (b) in a participating State or another Territory – a prison officer (however described). prisoner means a Territory prisoner or a joint prisoner. relevant security, in relation to a person, means a security given by the person, with or without sureties, by recognizance or otherwise, that the person will comply with conditions relating to the person's behaviour. sentence of imprisonment means a Territory sentence of imprisonment as defined by this Act or a State sentence of imprisonment as defined by an interstate law, and includes (where relevant) a Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment. State includes the Australian Capital Territory. Territory prisoner means a person upon whom a Territory sentence of imprisonment has been imposed, but does not include a person upon whom a Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment has been imposed. Territory sentence of imprisonment means a sentence of imprisonment for an offence against a law of the Territory, including a sentence of penal servitude, a sentence by which default imprisonment is ordered, an indeterminate sentence and a translated sentence, but does not include a sentence of imprisonment imposed under the Youth Justice Act 2005 or detention in a detention centre within the meaning of that Act. translated sentence means a sentence of imprisonment deemed by section 25 to have been imposed on a person by a court of the Territory. Note for subsection (1) The Interpretation Act 1978 contains definitions and other provisions that may be relevant to this Act.

Part I Preliminary Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 4 (2) Where a justice of the peace of a participating State, in the exercise of the justice's powers, issues a warrant of commitment while not constituting a court, the sentence of imprisonment imposed by the warrant shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to have been imposed by a court. (3) For the purposes of this Act, a sentence of imprisonment imposed, or originally imposed, by, or by the operation of, an Act or other law of the Territory, a State or another Territory shall, except as prescribed by regulations under this Act, be deemed to have been imposed, or originally imposed, by a court of the Territory or, as the case may be, of that State or other Territory. (4) A reference in this Act to an Act of the Commonwealth includes a reference to an Act amending or replacing that Act. (5) A reference in this Act to the Governor-General or Governor of a participating State includes a reference to any person exercising and performing all the powers and functions of the Governor- General or Governor of that State, as the case may be. (5A) In relation to the Australian Capital Territory, the reference to the Governor of a participating State: (a) in section 26(4) is a reference to the Governor-General; and (b) in section 26(5)(b) is a reference to the Governor-General or the Executive within the meaning of the Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988 of the Commonwealth. (6) A reference in this Act to a person upon whom a sentence of imprisonment has been imposed does not include a reference to a person who has completed serving that sentence. (7) The following persons upon whom a sentence of imprisonment has been imposed shall be taken, for the purposes of this Act, to have completed serving that sentence: (a) a person: (i) who has been released from serving a part of that sentence on parole or upon licence to be at large; and (ii) in respect of whom action can no longer be taken under a law of the Commonwealth, the Territory, a State or another Territory by way of requiring the person to serve the whole or a part of the remainder of that sentence;

Part I Preliminary Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 5 (b) a person: (i) who has been released from serving the whole or a part of that sentence upon giving a relevant security; and (ii) in relation to whom: (A) action can no longer be taken under a law of the Commonwealth, the Territory, a State or another Territory in respect of a breach of a condition of that security; or (B) action cannot, by reason of the expiration of the security, be taken under any such law by way of requiring the person to serve the whole or a part of that sentence; (c) a person who, as the result of the exercise of the royal prerogative of mercy, is no longer required to serve the whole or a part of that sentence. (8) A reference in this Act to release on parole includes a reference to release on probation and to any other form of conditional release in the nature of parole. 4 Corresponding courts and interstate laws (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Administrator may, by notice in the Gazette, declare that: (a) a law of a State is an interstate law for the purposes of this Act; and (b) a specified court of the Territory or a court belonging to a specified class or description of courts of the Territory is, for the purposes of this Act, a corresponding court in relation to a specified court of a participating State or in relation to a court belonging to a specified class or description of courts of a participating State. (2) A declaration shall not be made under subsection (1) in respect of a law unless the Administrator is satisfied that that law substantially corresponds to the provisions of this Act and contains provisions that are referred to in this Act as provisions of an interstate law that correspond to specified provisions of this Act. 4B Jurisdiction of Local Court (1) The jurisdiction conferred on the Local Court under this Act is part of the Court's criminal jurisdiction.

Part II Transfer at request of prisoner Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 6 (2) For exercising its jurisdiction under this Act the Court must be constituted by a Local Court Judge. Part II Transfer at request of prisoner 5 Requests for, and orders of, transfer (1) Where the Minister: (a) receives a written request made by a Territory prisoner serving a sentence of imprisonment in the Territory for the transfer of the prisoner to a participating State or to another Territory; and (b) is of the opinion that the prisoner to whom the request relates should be transferred to the participating State or other Territory; the Minister shall: (c) where the request is for the transfer of the prisoner to a participating State – give to the corresponding Minister of the participating State a written request asking that Minister to accept the transfer of the prisoner to the participating State; and (d) where the request is for the transfer of the prisoner to another Territory – give to the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth a written request asking the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth to consent to that transfer. (2) Where the Minister: (a) has: (i) in respect of a request made by a Territory prisoner for a transfer to a participating State, given to the corresponding Minister of the participating State a written request under subsection (1)(c); and (ii) received from that Minister written notice of consent to the transfer of the prisoner to the participating State; or (b) has: (i) in respect of a request made by a Territory prisoner for a transfer to another Territory, given to the Attorney- General of the Commonwealth a written request under subsection (1)(d); and

Part II Transfer at request of prisoner Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 7 (ii) received from the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth written notice of consent to the transfer of the prisoner to that other Territory; the Minister may issue an order for the transfer of the prisoner to the participating State or other Territory, as the case may be. (3) Where the Minister: (a) receives a written request made by a joint prisoner serving a sentence of imprisonment in the Territory for the transfer of the prisoner to a participating State; and (b) is of the opinion that the prisoner to whom the request relates should be transferred to the participating State; the Minister shall give to the corresponding Minister of the participating State a written request asking that Minister to accept the transfer of the prisoner to that participating State. (4) Where the Minister has: (a) in respect of a request by a joint prisoner for a transfer to a participating State, given to the corresponding Minister of the participating State a written request under subsection (3); and (b) received from that Minister written notice of consent to the transfer of the prisoner to the participating State; the Minister may issue an order for the transfer of the prisoner to the participating State. (5) Where a joint prisoner is serving a sentence of imprisonment in the Territory and the Minister: (a) receives a written request made by the prisoner for the transfer of the prisoner to another Territory; and (b) is of the opinion that the prisoner to whom the request relates should be transferred to that other Territory; the Minister may issue an order for the transfer of the prisoner to that other Territory. (6) A decision to issue, or not to issue, an order under this section is not reviewable by a court or tribunal.

Part II Transfer at request of prisoner Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 8 6 Effect of orders under this part on joint prisoners An order of transfer issued under this Part in relation to a joint prisoner, to the extent that (but for this section) it authorizes or requires the doing of an act or thing under this Act in relation to that person in his or her capacity as a person upon whom a Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment has been imposed, has no effect unless and until: (a) a transfer order corresponding to the order of transfer is in force in respect of that person under the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth; or (b) the transfer of that person is otherwise authorized under that Act. 7 Repeated requests for transfer A request made by a prisoner for his transfer to a participating State or to another Territory need not be entertained by the Minister if it is made within 12 months after a similar request made by the prisoner. 8 Receipt of request for transfer to the Territory Where the Minister receives a written request given under the provision of an interstate law that corresponds to section 5, or a request made for the purposes of Part II of the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth, asking the Minister to accept the transfer of an imprisoned person to the Territory, the Minister shall either refuse to consent, or consent, to the transfer and shall give to the corresponding Minister by whom the written request was given or to the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, as the case may be, written notice of the Minister's refusal or consent. 9 Reports (1) For the purpose of forming an opinion or exercising a discretion under this Part, the Minister may inform himself or herself as the Minister thinks fit and, in particular, by reference to reports of parole and prison authorities of the Territory and of any participating State. (2) Reports of parole and prison authorities may be sent to a corresponding Minister for the purpose of assisting him or her to form an opinion or to exercise a discretion under the interstate law administered by him or her.

Part III Transfer for trial Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 9 9A Matters the Minister may have regard to In forming an opinion or exercising any discretion under this Part, the Minister may have regard to one or more of the following: (a) the welfare of the prisoner concerned; (b) the administration of justice in the Territory, a participating State or another Territory; (c) the security and good order of any prison in the Territory, a participating State or another Territory; (d) the safe custody of the prisoner concerned; (e) the protection of the community in the Territory, a participating State or another Territory; (f) any other matter the Minister considers relevant. Part III Transfer for trial 10 Request for transfer of prisoner to participating State or another Territory (1) Where a person the subject of an arrest warrant issued in accordance with the law of a participating State, the Commonwealth or another Territory is a prisoner serving a sentence of imprisonment in the Territory and the Attorney-General receives: (a) from: (i) in the case of an arrest warrant issued in accordance with the law of a participating State – the Attorney- General of the participating State; or (ii) in the case of an arrest warrant issued in accordance with the law of the Commonwealth or another Territory – the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, a written request, accompanied by a copy of the warrant; or (b) a written request made by the prisoner to the Minister and referred to the Attorney-General, being in any case a request for the transfer of the prisoner to a participating State or to another Territory to be dealt with according to law, the Attorney-General shall either refuse to consent, or

Part III Transfer for trial Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 10 consent, to the transfer and shall give to the Attorney-General of the participating State, the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth or to the Minister, as the case may be, written notice of the refusal or consent. (2) Where the Minister receives a written request made by a prisoner for the transfer of the prisoner to a participating State or to another Territory to be dealt with according to law, the Minister shall, subject to subsection (3), refer the written request to the Attorney-General. (3) A request made by a prisoner for transfer to a participating State or to another Territory need not be referred by the Minister to the Attorney-General if it is made within 12 months after a similar request made by the prisoner. 11 Necessary consents (1) An order of transfer shall be issued under this Part only if: (a) the Attorney-General has, in writing, consented to the transfer of the prisoner to whom the order relates to the participating State or other Territory, as the case may be; (b) in the case of a request for the transfer of a prisoner to a participating State (including a prisoner to whom paragraph (c)(ii) applies) – the Attorney-General of the participating State has, in writing, either consented to or requested the transfer; and (c) in the case of: (i) a request for the transfer of a prisoner to another Territory; or (ii) a request for the transfer of a prisoner for the purpose of being dealt with in respect of an arrest warrant issued in accordance with the law of the Commonwealth, the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth has, in writing, either consented to or requested the transfer. (2) A certificate signed by a prescribed officer certifying that a consent or request required under subsection (1) for the transfer of a prisoner to a participating State, or to another Territory, specified in the certificate has been given or made is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, proof that the consent or request has been given or made.

