Whole Act
347 provisions in continuous reading order
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This Act may be cited as the Navigation Act 2012.
Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.
Commencement information | ||
|---|---|---|
Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 |
Provision(s) | Commencement | Date/Details |
1. Sections 1 and 2 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table | The day this Act receives the Royal Assent. | 13 September 2012 |
2. Sections 3 to 343 | A single day to be fixed by Proclamation. However, if the provision(s) do not commence within the period of 12 months beginning on the day this Act receives the Royal Assent, they commence on the day after the end of that period. | 1 July 2013 (see F2013L00596) |
This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.
Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.
The objects of this Act are:
to promote the safety of life at sea; and
to promote safe navigation; and
to prevent pollution of the marine environment; and
to ensure that AMSA has the necessary power to carry out inspections of vessels and enforce national and international standards.
Overview of this Act
This Act is about maritime safety, seafarers and the prevention of pollution of the marine environment. It provides for matters relating to the following:
seafarers (Chapter 2);
the safety of regulated Australian vessels and foreign vessels (Chapter 3);
prevention of pollution (Chapter 4);
tonnage (Chapter 5);
the safety of navigation (Chapter 6);
wrecks and salvage (Chapter 7);
complying with, and enforcing, this Act (Chapter 8);
other general matters that relate to the above (Chapter 9).
Overview of the rest of this Chapter
The rest of this Chapter deals with:
the application of this Act, including how it interacts with certain State and Territory laws and its geographical application (Part 3); and
definitions that are used in this Act (Part 4); and
provisions that enable a vessel that would not otherwise be a regulated Australian vessel to opt in to coverage (Part 5).
This Act extends to every external Territory.
This Act applies both within and outside Australia.
This Act binds the Crown in each of its capacities.
Nothing in this Act makes the Crown liable to a pecuniary penalty or to be prosecuted for an offence.
Section 15.3 of the Criminal Code (extended geographical jurisdiction—category C) applies to all offences against this Act.
Despite sections 6 and 8, the master or owner of a foreign vessel, or a recreational vessel that does not have Australian nationality, does not:
commit an offence against this Act that relates to the vessel; or
contravene a civil penalty provision of this Act that relates to the vessel;
unless, at the time when the conduct constituting the alleged offence or contravention occurs, the vessel is:
in an Australian port; or
entering or leaving an Australian port; or
in the internal waters of Australia; or
in the territorial sea of Australia, other than in the course of innocent passage.
Certain provisions of this Act provide that this section does not apply to specified offences and civil penalty provisions.
This Act does not apply to, or in relation to:
a warship or other vessel that:
is operated for naval or military purposes by Australia or a foreign country; and
is under the command of a member of the Australian Defence Force or of a member of the armed forces of the foreign country; and
bears external marks of nationality; and
is manned by seafarers under armed forces discipline (however described); or
a Government vessel that is used only on government non‑commercial service as a naval auxiliary; or
a vessel used by a foreign country for customs or law enforcement purposes.
An Australian Border Force vessel that would, apart from this section, not comply with a provision of Chapter 2, 3 or 6, or a person who would, apart from this section, not comply with a provision of those Chapters in relation to an Australian Border Force vessel, is taken to comply with that provision if:
there is a document (the Australian Border Force vessel management plan) that:
has been prepared, reviewed and accepted in accordance with the regulations; and
relates to the Australian Border Force vessel or person; and
specifies requirements to be met by the Australian Border Force vessel or the person in relation to that provision; and
the Australian Border Force vessel or the person complies with the requirements of the Australian Border Force vessel management plan in relation to that provision.
A provision of this Act that gives effect to a provision of:
the Safety Convention; or
the Prevention of Pollution Convention; or
the Prevention of Collisions Convention (in relation to an area other than the high seas); or
the Maritime Labour Convention;
does not apply in relation to a domestic commercial vessel, or a recreational vessel that has Australian nationality, when the vessel is in an area if:
a provision of the Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law gives effect to that provision of the Convention in relation to that vessel when it is in that area; or
if paragraph (d) does not apply—a provision of a law of a State or the Northern Territory gives effect to that provision of the Convention in relation to that vessel when it is in that area.