Tough new laws on child sex tourism take effect

New laws that prevent registered child sex offenders from travelling overseas to abuse children come into effect today, making Australia a world leader in protecting vulnerable children overseas from child sex tourism.

From today, it will be a Commonwealth offence for registered child sex offenders with reporting obligations, those convicted of the most serious forms of abuse, to leave Australia without approval from law enforcement agencies. They will also have their passports cancelled at the request of State or Territory authorities.

Australia has up to 20,000 registered child sex offenders who have served their sentences but are subject to reporting obligations that help to protect the community. For too long, these predators have travelled overseas undetected, including to countries where weaker laws mean they have opportunities to commit heinous crimes.

Almost 800 registered child sex offenders travelled overseas last year, and about 40 percent did so without informing authorities of their travel. This will now stop.

These measures deliver on the commitment the Government made in November 2016 to protect vulnerable children, whether in Australia or overseas, and are the result of close cooperation with State and Territory law enforcement agencies.

The Coalition has also introduced a further package of reforms in September that represent the toughest crackdown on paedophiles in a generation, but Labor is opposing mandatory minimum sentencing meaning convicted Commonwealth child sex offenders may not even spend one day in jail.