Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) A person shall not, in an area of Australian jurisdiction, have in his or her possession or under his or her control, an unlicensed boat equipped for taking fish.
(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) with the use of an unlicensed boat that is a foreign boat is guilty of an offence punishable:
(a) on summary conviction--by a fine not exceeding:
(i) if the person is a natural person--50 penalty units; or
(ii) if the person is a body corporate--250 penalty units; and
(b) on conviction on indictment--by a fine not exceeding 2,500 penalty units.
(3) A person who contravenes subsection (1) with the use of an unlicensed boat that is an Australian boat or a Papua New Guinea boat is guilty of an offence punishable, on conviction, by a fine not exceeding:
(a) if the person is a natural person--50 penalty units; or
(b) if the person is a body corporate--250 penalty units.
(4) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against subsection (2) or (3) if the person charged proves that, at the time of the alleged offence:
(a) the boat's equipment for taking fish was stowed; and
(b) the boat was travelling through an area of Australian jurisdiction from a point outside an area of Australian jurisdiction to another point outside an area of Australian jurisdiction by the shortest practicable route.
Note: The defendant bears a legal burden in relation to the matter in subsection (4). See section 13.4 of the Criminal Code .
(4AA) For the purposes of paragraph (4)(a), a boat's equipment for taking fish is not stowed unless all of the boat's:
(a) nets, traps and other fishing equipment; and
(b) associated equipment, including buoys and beacons;
are disengaged and secured, and where practicable stored inside the boat, in such a manner as not to be readily available for fishing.
(4A) An offence under subsection (2) or (3) is an offence of strict liability.
Note: For strict liability, see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code .
(5) In this section, unlicensed boat means a boat:
(a) that is being used otherwise than in the course of traditional fishing or community fishing; and
(b) in respect of which there is not in force a licence under section 19 or a Treaty endorsement.