Part III Transfer for trial Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 11 12 Prisoner to be brought before Local Court (1) The Local Court, upon proof to its satisfaction that the conditions precedent specified in section 11(1) have been complied with, shall by order in writing direct the person in charge of the prison where the prisoner to whom the certificate relates is then imprisoned to bring the prisoner before the Local Court at the place specified in the order, on a date and at a time so specified, for determination as to whether an order of transfer shall be issued. (2) Notice of an order made under subsection (1) shall be served on the Attorney-General and on the prisoner to whom it relates. (3) At a hearing for the purpose of determining whether an order for the transfer of a prisoner shall be issued: (a) the prisoner shall be entitled to be represented by a legal practitioner; and (b) the Attorney-General shall be entitled to appear or be represented. 13 Order of transfer When the prisoner is brought before it, the Local Court must: (a) issue an order for the transfer of the prisoner to the participating State, or to the other Territory, specified in the certificate issued in accordance with section 11(2) in respect of the prisoner; or (b) if the court, on the application of the prisoner, is satisfied that it would be harsh or oppressive, or not in the interests of justice, to transfer the prisoner to that participating State or other Territory, or that the trivial nature of the charge or complaint against the prisoner does not warrant the transfer, refuse to issue such an order. 14 Review of decision of Local Court (1) Where the Attorney-General or the prisoner or any other person who has requested or consented to the transfer of the prisoner, is dissatisfied with the decision of the Local Court under section 13, the Attorney-General, the prisoner or that person, as the case may be, may, within 14 days after the decision, apply to the Supreme Court for a review of the decision and the Supreme Court may review the decision. (2) The prisoner shall be entitled to be present or be represented by a legal practitioner at the review referred to in subsection (1) and for

Part III Transfer for trial Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 12 that purpose any court or a person authorized by the rules of the Supreme Court may, by order in writing, direct the person in charge of the prison where the prisoner is then imprisoned to bring the prisoner to the place of the review specified in the order on a date and at a time so specified. (3) The Attorney-General and any other person who has requested or consented to the transfer of the prisoner shall be entitled to appear or be represented at the review referred to in subsection (1). (4) The review of the decision under section 13 shall be by way of rehearing on the evidence, if any, given before the Local Court and on any evidence in addition to the evidence so given. (5) Upon the review of a decision under section 13, the Supreme Court may confirm the decision or quash the decision and substitute a new decision in its stead. (6) For the purpose of giving effect to a substituted decision made under subsection (5), the Supreme Court may issue an order for the transfer of the prisoner to the appropriate participating State or other Territory. 14A Effect of orders under this part on joint prisoners An order of transfer issued under this Part in relation to a joint prisoner, to the extent that (but for this section) it authorizes or requires the doing of an act or thing under this Act in relation to that person in his or her capacity as a person upon whom a Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment has been imposed, has no effect unless and until: (a) a transfer order corresponding to the order of transfer is in force in respect of that person under the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth; or (b) the transfer of that person is otherwise authorized under that Act. 15 Prisoner brought to be returned to custody Where an order is made under section 12(1) or 14(2): (a) the Commissioner of Correctional Services must execute the order or may charge a prison officer with the execution of the order; and (b) the prisoner must, while the order is being executed, be kept in the custody of the Commissioner of Correctional Services, prison officer or member of the Police Force acting under or in

Part IV Transfer back to original State or Territory Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 13 execution of the order, who must in due course return the prisoner to the custody from which he has been brought. 16 Request for transfer of imprisoned person to the Territory Where a person who is the subject of an arrest warrant issued in accordance with a law of the Territory is imprisoned in a participating State, the Attorney-General may give to the Attorney- General of the participating State a written request, accompanied by a copy of the warrant, for the transfer of the person to the Territory to be dealt with according to law. 17 Request for transfer to the Territory by imprisoned person Where: (a) a person is imprisoned in a participating State; (b) the person is the subject of an arrest warrant issued in accordance with a law of the Territory; and (c) the Attorney-General of the participating State has given a notice, in writing, to the Attorney-General that he or she has consented to a request made by the person to be transferred to the Territory to enable the person to be dealt with according to law, the Attorney-General shall either refuse to consent, or consent, to the transfer and shall give to the Attorney-General of the participating State notice, in writing, of the refusal or consent. Part IV Transfer back to original State or Territory 18 Return of prisoner if no sentence or shorter sentence in the Territory Where: (a) a person is transferred to the Territory from a participating State or another Territory pursuant to an order issued under the provision of the interstate law of that participating State that corresponds to section 13 or 14(6) or under Part III of the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth, or both;

Part IV Transfer back to original State or Territory Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 14 (b) so far as the Minister is aware, every complaint or information alleging any offence by the person against the law of the Territory or the Commonwealth has been finally dealt with according to law and as a result: (i) the person did not become liable to serve any sentence of imprisonment in the Territory; or (ii) the person did become liable to serve in the Territory one or more sentences of imprisonment under which the period of imprisonment remaining to be served is shorter than the period of imprisonment remaining to be served by the person under any translated sentence or translated sentences or any sentence of imprisonment that has been imposed upon the person for any other offence against a law of the Commonwealth or another Territory; and (c) the person is either a Territory prisoner or a joint prisoner, the Minister shall, subject to section 21, issue an order for the transfer of the person to the participating State or to the other Territory, as the case may require. 19 Effect of orders under this Part on joint prisoners An order of transfer issued under this Part in relation to a joint prisoner, to the extent that (but for this section) it authorizes or requires the doing of an act or thing under this Act in relation to that person in his or her capacity as a person upon whom a Commonwealth sentence of imprisonment has been imposed, has no effect unless and until: (a) a transfer order corresponding to the order of transfer is in force in respect of that person under the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth; or (b) the transfer of that person is otherwise authorized under that Act.

Part IV Transfer back to original State or Territory Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 15 21 Provisions ancillary to section 18 (1) Section 18 does not apply in respect of a person if: (a) the Minister receives a written request made by the person, being a request for the person to serve the person's imprisonment in the Territory, and the Minister and: (i) in the case of a person transferred from a participating State (being a person who is a Territory prisoner) – the corresponding Minister of the participating State; (ii) in the case of a person transferred from a participating State (being a person who is a joint prisoner) – the corresponding Minister of the participating State and the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth; or (iii) in the case of a person transferred from another Territory (being a person who is a joint prisoner) – the Attorney- General of the Commonwealth, agree in writing that the person should serve the imprisonment in the Territory; or (b) an indeterminate sentence (not being a translated sentence) is imposed upon the person by a court of the Territory. (1A) In making a decision for subsection (1)(a), the Minister may have regard to one or more of the following: (a) the welfare of the person; (b) the administration of justice in the Territory, a participating State or another Territory; (c) the security and good order of any prison in the Territory, a participating State or another Territory; (d) the safe custody of the person; (e) the protection of the community in the Territory, a participating State or another Territory; (f) any other matter the Minister considers relevant.

Part IV Transfer back to original State or Territory Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 16 (2) For the purposes of section 18, a complaint or information alleging an offence by a person is finally dealt with if: (a) the person is tried for the offence and: (i) the time or extended time, if any, fixed by or under an Act, within which an appeal against, or an application for the review of, the decision given on the trial may be lodged, or within which a retrial may be ordered, has expired; and (ii) any appeal or application for review in respect of the decision given on the trial has been determined or withdrawn and proceedings in respect of any retrial and any decision given on the retrial have been concluded; or (b) the complaint or information is withdrawn or a nolle prosequi or similar instrument is filed in respect of the offence. (3) For the purpose of determining which of the periods referred to in section 18(b) is the shorter or longer: (b) a finite period of imprisonment shall be treated as being shorter than a period to be served under an indeterminate sentence; (c) the expression sentences of imprisonment in section 18(b)(ii) includes a translated sentence that was originally imposed by a court of the Territory; (d) the expression translated sentence or translated sentences in section 18(b)(ii) does not include a translated sentence that was originally imposed by a court of the Territory; and (e) where a Territory sentence of imprisonment which a person became liable to serve in the Territory (not being a translated sentence) is cumulative with a translated sentence or translated sentences originally imposed by a court other than a court of the Territory, that translated sentence or those translated sentences shall be deemed: (i) not to be a translated sentence or translated sentences, as the case may be; and (ii) to be a sentence or sentences, as the case may be, which the person is liable to serve in the Territory.

