Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

An authorised officer or detention officer may request that a person about to enter premises where a detainee is in detention do one or more of the following:

walk through screening equipment;

allow an authorised officer or detention officer to pass hand‑held screening equipment over or around the person or around things in the person’s possession;

allow things in the person’s possession to pass through screening equipment or to be examined by X‑ray.

Screening equipment means a metal detector or similar device for detecting objects or particular substances.

If an approved officer suspects on reasonable grounds that a person about to enter premises where a detainee is in detention has in the person’s possession a thing that might:

endanger the safety of the detainees, staff or other persons on the premises; or

disrupt the order or security arrangements on the premises;

An approved officer may request that the person do one or more of the following:

allow the approved officer to inspect the things in the person’s possession;

remove some or all of the person’s outer clothing such as a coat, jacket or similar item;

remove items from the pockets of the person’s clothing;

open a thing in the person’s possession, or remove the thing’s contents, to allow the approved officer to inspect the thing or its contents;

leave a thing in the person’s possession, or some or all of its contents, in a place specified by the approved officer if he or she suspects on reasonable grounds that the thing or its contents are capable of concealing something that might:

endanger the safety of the detainees, staff or other persons on the premises; or

disrupt the order or security arrangements on the premises.

A person who leaves a thing (including any of its contents) in a place specified by an approved officer is entitled to its return when the person leaves the premises.

However, if possession of the thing, or any of those contents, by the person is unlawful under a Commonwealth, State or Territory law applying to the premises:

the thing or the contents must not be returned to the person; and

an approved officer must, as soon as practicable, give the thing or the contents to a constable (within the meaning of the Crimes Act 1914).

A person who is about to enter premises where a detainee is detained may be refused entry if the person does not comply with a request under this clause.

This clause corresponds closely to section 252G of the Migration Act 1958.