Section 230 — Carriage of concealed persons to Australia

230 Carriage of concealed persons to Australia

(1) The master, owner, agent and charterer of a vessel each commit an offence against this section if an unlawful non-citizen is concealed on the vessel when it arrives in the migration zone. Penalty: 100 penalty units.

(1A) The master, owner, agent and charterer of a vessel each commit an offence against this section if:

(a) a person is concealed on the vessel when it arrives in Australia; and

(b) the person would, if in the migration zone, be an unlawful non-citizen. Penalty: 100 penalty units.

(1B) An offence against subsection (1) or (1A) is an offence of strict liability. Note: For strict liability, see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply if the master of the vessel:

(a) as soon as it arrives in the migration zone, gives notice to an officer that the non-citizen is on board; and

(b) prevents the non-citizen from landing without an officer having had an opportunity to question the non-citizen. Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in subsection (2) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).

(2A) Subsection (1A) does not apply if the master of the vessel:

(a) as soon as it arrives in Australia, gives notice to an officer that the person is on board; and

(b) prevents the person from leaving the vessel without an officer having had an opportunity to question the person. Note: A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in subsection (2A) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code).