Part V Effect of order of transfer Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 17 Part V Effect of order of transfer 22 Transfer in custody of escort (1) An order of transfer: (a) must direct the Commissioner of Correctional Services to deliver the prisoner who is the subject of the order into the custody of an escort and is sufficient authority to the Commissioner so to deliver the prisoner; and (b) authorises the escort to hold, take and keep custody of the prisoner for the purpose of conveying the prisoner from the Territory to such prison in a participating State or another Territory as is specified in the order and there to deliver the prisoner into the custody of the person in charge of that prison. (2) A reference in subsection (1) to an escort is a reference to a prison officer, a member of the Police Force or a person appointed by the Minister by an instrument in writing to be an escort for the purposes of this Act, or any 2 or more of them. (3) Where: (a) under an interstate law or under the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth, or both, an order is issued for the transfer to the Territory of a person imprisoned in a participating State or another Territory; and (b) pursuant to the order an escort brings the person into the Territory, the escort, while in the Territory, is authorized to hold, take and keep custody of the person for the purpose of conveying the person to such prison in the Territory as is specified in the order and there to deliver the person into the custody of the Commissioner of Correctional Services. 23 Transfer of sentence with prisoner (1) Where pursuant to an order of transfer a prisoner is conveyed to a participating State or another Territory specified in the order, then from the time the prisoner arrives in the participating State or that other Territory every Territory sentence of imprisonment imposed upon the prisoner, including a translated sentence, ceases to have effect in the Territory except:

Part V Effect of order of transfer Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 18 (a) for the purpose of an appeal against or review of a conviction, finding of guilt, judgment or sentence made, imposed or fixed by a court of the Territory; (b) in relation to a period of imprisonment served by the prisoner in the Territory; or (c) in relation to the remittance of money to the Minister which is paid in discharge or partial discharge of a sentence of default imprisonment originally imposed upon the prisoner by a court of the Territory. (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a sentence of imprisonment imposed upon a person where the person has completed serving that sentence. 24 Information to be sent to participating State (1) Where pursuant to an order of transfer a prisoner is conveyed to a participating State, the Minister shall cause to be sent to the corresponding Minister of the participating State or to some person for the time being designated by the corresponding Minister: (a) the order of transfer; (b) the warrant of, or other authority for, commitment for a sentence of imprisonment which the prisoner was, immediately before he or she left the Territory, serving or liable to serve; (c) a report relating to the prisoner, which shall contain such information and be accompanied by such documents available in the Territory as appear likely to be of assistance to a court, authority or officer in the participating State and shall include details of findings of guilt, sentences of imprisonment, minimum terms of imprisonment, periods of imprisonment served, entitlements to grants of parole and a copy of any record relating to the prisoner's conduct; and (d) details, accompanied by relevant orders or other documents, of any subsequent variations to the information provided in accordance with this subsection, whether arising from an appeal or review or otherwise. (2) A reference in subsection (1) to an order or other document is a reference to either the original or a copy certified in the prescribed manner.

Part V Effect of order of transfer Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 19 25 Sentence deemed to have been imposed in the Territory (1) Where under an interstate law an order is issued for the transfer to the Territory of a person imprisoned in a participating State and the person is brought into the Territory pursuant to the order, then from the time the person arrives in the Territory: (a) any State sentence of imprisonment (as defined in the interstate law of the participating State) imposed upon the person by a court of the participating State and any sentence of imprisonment deemed by the provision of an interstate law that corresponds to this section to have been imposed by a court of the participating State shall be deemed to have been imposed upon the person; and (b) a direction or order given or made by a court of the participating State in relation to when any such State sentence of imprisonment shall commence shall, so far as practicable, be deemed to have been given or made, by a corresponding court of the Territory and, except as otherwise provided in this Act, shall be given effect to in the Territory, and the laws of the Territory shall apply, as if such a court had had power to impose the sentence and give or make the direction or order, if any, and did in fact impose the sentence and give or make the direction or order, if any. (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to or in respect of a sentence of imprisonment imposed upon a person where the person has completed serving that sentence. 26 Provisions relating to translated sentences (1) Where under a law of a participating State there has been fixed by a court in respect of a translated sentence a minimum term of imprisonment (being a shorter term than the translated sentence), during which minimum term the person subject to the sentence is not eligible to be released on parole, then, except as otherwise provided in this Act, that minimum term shall be deemed likewise to have been fixed by the corresponding court of the Territory. (2) Where a translated sentence or a minimum term deemed under subsection (1) to have been fixed by a corresponding court of the Territory: (a) is varied or quashed on a review by or appeal to a court of the participating State where the sentence or minimum term was imposed or fixed, the sentence or minimum term shall be deemed to have been varied to the same extent, or to have been quashed, by a corresponding court of the Territory; or

Part V Effect of order of transfer Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 20 (b) otherwise is varied or ceases to have effect as a result of action taken by a person or authority in that participating State, the sentence shall be deemed to have been varied to the same extent, or to have ceased to have effect, as a result of action taken by an appropriate person or authority in the Territory. (3) Nothing in this Act operates to permit in the Territory an appeal against or review of a conviction, finding of guilt, judgment, sentence or minimum term made, imposed or fixed in relation to a person by a court of a participating State. (4) Where a translated sentence is an indeterminate sentence requiring that the person who is the subject of the sentence be detained during the pleasure of the Sovereign or during the pleasure of the Governor of the participating State in which the sentence was imposed, the person shall be detained during the Administrator's pleasure. (5) The Administrator: (a) may exercise the royal prerogative of mercy in favour of a person who is subject to a translated sentence as if the person were: (i) an offender found guilty in a court of the Territory; or (ii) an offender found guilty within the Territory before a judge of the Territory; and (b) in exercising that prerogative, may give effect to any indication given by the Governor of the participating State in which the sentence of imprisonment was imposed upon that person as to what the Governor of the participating State may have done had the person not been transferred to the Territory. (6) A person who is subject to a translated sentence and who, prior to being transferred to the Territory, served a period of the translated sentence in a participating State (including a period deemed to have been served in a participating State under the provision of an interstate law that corresponds to this subsection and a period spent in custody while being transferred to a prison in the Territory) is deemed to have served that period of the translated sentence in the Territory. (8) Subsection (5) does not apply in relation to a conviction or transferred sentence referred to in section 24(2)(a) or (b) of the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth, but nothing in this subsection shall be construed as preventing the Sovereign or the Administrator from exercising the royal prerogative of mercy as

Part V Effect of order of transfer Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 21 referred to in section 24(2) of that Act. 27 Translated sentences – default imprisonment (1) Where a translated sentence is a sentence by which default imprisonment was ordered and a portion of the amount in default of payment of which the default imprisonment was ordered is paid by or on behalf of the prisoner who is the subject of the sentence to the Commissioner of Correctional Services: (a) the term of default imprisonment shall be reduced by a period which bears to the term of default imprisonment the same proportion as the portion paid bears to the total amount that was payable and, subject to any other sentence of imprisonment, the prisoner shall be entitled to be released on the expiry of the reduced period; and (b) the portion so paid shall be remitted by the Commissioner to the corresponding Minister of the participating State where the sentence, by which default imprisonment was ordered, was originally imposed. (2) Where a translated sentence is a sentence by which default imprisonment was ordered and, on a review by or an appeal to a court of the participating State where the sentence was imposed or as a result of any other action taken by a person or authority in that participating State, the amount in default of payment of which the default imprisonment was ordered is reduced or the obligation to pay that amount is quashed: (a) the term of default imprisonment shall, where the amount is reduced, be reduced by a period which bears to the term of default imprisonment the same proportion as the amount of the reduction bears to the total amount that was payable and, subject to any other sentence of imprisonment that may be imposed on him or her, the prisoner shall be entitled to be released on the expiry of that reduced period; or (b) the prisoner shall, where the obligation to pay the amount is quashed, thereupon, subject to any other sentence of imprisonment that may be imposed on him or her, be entitled to be released.

Part VI Miscellaneous Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 22 Part VI Miscellaneous 28 Notification to prisoners of certain decisions The Attorney-General shall, when he or she makes a decision in respect of a prisoner for the purposes of this Act, advise that prisoner of that decision. 29 Lawful custody for transit through the Territory (1) Where, in relation to a person imprisoned in a participating State, or in another Territory, an order is made under an interstate law or under the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth, or both, for the transfer of that person to a participating State or another Territory, and in the course of conveying the person to the participating State or other Territory pursuant to the order an escort brings the person into the Territory, then: (a) while in the Territory, the escort is authorized to hold, take and keep custody of the person for the purpose of conveying the person from the Territory to such prison in the participating State or other Territory as is specified in the order and there to deliver the person into the custody of the person in charge of the prison; and (b) the Commissioner is authorised upon: (i) the request of the escort; and (ii) delivery to the Commissioner by the escort of a copy of the order of transfer certified by the escort to be such a copy, to receive the person and to detain him or her in custody as though the person were a Territory prisoner for such time as the escort requests and is reasonably necessary for the purpose of executing the order. (2) Where the Commissioner has the custody of a person under subsection (1)(b), the Commissioner is authorised, upon the request of an escort and production by the escort of the order of transfer relating to the person, to deliver the person into the custody of the escort. 30 Escape from custody of person being transferred (1) A person in the custody of an escort pursuant to section 29 who escapes from that custody may be apprehended without warrant by the escort, a member of the Police Force or any other person.

