Sex work and prostitution law in Queensland

What changed on 2 August 2024

The reform was substantial. In summary:

• The Prostitution Act 1999 (Qld) was repealed, along with the brothel licensing scheme and the Prostitution Licensing Authority.
• Chapter 22A of the Criminal Code, which criminalised sex workers and those working with them, was repealed. That removed offences of procuring, knowingly participating in the provision of prostitution, carrying on the business of unlawful prostitution, and being found in a place reasonably suspected of being used for prostitution.
• Public soliciting offences in the Summary Offences Act 2005 (Qld) were repealed.
• Related police powers directed at sex work were removed from the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 (Qld).
• Sex work businesses now operate under the same laws as other businesses, including the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), planning law and the Anti Discrimination Act 1991 (Qld), which was amended to prohibit discrimination on the basis of being a sex worker.

If you were charged with a repealed offence before that date, the position depends on when the conduct occurred and the transitional provisions. That is worth checking rather than assuming, particularly where an old charge is still affecting a licence or a police check.

What is still an offence

Decriminalisation did not make everything lawful. The following remain criminal offences and are prosecuted seriously:

• Anything involving a person under 18. Offences under sections 210, 215, 228A to 228D and 229B of the Criminal Code apply in full, and the maximums range to life imprisonment. See offences against children.
• Coercion. Procuring sexual acts by threats, intimidation, assault, property damage or fraud remains an offence under the Criminal Code.
• Non consensual conduct. Rape under section 349 and sexual assault under section 352 apply regardless of any commercial arrangement. Since the 2024 affirmative consent reforms, removing a condom without consent, and inducing a person to engage in a sexual act by falsely promising payment, are circumstances in which there is no consent.
• Stupefying. Administering a substance with intent to stupefy or overpower in order to enable a sexual act remains an offence.
• Human trafficking, slavery and servitude under Divisions 270 and 271 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), which are federal offences carrying very long maximum penalties.
• Proceeds and money laundering offences, which apply to any business.

What decriminalisation means practically

A sex worker who is assaulted, robbed or defrauded can now go to police as a complainant rather than as a person at risk of being charged. That was the central purpose of the reform, and it is the most significant practical change.

For operators, the compliance questions are now ordinary business questions: local government planning approvals, work health and safety duties as a person conducting a business or undertaking, employment and contractor status, tax, and privacy obligations for client records.

Advertising restrictions were also relaxed, but not removed entirely, and advertising that suggests a person under 18 is involved remains a serious offence.

Old convictions and records

Repeal of an offence does not automatically remove an existing conviction from a criminal history. Queensland has a spent convictions scheme under Part 3A of the Criminal Law (Rehabilitation of Offenders) Act 1986 (Qld), under which most convictions become spent after 10 years for a Supreme or District Court conviction and 5 years otherwise, provided no further imprisonment was imposed in that period.

If a historical sex work conviction is still affecting employment, a visa or a licence, get advice about the current status of the conviction, whether it is spent, and whether the transitional provisions of the 2024 Act affect it.