Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated ActsDeparting persons may be required to present evidence etc.
(1) A clearance officer may require a person who is on board, or about to board, a vessel that is to leave Australia (whether or not after calling at places in Australia) to:
(a) present the following evidence (which might include a personal identifier referred to in subsection (2A)) to the officer or an authorised system:
(i) if the person is a citizen (whether or not the person is also the national of a country other than Australia)--the person's Australian passport or prescribed other evidence of the person's identity and Australian citizenship;
(ii) if the person is a non-citizen--evidence of the person's identity and permission to remain in Australia; and
(b) provide to the officer or an authorised system any information (including the person's signature, but not any other personal identifier) required by this Act or the regulations.
Certain persons to provide personal identifiers
(2) If prescribed circumstances exist, a non-citizen who is on board, or about to board, a vessel that is to leave Australia (whether or not after calling at places in Australia) must be required by a clearance authority to provide one or more personal identifiers referred to in subsection (2A) to a clearance officer.
Who may use an authorised system
(2AA) A person may comply with a requirement referred to in subsection (1) to present evidence, or provide information, to an authorised system only if:
(a) the person holds an eligible passport; and
(c) either:
(i) before the vessel leaves Australia, neither the system nor a clearance officer requires the person to present or provide evidence, information or personal identifiers referred to in subsection (1) or (2) (other than a passenger card) to a clearance officer; or
(ii) if subparagraph (i) applies--a clearance officer determines that the person has complied with the requirement referred to in subsection (1).
Complying with paragraph (1)(a) and subsection (2)
(2A) Under paragraph (1)(a) and subsection (2), a person may only be required to present or provide (including in digital form) one or more of the following personal identifiers:
(a) a photograph or other image of the person's face and shoulders;
(b) the person's signature;
(c) any other personal identifier contained in the person's passport or other travel document;
(d) any other personal identifier of a type prescribed for the purposes of this paragraph.
Note: Division 13AB sets out further restrictions on the personal identifiers that minors and incapable persons can be required to provide.
(3) Subsection (2) does not limit a clearance officer's power under subparagraph (1)(a)(ii) to require a non-citizen to present to the officer or an authorised system evidence (which might include a personal identifier) of the non-citizen's identity.
(4) A non-citizen is taken not to have complied with a requirement referred to in subsection (2) unless the one or more personal identifiers are provided by way of one or more identification tests carried out by an authorised officer.
Note: If the types of identification tests that the authorised officer may carry out are specified under section 5D, then each identification test must be of a type so specified.
(5) However, subsection (4) does not apply, in circumstances prescribed for the purposes of this subsection, if the personal identifier is of a prescribed type and the non-citizen:
(a) provides a personal identifier otherwise than by way of an identification test carried out by an authorised officer; and
(b) complies with any further requirements that are prescribed relating to the provision of the personal identifier.