Part VI Miscellaneous Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 23 (2) Where a person in custody pursuant to section 29: (a) has escaped and been apprehended; or (b) has attempted to escape, that person may be taken before the Local Court who may, notwithstanding the terms of the order of transfer issued under the interstate law, by warrant signed by the Local Court: (c) order the person to be returned to the participating State in which the order of transfer under which that person was being conveyed at the time of the escape or attempt to escape was issued; and (d) for that purpose, order the person to be delivered to an escort. (2A) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to a person to whom section 47 of the Crimes Act 1914 of the Commonwealth applies by virtue of section 26(2) of the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth. (3) A warrant issued under subsection (2) may be executed according to its tenor. (4) A person who is the subject of a warrant issued under subsection (2) may be detained in custody as a Territory prisoner until the person is delivered into the custody of an escort in accordance with that warrant or until the expiration of a period of 7 days from the issuing of the warrant, whichever first occurs. (5) If a person who is the subject of a warrant issued under subsection (2) is not, in accordance with the warrant, delivered into the custody of an escort within a period of 7 days from the issuing of the warrant, the warrant shall have no further effect. (6) A reference in subsection (2), (4) or (5) to an escort in relation to a person who was, at the time of his escape or attempt to escape, being conveyed under an order of transfer issued in a participating State is a reference to: (a) the escort who had the custody of that person pursuant to that order; (b) a prison officer or a member of the Police Force of the participating State; or

Part VI Miscellaneous Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 24 (c) a person appointed by the corresponding Minister of the participating State, by an instrument in writing, to be an escort for the purpose of conveying that person to the participating State, or any 2 or more of them. 31 Escape from custody – penalty (1) A person who, being a person in custody under an order of transfer, escapes or attempts to escape from that custody while he or she is not within the Territory or the participating State or other Territory to which he or she was being conveyed under that order is guilty of an offence. Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 7 years. (2) A term of imprisonment imposed on a person for an offence against subsection (1) shall be served after the expiration of a term of imprisonment, penal servitude or detention to which the person was subject at the time of his or her escape or attempt to escape. (4) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to a person to whom section 47 of the Crimes Act 1914 of the Commonwealth applies by virtue of section 26(1) or (2) of the Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 of the Commonwealth. 32 Revocation of order of transfer on escape from custody The Local Court may revoke an order of transfer if it appears to the court, on application made to it under this section by the holder of a prescribed office or position or by a person who belongs to a prescribed class of persons, that the person in respect of whom the order was issued has, while being conveyed in accordance with that order, committed: (a) the offence of escaping or attempting to escape; or (b) any other offence, whether or not: (c) the offence was an offence against a law of the Territory, the Commonwealth, a participating State or another Territory; or (d) a charge has been laid or a finding of guilt secured in respect of the offence.

Part VI Miscellaneous Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 25 33 Regulations The Administrator may make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act, prescribing all matters required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.

ENDNOTES Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 26 ENDNOTES 1 KEY Key to abbreviations amd = amended od = order app = appendix om = omitted bl = by-law pt = Part ch = Chapter r = regulation/rule cl = clause rem = remainder div = Division renum = renumbered exp = expires/expired rep = repealed f = forms s = section Gaz = Gazette sch = Schedule hdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision ins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation lt = long title sub = substituted nc = not commenced 2 LIST OF LEGISLATION Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 (Act No. 7, 1983) Assent date 27 April 1983 Commenced 21 September 1984 (Gaz S50, 21 September 1984) Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Amendment Act 1989 (Act No. 9, 1989) Assent date 28 March 1989 Commenced 12 February 1992 (Gaz G6, 12 February 1992, p 3) Sentencing (Consequential Amendments) Act 1996 (Act No. 17, 1996) Assent date 19 April 1996 Commenced s 7: 19 April 1996; rem: 1 July 1996 (s 2, s 2 Sentencing Act 1995 (Act No. 39, 1995) and Gaz S15, 13 June 1996) Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Amendment Act 1997 (Act No. 10, 1997) Assent date 26 March 1997 Commenced 26 March 1997 Youth Justice (Consequential Amendments) Act 2005 (Act No. 33, 2005) Assent date 22 September 2005 Commenced 1 August 2006 (s 2, s 2 Youth Justice Act 2005 (Act No. 32, 2005) and Gaz G30, 26 July 2006, p 3) Statute Law Revision Act 2007 (Act No. 4, 2007) Assent date 8 March 2007 Commenced 8 March 2007 Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Amendment Act 2009 (Act No. 31, 2009) Assent date 11 November 2009 Commenced 23 December 2009 (Gaz G51, 23 December 2009, p 2) Justice Legislation Amendment (Penalties) Act 2010 (Act No. 12, 2010) Assent date 20 May 2010 Commenced 1 July 2010 (Gaz G24, 16 June 2010, p 2)

ENDNOTES Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 27 Correctional Services (Related and Consequential Amendments) Act 2014 (Act No. 27, 2014) Assent date 4 September 2014 Commenced 9 September 2014 (Gaz S80, 9 September 2014, p 2) Local Court (Repeals and Related Amendments) Act 2016 (Act No. 9, 2016) Assent date 6 April 2016 Commenced 1 May 2016 (Gaz S34, 29 April 2016) Statute Law Amendment (Succession of the Crown) Act 2023 (Act No. 10, 2023) Assent date 20 April 2023 Commenced 21 April 2023 (s 2) 3 GENERAL AMENDMENTS General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: ss 1 and 3. 4 LIST OF AMENDMENTS s 3 amd No. 9, 1989, s 4; No. 17, 1996, s 6; No. 10, 1997, s 2; No. 33, 2005, s 5; No. 4, 2007, s 7; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 27, 2014, s 57; No. 9, 2016, s 135; No. 10, 2023, s 5 s 4 amd No. 9, 1989, s 5; No. 9, 2016, s 135 s 4B ins No. 9, 2016, s 134 pt II hdg amd No. 31, 2009, s 4 s 5 sub No. 9, 1989, s 6 amd No. 31, 2009, s 5 s 6 sub No. 9, 1989, s 6 s 7 amd No. 9, 1989, s 7 s 8 amd No. 9, 1989, s 8; No. 31, 2009, s 9 s 9 amd No. 31, 2009, s 6 s 9A ins No. 31, 2009, s 7 s 10 amd No. 9, 1989, s 9; No. 31, 2009, s 9 s 11 amd No. 9, 1989, s 10 s 12 amd No. 27, 2014, s 57; No. 9, 2016, s 135 s 13 amd No. 9, 1989, s 11; No. 9, 2016, s 135 s 14 amd No. 9, 1989, s 12; No. 27, 2014, s 57; No. 9, 2016, s 135 s 14A ins No. 9, 1989, s 13 s 15 amd No. 27, 2014, s 57 s 17 amd No. 31, 2009, s 9 pt IV hdg sub No. 9, 1989, s 14 ss 18 – 19 sub No. 9, 1989, s 14 s 20 rep No. 9, 1989, s 14 s 21 amd No. 9, 1989, s 15; No. 31, 2009, s 8; No. 27, 2014, s 57 s 22 amd No. 9, 1989, s 16; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 27, 2014, s 57 s 23 amd No. 9, 1989, s 17; No. 17, 1996, s 6 s 24 amd No. 17, 1996, s 6; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 27, 2014, s 57 s 25 amd No. 9, 1989, s 18 s 26 amd No. 9, 1989, s 19; No. 17, 1996, s 6; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 27, 2014, s 57; No. 9, 2016, s 135; No. 10, 2023, s 5 s 27 amd No. 9, 1989, s 20; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 27, 2014, s 57 s 28 amd No. 31, 2009, s 9 s 29 amd No. 9, 1989, s 21; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 27, 2014, s 57

ENDNOTES Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 28 s 30 amd No. 9, 1989, s 22; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 9, 2016, s 135 s 31 amd No. 9, 1989, s 23; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 12, 2010, s 3; No. 27, 2014, s 57 s 32 amd No. 9, 1989, s 24; No. 17, 1996, s 6; No. 31, 2009, s 9; No. 9, 2016, s 135

1 Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983

The Act builds on several core legal concepts that structure inter-jurisdictional prisoner movement and sentence recognition. The foundational definitional concepts are in s 3:

Territory prisoner: a person subject to a Territory sentence of imprisonment as defined by the Act (s 3).
Joint prisoner: a person subject both to a Territory or State sentence and a Commonwealth sentence (s 3).
Translated sentence: a sentence deemed by s 25 to have been imposed in the Territory; this concept governs how a receiving jurisdiction treats sentences imposed elsewhere (s 3, s 25).
Interstate law and corresponding court: the Administrator may declare a State law to be an interstate law and nominate corresponding Territory courts for reciprocity and procedural alignment (s 4(1)-(2)). Declarations require substantial correspondence between the State law and this Act (s 4(2)).

Decision-making roles and thresholds

Ministerial discretion: for transfers at the request of the prisoner, the Minister must first receive a written prisoner request and be "of the opinion that the prisoner... should be transferred" before asking the corresponding Minister to accept the transfer (s 5(1)). The Minister may then issue a transfer order once the corresponding Minister or the Commonwealth Attorney-General has given written consent (s 5(2)). The Act lists matters the Minister may have regard to, including prisoner welfare, administration of justice, prison security, safe custody, and community protection (s 9A).
Attorney-General role: in transfer-for-trial cases Part III, the Attorney-General gets and responds to requests and must give written consent in order for an order of transfer to be issued (s 10-11). The Local Court then examines compliance and decides whether to issue the transfer order (s 12-13).
Judicial review framework: Local Court decisions under s 13 are reviewable to the Supreme Court by way of rehearing on the evidence with a 14-day application window (s 14(1)-(6)). Conversely, the Act expressly makes decisions to issue or not issue certain ministerial orders non-reviewable (s 5(6)).

Custody and escort

Orders of transfer must direct the Commissioner of Correctional Services to deliver the prisoner into the custody of an escort (prison officer, police member or ministerially appointed person) and authorise the escort to convey the prisoner (s 22). Transit custody through the Territory is specifically authorised even if the person is merely being forwarded by an interstate order (s 29).

Sentence treatment and recognition

On transfer out of the Territory, Territory sentences, including translated sentences, cease to have effect in the Territory for most operational purposes, except for appeals, periods served and remittances for default imprisonment (s 23).
When a person arrives in the Territory under an interstate law, State sentences are deemed to have been imposed by a corresponding Territory court and Territory laws apply as if the court had power to impose and order commencement (s 25).
Translated sentences and minimum terms fixed by the original jurisdiction are carried over, varied or quashed by corollary action in the Territory to mirror variations by the originating State (s 26).

Information flow and certification

The Minister must send the transfer order, warrants or commitment authorities, comprehensive prisoner reports including findings of guilt, sentences, minimum terms, periods served, parole entitlements and conduct records, and any subsequent variations to corresponding Ministers (s 24). Certificates by prescribed officers serve as prima facie proof of consents (s 11(2)).

Penalties and remedial measures

The Act contains mechanisms for dealing with escape or attempted escape while in transit (s 30-32), criminalising escape from custody under particular circumstances with a maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment (s 31(1)) and authorising warrants, return to custody and revocation of transfer orders (s 30-32).

Interplay with Commonwealth and interstate instruments

Multiple provisions render transfer orders ineffective with respect to Commonwealth sentences unless a corresponding Commonwealth transfer order is in force under the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 or the transfer is otherwise authorised by that Act (s 6, s 14A, s 19). The Act therefore operates in a federal framework of parallel instruments.

These concepts map the allocation of rights, obligations and processes. They create multi-stage checks that allocate initial discretionary power to executive officers, procedural safeguards through courts for transfer-for-trial matters, information and custody obligations for correctional authorities, and reciprocal recognition rules for sentences arriving and departing the Territory.

This Act creates legally cognisable positions and obligations for a set of identifiable actors. It therefore affects these groups in distinct ways:

Prisoners

Territory prisoners: persons serving sentences imposed under Territory law fall squarely within the Act’s primary scope. A Territory prisoner may request transfer to a participating State or other Territory (s 5(1)); the Minister must receive a written request and be "of the opinion" the prisoner should be transferred before taking action (s 5(1)(b)-(d)). A prisoner brought in under an interstate or Commonwealth order also falls under the Act’s reception and sentence-translation rules (s 25-27).
Joint prisoners: persons subject to both a Territory/State sentence and a Commonwealth sentence are given special treatment. Transfer orders concerning such persons have no operative effect with respect to the Commonwealth sentence unless a corresponding Commonwealth transfer order is in force or otherwise authorised under the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 (s 6, s 14A, s 19). That requirement means joint prisoners’ effective transfer depends on coordination with Commonwealth processes.

Ministers and Attorney-General

The Territory Minister: for prisoner-initiated transfers out, the Minister must receive a written request, make the requisite opinion, send a request to the corresponding Minister or Commonwealth Attorney-General, and may issue an order once the other jurisdiction consents (s 5). The Minister may inform himself or herself by reference to reports (s 9) and may consider statutory factors (s 9A). The Minister must also respond to incoming requests to accept transfers to the Territory (s 8). A decision under s 5 to issue or not issue an order is statutorily non-reviewable (s 5(6)).
Territory Attorney-General: in transfer-for-trial matters the Attorney-General receives and decides on incoming requests (s 10(1)), and may initiate transfers to the Territory for persons imprisoned in participating States (s 16-17). The Attorney-General must notify prisoners of decisions (s 28).
Corresponding Ministers and State Attorneys-General: the legislation requires written consent or request from the corresponding minister of a participating State or the Commonwealth Attorney-General, depending on the transfer route (s 5(1)(c)-(d), s 11(1)(b)-(c)).

Courts

Local Court: declared corresponding courts hear and make orders under this Act for transfers for trial (s 4(1), s 12-13). The Local Court must be constituted by a Local Court Judge when exercising jurisdiction under the Act (s 4B(2)). The Local Court can issue warrants to return persons to custody and can revoke transfer orders where the person being conveyed has committed an escape or other offence (s 30(2), s 32).
Supreme Court: provides review of Local Court decisions under s 13 by rehearing on the evidence and may substitute a new decision and issue an order for transfer to give effect to its substituted decision (s 14).

Correctional services and escorts

Commissioner of Correctional Services: must execute Local Court orders to bring prisoners before court and deliver prisoners to escorts as directed (s 15). The Commissioner may receive persons in custody from interstate escorts for transit and detain them as though they were Territory prisoners for a reasonable period (s 29(1)(b)).
Escorts: prison officers, police members or ministerially appointed persons are authorised to hold and convey prisoners under transfer orders (s 22(2), s 29). They gain statutory powers to apprehend escapees without warrant under s 30(1).

Other stakeholders

Parole and prison authorities: the Minister may request and rely on reports from parole and prison authorities of both the Territory and participating States to form opinions and exercise discretions (s 9). Those authorities therefore have a role in information provision and risk assessment.
Receiving jurisdictions: participating States and other Territories are recipients of transferred prisoners and must apply their own legal frameworks to received sentences, or have their sentences deemed to be imposed by corresponding Territory courts where prisoners are brought into the Territory (s 25-26). They therefore face operational responsibilities including custody, prison management and monitoring of minimum terms and parole entitlements.

Who pays and who bears operational costs

The Act does not explicitly allocate costs for escort movement, travel or administrative processing. The statutory mechanics require the Commissioner to deliver and receive custody and equips escorts with authority to convey prisoners (s 22, s 29), but the Act is silent on funding, cost recovery or reimbursement. Those matters are likely to be handled through administrative arrangements or reciprocal agreements outside the Act itself.

Behavioural effects

Prisoners gain a statutory route to seek transfer for social or procedural reasons (s 5), but that route is subject to Ministerial discretion and external consent. Correctional services and courts gain obligatory duties to process, hold hearings and transfer custody, and must coordinate with interstate counterparts through documentation and certified copies (s 11(2), s 24). Joint prisoners must navigate an additional Commonwealth layer, which can delay or block effective transfer in respect of Commonwealth sentences (s 6, s 14A, s 19).

The Act creates specific statutory duties for executive and custodial actors, and rights (procedural and substantive) for prisoners and other parties. These duties and rights determine the flow of decision-making, information exchange and judicial oversight.

Ministerial duties and discretions

Duty to act on prisoner requests: where the Minister receives a written request from a Territory prisoner and forms the opinion the prisoner should be transferred, the Minister must forward a written request to the corresponding Minister of the participating State or to the Commonwealth Attorney-General as appropriate (s 5(1)(a)-(d)). The Minister may then issue an order when consent is received (s 5(2)).
Duty to respond to incoming requests: the Minister must either consent or refuse a written request given under a corresponding interstate provision requesting acceptance of a transfer to the Territory, and must give written notice of that decision to the requesting corresponding Minister or the Commonwealth Attorney-General (s 8).
Discretionary considerations: when forming an opinion, the Minister may inform himself or herself by reference to any reports and specifically may have regard to prisoner welfare, administration of justice, prison security, safe custody and community protection, among other matters (s 9, s 9A).
Non-reviewable decisions: the Act makes explicit that decisions to issue, or not to issue, an order under s 5 are not reviewable by a court or tribunal (s 5(6)). That creates a statutory bar against judicial review of those particular executive decisions within the Act’s framework; separate constitutional or administrative law remedies are not addressed in the text.

Attorney-General duties and rights

In transfer-for-trial cases, the Attorney-General must either refuse or consent to requests for transfer and must give written notice of that decision to the originating Attorney-General or Minister (s 10(1)). The Attorney-General also receives prisoner-initiated requests referred by the Minister for transfer to a participating State (s 10(2)) unless barred by the 12-month repetition rule (s 10(3)).

Court duties and prisoner rights at hearings

Local Court duties: once the conditions in s 11(1) are met, the Local Court must direct the person in charge of the prison to bring the prisoner before it for a determination as to whether an order of transfer shall issue (s 12). The Local Court then must either issue the transfer order or refuse if it is satisfied transfer would be harsh or oppressive, not in the interests of justice, or if the charge is trivial (s 13).
Procedural rights of prisoners at hearings: at a Local Court hearing under s 12 a prisoner is entitled to legal representation and the Attorney-General has an entitlement to appear or be represented (s 12(3)). Rights of review: unsuccessful parties (Attorney-General, prisoner, or any person who requested or consented to the transfer) may apply to the Supreme Court within 14 days for a rehearing on the evidence (s 14(1)-(4)). The Supreme Court may substitute a new decision and, to give effect to it, issue an order for the transfer (s 14(5)-(6)).

Correctional services duties

Custody execution: the Commissioner of Correctional Services must execute Local Court or Supreme Court orders and may charge a prison officer with execution; the prisoner must be kept in custody while the order is executed and returned to previous custody in due course (s 15).
Receipt and transfer for transit: upon presentation of a certified copy of an interstate order, the Commissioner is authorised to receive an escorted person into custody as though a Territory prisoner for the reasonably necessary period, and to re-deliver the person to the escort on request and production of the order (s 29(1)(b), s 29(2)).

Information obligations

The Minister must cause to be sent to the corresponding Minister a package of documents when a prisoner is conveyed to a participating State, including the transfer order, warrants or commitment authority, and a report that contains convictions, sentences, minimum terms, periods served, parole entitlements and conduct records (s 24(1)(a)-(c)). The Minister must also send details of subsequent variations (s 24(1)(d)). Certificates signed by prescribed officers serve as prima facie proof that necessary consents have been given (s 11(2)).

Sentence-related duties and consequences

Effect on Territory sentences: upon arrival in a receiving State the Territory sentences cease to have effect in the Territory for most purposes other than appeals, periods served and remittance matters (s 23(1)(a)-(c)). This creates a duty on authorities in the Territory to update records and cease further enforcement of Territory sentences after transfer, subject to specified exceptions.
Translated sentences and minimum terms: minimum terms fixed elsewhere are to be deemed likewise by the corresponding Territory court and any variation or quashing in the originating State is to be mirrored in the Territory (s 26(1)-(2)). The Administrator may exercise the royal prerogative of mercy in relation to translated sentences (s 26(5)).

Escape and enforcement duties

Escorts and others are authorised to apprehend escapees without warrant (s 30(1)). The Local Court may, on application, issue a warrant to return a person who escaped during conveyance, and can detain the person up to seven days pending delivery into escort custody (s 30(2)-(5)). Where an escape or other offending occurs during conveyance, the Local Court may revoke the original order of transfer (s 32).

Notification duty

The Attorney-General must advise prisoners of decisions made about them under this Act (s 28). This is a statutory communication duty directed at ensuring prisoners are informed of outcomes that affect them.

Rights limited or qualified by the Act

Repeated request bar: requests for transfer made within 12 months of a similar request "need not be entertained" (s 7), and s 10(3) carries an equivalent for referral to the Attorney-General in trial transfers. This is a statutory gate limiting repeated applications.
Joint prisoner dependency on Commonwealth transfer: the operative effect of many transfer orders for joint prisoners is qualified by the requirement of a corresponding Commonwealth transfer order, constraining the practical rights of joint prisoners seeking single-jurisdiction resolution (s 6, s 14A, s 19).

These duties and rights create layered obligations on executive officers, courts and custodial agencies together with specified procedural protections available to prisoners and other affected parties.

The Act includes criminal offences, procedural enforcement mechanisms and judicial remedies to manage compliance and respond to misconduct in the context of transfer operations. Enforcement sits across correctional, court and criminal law processes.

Escape and related offences

Apprehension and return: an escort, member of the Police Force or any other person may apprehend without warrant a person who escapes from the custody of an escort while in the Territory pursuant to s 29 (s 30(1)). This authorises immediate non-judicial detention measures during conveyance and transit.
Local Court warrants for return: where a person in custody pursuant to s 29 has escaped and been apprehended, or attempted to escape, the Local Court may, notwithstanding the interstate order’s terms, by warrant signed by the Local Court:
- order the person to be returned to the participating State which issued the transfer order, and
- order the person delivered to an escort for that purpose (s 30(2)(c)-(d)). Warrants under s 30(2) are capable of execution according to tenor and permit detention of the person as a Territory prisoner until delivered into the escort’s custody or up to seven days, with the warrant ceasing if delivery does not occur within seven days (s 30(3)-(5)).
Escape while transferred , substantive offence: a person who, being in custody under an order of transfer, escapes or attempts to escape from that custody while not within the Territory or the participating State or other Territory to which they were being conveyed is guilty of an offence (s 31(1)). The maximum penalty is imprisonment for seven years. The statute also prescribes that any sentence imposed for that offence is to be served after the expiration of any term to which the person was subject at the time of the escape or attempt (s 31(2)). Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply where Commonwealth law applies via the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act (s 31(4)).

Revocation and ancillary enforcement

Revocation of transfer orders: the Local Court may revoke an order of transfer if it appears to the court on application made by a prescribed office-holder or a member of a prescribed class that the person in respect of whom the order was issued committed escaping or another offence while being conveyed (s 32). Revocation can occur regardless of whether a charge has been laid or a finding of guilt secured (s 32(b)-(d)).
Arrest warrants and court processes: the Local Court may generate warrants and orders under s 12-15 to bring prisoners before it and return them to custody; the Commissioner must execute those orders (s 12-15). The Supreme Court may rehear and substitute Local Court decisions and may issue orders to give effect to a substituted decision (s 14(5)-(6)).

Administrative enforcement and documentation

Certified documents and prima facie proof: certificates by prescribed officers that consents or requests have been given are prima facie evidence that the required consents exist (s 11(2)). The Minister must transmit prescribed documents, including transfer orders, warrants and reports, to the corresponding Minister to facilitate enforcement and recognition in the receiving jurisdiction (s 24).
Operational custody authorisations: orders of transfer direct the Commissioner to deliver custody into that of the escort and authorise escorts to take custody and convey prisoners (s 22). Section 29 also authorises the Commissioner to receive and detain persons brought into the Territory for transit as though they were Territory prisoners. These provisions create lawful custody channels and administrative obligations that underpin enforcement during transit.

Limitations on review and enforcement oversight

Non-reviewability of certain ministerial decisions: a Ministerial decision to issue or not issue an order under s 5 is non-reviewable by a court or tribunal (s 5(6)). This statutory bar limits recourse to judicial challenge within the Act’s framework against specific executive decisions, and shifts the enforcement locus to internal executive processes and intergovernmental negotiation where such decisions are at issue.

Interface with Commonwealth enforcement

For joint prisoners many of the enforcement consequences of transfer depend on whether a corresponding Commonwealth transfer order exists under the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983, which may activate or inhibit application of Territory enforcement provisions to Commonwealth sentences (s 6, s 14A, s 19). The Act therefore ties Territory enforcement to federal mechanisms for joint sentences.

Regulatory backstop

The Administrator may make regulations "prescribing all matters required or permitted by this Act" (s 33). Regulations can therefore provide additional enforcement mechanisms, define prescribed offices and classes for applications under s 32 and s 30, and set procedural or operational details necessary to implement enforcement measures.

In sum, the Act combines criminal offences for escape, statutory powers for apprehension and detention, court-issued warrants and revocation powers, and administrative documentation obligations to enforce transfer processes. Some enforcement consequences are contingent on external Commonwealth arrangements for joint prisoners. The explicit non-reviewability provision narrows intra-Act judicial oversight for specified Ministerial decisions.

The Act is architected to operate within a network of Commonwealth and State instruments. It uses declarations to align with interstate laws and explicitly relies on the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 and the Cross-border Justice Act 2009 for modifications. The intersections create coordination obligations and dependencies that affect the practical operation of transfers.

Cross-border Justice Act 2009

The Act must be applied subject to modifications in s 13 of the Cross-border Justice Act 2009 "as if this law had been altered in that way," and further modifications may be prescribed by regulation under the Cross-border Justice Regulations 2009 (note at head). That top-level instruction means the Act does not operate in isolation; where the Cross-border Justice Act prescribes modifications, those modifications change the Act’s application in Cross-border Justice jurisdictions.

Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983

The Act repeatedly links to the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 for joint prisoners. Transfer orders issued under this Territory Act have no effect in relation to a Commonwealth sentence unless and until a corresponding transfer order is in force under the Commonwealth Act, or the transfer is otherwise authorised by that Act (s 6, s 14A, s 19). Sections 25 and 26 also contain cross-references to the Commonwealth Act in relation to prerogative of mercy and a specified subsection exclusion (s 26(8)). These provisions create a dependency: coordination with Commonwealth processes is essential where Commonwealth sentences are implicated.

Interstate laws and corresponding courts

The Administrator may declare a State law to be an interstate law for the purposes of this Act, and may declare specified Territory courts to be corresponding courts for specified State courts (s 4(1)). Such declarations are constrained by a requirement that the Administrator be satisfied the State law "substantially corresponds" to this Act (s 4(2)). This mechanism allows the Territory to ensure functional reciprocity with particular State regimes, but it also requires a formal declaration step before certain interstate laws operate as "interstate law" under this Act.

Correctional Services Act 2014

The Act’s definitions of "prison" and "prison officer" in s 3 refer to the Correctional Services Act 2014 definitions for the Territory side, reflecting alignment with the Territory’s contemporary correctional framework. Amendments listed in the endnotes confirm incorporation of the updated terminologies (endnotes and s 3 amendments).

Youth Justice Act 2005

The definition of Territory sentence excludes sentences imposed under the Youth Justice Act 2005 or detention under that Act’s detention centre regime (s 3, definition of Territory sentence of imprisonment). This carve-out prevents juveniles processed under the Youth Justice Act being transferred under this regime.

Crimes Act 1914 (Commonwealth)

Some escape provisions are not to apply to persons to whom section 47 of the Crimes Act 1914 applies by virtue of the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act (see s 30(2A), s 31(4)). This indicates the Act avoids duplicative criminalisation where federal law governs escape in the national context.

Administrative law and judicial review

The Act itself limits judicial review for particular Ministerial decisions (s 5(6)), but it sits within the broader administrative law landscape. The Local Court and Supreme Court review powers (s 12-14) provide procedural judicial oversight in certain contexts. The Act does not expressly address constitutional or prerogative review remedies outside its statutory review scheme.

Intergovernmental agreements and administrative arrangements

The Act is silent on cost allocation, travel logistics, or operational detail for escorts; those practical interjurisdictional matters are typically handled by memoranda of understanding, intergovernmental agreements or administrative arrangements. The statutory structure creates demand for such arrangements but does not itself prescribe funding or administrative modalities.

Regulations and subordinate instruments

The Administrator may make regulations to prescribe matters required or permitted by this Act (s 33). The endnotes reference that modifications to the Act may be prescribed by regulation under the Cross-border Justice Regulations 2009, and that Part 3 Division 13 of those Regulations contains prescribed modifications. The regulations therefore provide the means to tailor operational detail and compliance requirements to fit interjurisdictional practicalities.

Prerogative of mercy and governor roles

Section 26(5) gives the Administrator the power to exercise the royal prerogative of mercy in relation to translated sentences, and to give effect to indications by the Governor of the originating participating State. Subsection 26(4) modifies references for the ACT. This consigns some mercy discretion into the Territory’s executive while allowing regard to originating jurisdiction indications.

Interplay summary

In summary, the Act is designed to function as part of an interlocking federal and State/Territory scheme. It provides procedural and substantive rules for recognition of out-of-jurisdiction sentences and for transfers, but it deliberately defers to Commonwealth procedures where Commonwealth sentences are implicated and relies on declarations to ensure State laws are compatible. Regulatory instruments, intergovernmental arrangements and the Cross-border Justice Act modifications are the operational layers that fill gaps left by the Act’s high-level framework.

The Act has been amended repeatedly since assent in 1983. The endnotes provide a detailed list. Below is a source-grounded timeline and a section-based summary of material amendments reflected in the reprint.

Key enactments and their dates (endnote 2 and List of amendments)

Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983 , Assent 27 April 1983; commenced 21 September 1984.
Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Amendment Act 1989 , Assent 28 March 1989; commenced 12 February 1992. Several sections were amended in that Act (endnote 4 indicates many s 3, s 4, s 5 etc).
Sentencing (Consequential Amendments) Act 1996 , Assent 19 April 1996; effected certain cross-references (endnote list shows s 3 amended by No. 17, 1996).
Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Amendment Act 1997 , Assent 26 March 1997.
Youth Justice (Consequential Amendments) Act 2005 , Assent 22 September 2005; in consequence the Act’s definition of Territory sentence excludes sentences under the Youth Justice Act 2005 (s 3 amended; endnote 4 lists No. 33, 2005).
Statute Law Revision Act 2007 , Assent 8 March 2007 (technical amendments).
Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Amendment Act 2009 , Assent 11 November 2009; commenced 23 December 2009. This Act inserted s 9A (matters the Minister may have regard to) and made other amendments (endnote 4 lists many s amendments to reflect No. 31, 2009).
Justice Legislation Amendment (Penalties) Act 2010 , Assent 20 May 2010; commenced 1 July 2010; amended s 31 (escape penalty) among others.
Correctional Services (Related and Consequential Amendments) Act 2014 , Assent 4 September 2014; commenced 9 September 2014. This Act updated references to Correctional Services Act 2014 definitions, affecting s 3 and several execution and custody provisions (endnote 4 notes s 3, s 12, s 15, s 22, s 24, s 26, s 27, s 29, s 30, s 31, s 32 were amended by No. 27, 2014).
Local Court (Repeals and Related Amendments) Act 2016 , Assent 6 April 2016; commenced 1 May 2016. This Act inserted s 4B, specifying Local Court jurisdiction and composition when exercising jurisdiction under the Act (s 4B inserted No. 9, 2016, s 134) and made other technical changes indexed in the endnotes.
Statute Law Amendment (Succession of the Crown) Act 2023 , Assent 20 April 2023; commenced 21 April 2023 (endnote lists No. 10, 2023).

Notable section changes and functional impacts (grounded in the amendment list)

s 3 (definitions) has been amended multiple times (No. 9, 1989; No. 17, 1996; No. 10, 1997; No. 33, 2005; No. 4, 2007; No. 31, 2009; No. 27, 2014; No. 9, 2016; No. 10, 2023) , these reflect evolving definitional alignment with newer correctional and youth justice frameworks and federal amendments.
s 4 (declaration of interstate laws and corresponding courts) was amended in 1989 and 2016 (No. 9, 1989; No. 9, 2016) to refine reciprocal recognition procedures and court correspondence.
Insertion of s 4B in 2016 clarified the Local Court’s criminal jurisdiction under the Act and required Local Court Judges to constitute the Court when exercising that jurisdiction (s 4B ins No. 9, 2016).
s 5 (requests and orders of transfer) was substituted in 1989 (No. 9, 1989, s 6) and further amended in 2009 (No. 31, 2009, s 5), reflecting changes to procedures for prisoner-initiated transfers and the Minister’s role.
s 9A (matters the Minister may have regard to) was inserted in 2009 (No. 31, 2009, s 7), formally listing welfare, administration, security and community protection as factors for Ministerial consideration.
Several procedural provisions in Parts III-V (s 10-27) were subject to amendment across the 1989, 1996, 2009 and 2014 reform waves to align transfer-for-trial processes, sentence translation and custody arrangements with modern correctional practice and federal obligations.
s 31 (escape from custody penalty) saw amendment in 2010 (No. 12, 2010, s 3) and others, reflecting adjustments to criminal penalties associated with transit escapes.

Interpretation of amendment notes

The endnotes classify amendments by section and amending Act. The pattern shows iterative modernisation: cross-references to new correctional legislation (2014), expanded Ministerial discretion factors (2009), and Local Court procedural clarity (2016). No amendment text in the reprint purports to change the Act’s fundamental architecture of Ministerial/Attorney-General/court roles and the Commonwealth interlock.

Operational implication of amendments

The amendments collectively moved the Act from a narrow transfer procedural statute to a more integrated instrument aligned with Territory correctional architecture (Correctional Services Act), with explicit factors for Ministerial consideration, clearer Local Court composition requirements and ongoing ties to Commonwealth transfer mechanisms. Practitioners must therefore consult the consolidated text and the Cross-border Justice Act modifications to determine current procedural steps and applicable definitions.

The text of the Act provided contains no judicial decisions, case citations or a list of litigation that has applied or interpreted the Act. The Act itself names no cases. Therefore there is no source-provided case law history in this reprint to cite or summarise.

The Act does, however, build in its own intra-statute review and judicial procedures which generate known judicial pathways where litigation is possible:

Local Court determination and review: in transfer-for-trial cases the Local Court must bring a prisoner before it and decide whether to issue a transfer order (s 12-13). That decision is expressly reviewable to the Supreme Court within 14 days by way of rehearing on the evidence, and the Supreme Court may confirm, quash or substitute a new decision and issue an order to give effect to it (s 14(1)-(6)). These provisions establish a statutory avenue for judicial review and re-litigation of the Local Court’s transfer decisions to the Territory’s highest court.
Non-reviewable Ministerial decisions: the Act displaces judicial review of certain executive decisions by providing that a decision to issue, or not to issue, an order under s 5 is not reviewable by a court or tribunal (s 5(6)). Practically, that means challenges under the Act’s internal scheme are precluded for those specific Ministerial choices. The Act does not address whether a person affected could seek relief in other fora (for example, prerogative remedies) , the reprint does not purport to displace external common law or constitutional remedies, but the statutory bar is an explicit statutory limit on Act-created review rights.
Warrant and detention processes: Local Court warrants issued under s 30 to return escaped or attempted escapees to custody and the power to detain up to seven days are judicially enforceable instruments (s 30(2)-(5)). Orders for revocation of transfer under s 32 are also subject to Local Court application and therefore to judicial handling.
Sentence translation and appeal limitations: s 26(3) explicitly states that nothing in the Act operates to permit an appeal or review in the Territory against a conviction, finding of guilt, judgment, sentence or minimum term made by a court of the participating State. This removes an avenue for direct appellate review in the Territory of out-of-jurisdiction judicial determinations, which affects litigation strategy for prisoners seeking to challenge foreign-imposed sentences on transfer.
Interaction with Commonwealth mechanisms: for joint prisoners, the Act requires a corresponding Commonwealth transfer order or other Commonwealth authorisation before many measures operate in respect of Commonwealth sentences (s 6, s 14A, s 19). Litigation that seeks to affect Commonwealth sentence operation in the Territory will therefore generally involve the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 and possible federal law processes, adding complexity to any litigation strategy.

Practical consequences for litigators and practitioners

The Act’s statutory framework creates concentrated litigation points: Local Court transfer determinations in Part III (which are rehearable in the Supreme Court), and revocation or return applications under s 30 and s 32. These are the principal places where contested factual or legal issues concerning the propriety of a transfer, escape events, or revocation may be litigated.
For prisoners seeking to challenge Ministerial denials under s 5(6) the absence of reviewability within the Act means any challenge will need to consider the possible availability of other legal remedies outside the Act’s scheme, such as constitutional claims or prerogative relief, but such possibilities are not addressed in the text of the Act provided.
Where a joint prisoner’s Commonwealth sentence is determinative, litigation involving transfer effects will require coordination with Commonwealth law and the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983; the Act itself insists on corresponding Commonwealth authorisation before many measures are effective (s 6, s 14A, s 19), and the reprint contains no Commonwealth case law summary.

In short, the Act creates statutory litigious nodes: Local Court determinations under Part III and revocation/return processes, with a statutory bar on review for certain Ministerial decisions and an explicit exclusion of territorial appeals against foreign convictions. The supplied text contains no reported cases or litigation outcomes and does not provide an external litigation register.

The Act contains several features that can catch practitioners and agencies unprepared if not anticipated. These are concrete, source-grounded traps in procedure, timing, interaction with Commonwealth mechanisms and sentence treatment.

Non-reviewability of certain Ministerial decisions (s 5(6))

A decision to issue, or not to issue, an order under s 5 is "not reviewable by a court or tribunal" (s 5(6)). That statutory bar applies to Ministerial decisions about prisoner-requested transfers under Part II. Practitioners should note that where a prisoner’s request is refused under s 5, the Act itself does not provide a statutory route for judicial review of that refusal. Any remedy outside that bar would have to be sourced in general administrative law or other constitutional mechanisms, which the Act does not address.

Joint prisoner Commonwealth interlock (s 6, s 14A, s 19)

Transfers affecting persons who hold both Territory/State and Commonwealth sentences (joint prisoners) are largely ineffective with respect to Commonwealth sentences unless a corresponding transfer order exists under the Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act 1983 or other Commonwealth authorisation applies (s 6, s 14A, s 19). Practically this means a Territory transfer order may be legally impotent for a chunk of the prisoner’s aggregate sentence exposure unless the Commonwealth layer is navigated.

Twelve‑month repetition bar (s 7, s 10(3))

A prisoner’s repeated request for transfer "need not be entertained" if within 12 months of a similar earlier request (s 7). The same 12-month restraint applies to Ministerial referral to the Attorney-General in Part III contexts (s 10(3)). The words "need not be entertained" grant discretion to decline to process repeated applications within 12 months, potentially limiting tactical reapplications.

Transferred sentences cease in Territory except narrow residual purposes (s 23)

Once a prisoner is conveyed to a participating State, Territory sentences "cease to have effect in the Territory" except for appeals, periods served, or remittance of money for default imprisonment (s 23(1)(a)-(c)). Practitioners should understand this extinguishing effect for many administrative and enforcement functions in the Territory once transfer occurs. Records, obligations to enforce or monitor sentences in the Territory must be adjusted accordingly.

Translated sentence complexities and variations (s 25-27)

Translated sentences are treated as if imposed by a corresponding court on arrival (s 25), with minimum terms and other variations mirrored from the originating State (s 26). Subsection 26(3) explicitly disallows Territory appeals or review of decisions made in the participating State. Additionally, default-imprisonment remittances must be transmitted to corresponding Ministers (s 27(1)(b)). These cross-border administrative obligations can create coordination complexity when amounts change on review in the originating State (s 27(2)).

Information and certification requirements (s 11(2), s 24)

The Act relies on prescribed officers’ certificates as proof that required consents exist (s 11(2)). The Minister must also send a detailed report and relevant documents to the receiving jurisdiction (s 24(1)(a)-(c)). Failure to prepare complete, certified packages risks operational delay and disputes about whether the receiving State received legally sufficient documentation.

Local Court constitution requirement (s 4B)

When exercising jurisdiction under this Act the Local Court "must be constituted by a Local Court Judge" (s 4B(2)). Administrative oversight is required to ensure hearings are not convened before an improperly constituted bench.

Seven‑day warrant expiry for escape returns (s 30(4)-(5))

Warrants issued by the Local Court to return escaped or attempted escapees permit detention until delivery into escort custody or for up to seven days, and the warrant expires if delivery has not occurred within seven days from issue (s 30(4)-(5)). Operational logistics must be arranged to avoid lapse and create legal uncertainty.

Notification duty to prisoners (s 28)

The Attorney-General must advise a prisoner of decisions made in respect of the prisoner under the Act (s 28). Failure to notify can raise procedural fairness concerns, even though the Act does not itself create a cause of action for non-notification.

Costs and operational funding not addressed

The Act authorises custody transfers and escorts but is silent on the funding or charging of costs for transfer movement. The practical costs of escorts, interstate transfers and administrative processing are therefore likely to be governed by intergovernmental arrangements. Absent explicit statutory allocation, agencies need local protocols to allocate costs.

Escape offence location limitation (s 31)

The escape offence (s 31) applies where the escape occurs "while he or she is not within the Territory or the participating State or other Territory to which he or she was being conveyed." That geographic formulation can cause confusion as to whether the offence applies during transit within particular jurisdictions. Practitioners should read the location language carefully when advising on charges.

Certificate and document authenticity (s 11(2), s 24(2))

The Act relies on certified copies and prescribed officer certificates as prima facie proof of consents or orders (s 11(2), s 24(2)). Incorrect certification or improper attestations can lead to evidential disputes that could delay transfers or create legal challenges.

Regulatory detail may modify operation

The initial note indicates the Act must be applied with specified modifications under the Cross-border Justice Act 2009 and that modifications can be prescribed by regulation. Those modifications may change operational detail; practitioners should check the Cross-border Justice Regulations 2009 (Part 3 Division 13) for prescribed modifications relevant to a given transfer.

These "gotchas" are procedural and substantive traps embedded in the statutory architecture. Each creates a concrete operational risk that needs active mitigation through administrative procedures, interjurisdictional coordination and careful legal advice.

Compliance under this Act requires following prescribed procedural steps, producing and transmitting specified documents, observing timing constraints and coordinating with interstate and Commonwealth authorities. Below is a practical checklist for the principal actors: Ministers/Attorney-General, correctional services, Local Court/Supreme Court, and prisoners with representation.

For Minister/Attorney-General (Territory)

Receiving prisoner requests (Part II):
- Accept only written requests from Territory prisoners seeking transfer (s 5(1)(a)); if the prisoner has made a similar request within the prior 12 months, consider s 7 which allows the Minister to decline to entertain the request (s 7).
- Form an opinion that the prisoner "should be transferred" before making the interstate request (s 5(1)(b)). Use reports from parole and prison authorities (s 9) and consider factors in s 9A (welfare, administration of justice, security, safe custody, community protection, and any other relevant matter).
- For transfer to a participating State, send a written request to the corresponding Minister of the participating State (s 5(1)(c)). For transfer to another Territory, give a written request to the Commonwealth Attorney-General (s 5(1)(d)).
Receiving consent and issuing orders:
- Do not issue a transfer order until written consent is received from the corresponding Minister or the Commonwealth Attorney-General (s 5(2)).
- Keep careful records of written consents; when using a certificate from a prescribed officer as proof of consent, ensure the certificate is properly signed and retained (s 11(2)).
Accepting incoming requests to the Territory:
- Where a corresponding Minister proposes transfer to the Territory, either consent or refuse in writing and send written notice to the requesting Minister or Commonwealth Attorney-General (s 8).
Documentation and reporting:
- When conveying a prisoner to a participating State, ensure the order of transfer, the warrant or other authority for commitment, and a comprehensive report (findings of guilt, sentences, minimum terms, periods served, parole entitlements, conduct records) are sent to the corresponding Minister or designated person, and that subsequent variations are transmitted (s 24(1)(a)-(d), s 24(2)). Use certified copies where required (s 24(2)).
Notification obligations:
- Advise the prisoner of any decision made under the Act that affects them (s 28).

For Correctional Services and Escorts

Execution of Local Court/Supreme Court orders:
- When the Local Court directs the person in charge to bring the prisoner before it, execute the order and keep the prisoner in custody while the order is executed (s 12(1); s 15).
- On a transfer order the Commissioner must deliver the prisoner into the custody of an authorised escort and may be called upon to receive escorted persons for transit (s 22; s 29).
Custodial documents:
- Ensure the transfer order, warrant or other authority for commitment accompanies the prisoner and that certified copies are exchanged with the receiving jurisdiction as required (s 24(1)(a)-(b); s 24(2)).
Transit custody:
- Escorts must be prison officers, police members or persons appointed by the Minister in writing; retain appointment instruments and verify authority (s 22(2)).
Escape response:
- In the event of an escape or attempted escape, escort and police have power to apprehend without warrant and must produce the person before the Local Court for return orders (s 30(1)-(2)). Ensure prompt communication and logistical arrangements so that any warrant issued under s 30(2) can be executed within seven days (s 30(4)-(5)).

For Local Court and Supreme Court

Local Court hearings and composition:
- Ensure the Local Court is constituted by a Local Court Judge when exercising jurisdiction under the Act (s 4B(2)).
- On proof that s 11(1) conditions are met, issue a written direction to bring the prisoner to the specified place and time for determination of whether an order of transfer shall be issued (s 12(1)-(2)).
- At the hearing, ensure the prisoner is informed of the right to legal representation and that the Attorney-General may appear (s 12(3)).
- If transfer is "harsh or oppressive" or "not in the interests of justice" or the charge is trivial, refuse to issue the transfer order; otherwise issue the transfer order (s 13).
Review and rehearing:
- If a review application is lodged within 14 days under s 14(1), rehear on the evidence and any additional evidence; the Supreme Court may substitute decisions and issue transfer orders to give effect (s 14(4)-(6)).

For Legal Practitioners Advising Prisoners

Procedural timing and documentation:
- Ensure written requests for transfer are properly formatted, specific, and supported by any relevant submissions on welfare, family, employment or other rehabilitative grounds referenced in s 9A.
- Be aware of the 12-month repetition restriction for reapplications (s 7).
- When transfer-for-trial is at issue, prepare for Local Court hearings with evidence addressing whether transfer would be harsh or oppressive or not in interests of justice (s 13).
Joint prisoners:
- For clients who are joint prisoners, check Commonwealth Transfer of Prisoners Act requirements early. A Territory transfer order may not change the status of Commonwealth sentences until corresponding Commonwealth authorisation is in place (s 6, s 14A, s 19).
Appeals and limits:
- Note that translated sentences imposed in participating States are not subject to appeal or review in the Territory by operation of this Act (s 26(3)); accordingly, focus appeals and reviews in the originating State where possible.
Notification and evidence exchange:
- Ensure applications for transfer are accompanied by or request necessary reports (parole and prison authority reports) and be prepared to request certified documents to support consents and warrants (s 9; s 11(2); s 24).

Interjurisdictional coordination

Establish or consult memoranda of understanding that specify costs, escort logistics, medical clearances, timelines for transfer and receipt of certified documents. The Act is silent about cost allocation; administrative arrangements are necessary to operationalise transfers.

Record-keeping and certification

Maintain certified records of consents, transfer orders, warrants, reports, and communications between Ministers and Attorneys-General. Certificates by prescribed officers are prima facie proof of consents (s 11(2)); get the prescribed formalities right.

Regulatory and Cross-border Justice modifications

Check for any modifications under s 13 of the Cross-border Justice Act 2009 and Part 3 Division 13 of the Cross-border Justice Regulations 2009 that may alter procedural steps or document requirements in specific cross-border arrangements.

Practical checklist summary

Receive or prepare written request; confirm not within 12 months of similar request (s 5, s 7).
Collect reports and evidence, apply s 9A factors.
Send request to corresponding Minister/Attorney-General and obtain written consent (s 5(1)(c)-(d), s 11).
Where Part III applies, ensure Attorney-General consent, Local Court direction to bring prisoner, hold hearing and follow s 13 grounds (s 11-13).
Prepare and transmit transfer order, warrant and full report with certified copies to receiving jurisdiction (s 24).
Ensure escorts are authorised and custody handover is documented (s 22, s 29).
Keep prisoner notified of decisions (s 28).
For joint prisoners, coordinate with Commonwealth transfer processes (s 6, s 14A, s 19).

Compliance thus requires legal, custodial and administrative coordination, precise certification and timely intergovernmental communications to ensure transfers are authorised, documented and matched to the intended legal consequences under the Act.

Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983

Plain English Summary

Deep Dive

What it does

Current sections

Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983

Source text: opening excerpt

1 Prisoners (Interstate Transfer) Act 1983

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