The Effects of Criminal Convictions and Findings of Guilt

Contributed by RennieAnderson, as amended by EmmaHenke and Legal Aid NT and current to February 2026

A person found guilty, convicted of an offence or sentenced for an offence may well find the hardship continues well beyond the duration of their sentence.

Some consequences are imposed by society, such as loss of friends and social esteem.

Other consequences are legal and are outlined in the below paragraphs. As you will see, in some circumstances the consequences apply if a person was convicted of an offence, in other circumstances consequences apply if a person was found guilty of an offence and so on.

Having a 'record'

NT Police have a criminal records section that holds records on all arrests, all court appearances (including Youth Justice Court appearances), outcomes and sentences imposed. Also recorded are:

• an offender's full name, aliases, residential address, personal description (hair and eye colour, height, identifying marks and build) and date of birth;
• the offences the offender was charged with and their outcome;
• the date of court appearances, including those when the person charged does not appear;
• the date any convictions were recorded and the sentences imposed.

This information remains on record permanently, unless it is disposed of in line with the applicable government records disposal schedule. These disposal schedules do however not give an invividual person a claim to get their records disposed of.

Special rules apply regarding the discharge of criminal records under the Spent Convictions Scheme (see Spent convictions below).

How can a previous conviction affect a person's rights?

A conviction can impact significantly on a person's life, as follows.

Deportation

Under s 201 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) a person who is not an Australian citizen, who has been in Australia for less than ten years (either continuously or in aggregate) and who is convicted of an offence and imprisoned for at least one year may be deported.

Voting

The Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (Cth) provides that a person who is serving a sentence of imprisonment on a fulltime basis for three years or more for an offence against a law of the Commonwealth or a State or Territory loses the right to vote in Federal elections while in prison [s 93(8AA)].

Section 21 of the Electoral Act 2004 (NT) read together with section 14 of the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act 1978 NT) imposes the same rule in relation to NT Legislative Assembly elections.

Jury service

Pursuant to s 10 of the Juries Act 1962 (NT) a person is disqualified from jury service if they have been sentenced to a term of imprisonment and their term of imprisonment has not been completed (including if they are in the community on a supervised order), or less than seven years has elapsed since they completed the sentence or if they have ever been sentenced to a term of imprisonment for an offence carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Licences

Various licenses require persons not to have been convicted of certain offences for certain time periods. Some licences may be revoked if the holder commits certain types of offences. For example, pursuant to the Private Security Act 1995 (NT), a security office or crowd controller cannot get a security licence if, in the previous ten years, they have been convicted of certain offences.

Professional registration

People in certain occupations or professions, such as doctors, dentists, lawyers, nurses and teachers, must be registered under their own special and separate Acts of Parliament. A registration board or, in the case of lawyers, the Supreme Court, may refuse to register or renew the registration of a person convicted of certain offences, because it suggests they are not of good character.

Public employment

Pursuant to ss 49(b) and 49C of the Public Sector Employment and Management Act 1983 (NT), a NT public servant who is found guilty of an offence that affects their employment may be subject disciplinary action, including termination.

Pursuant to ss 13 and 15 of the Public Service Act 1999 (NT), a Commonwealth public servant must comply with all applicable Australian laws and a failure to do so may result in sanctions, including termination.

Private employment

It may be lawful for an employer to take into account a person's conviction where the offence for which a person has been convicted is relevant to the duties of the job. However, if the employer bases employment decisions on the person's conviction for an offence that is not relevant to the job, they may be acting in a discriminatory manner (see Convictions and discrimination below).

Insurance

A person who has a criminal conviction for a serious offence or an offence of particular relevance to insurance, such as arson, may find property insurance difficult to obtain.

Convictions and discrimination

The Anti-Discrimination Act 1992 (NT) (‘ADA’) makes it illegal for a person to be discriminated against on the grounds of an irrelevant criminal record [ADA s 19(1)(q)].

A record is irrelevant if:

• the conviction is spent (see Spent convictions below);
• the record was expunged (meaning officially removed) pursuant to the Expungement of Historical Homosexual Offence Records Act 2018 (NT) or Part XI Division 18 of the Criminal Code Act 1983 (which are provisions relating to the age of criminal responsibility)
• no charges were laid, charges were dismissed, the prosecutor with withdrawn, the person with discharged (whether or not on conviction), the person was found not guilty, the person’s finding of guilt was quashed or set aside, or the person was granted a pardon.
• the circumstances relating to the offence for which the person was convicted are not directly relevant to the situation in which the discrimination arises [ADA s 4].

The only occasion on which a person may discriminate against another person on the grounds of an irrelevant criminal record in the area of work is if:

• the work involves the care of vulnerable persons such as children, old people and people with a physical or intellectual disability or mental illness, and
• the discrimination is reasonably necessary to protect the physical, psychological or emotional well-being of those vulnerable persons [ADA s 37].

There are no set rules about when a conviction must be disclosed. It is unlawful for a person to ask another person, whether verbally or in writing, to supply information on which unlawful discrimination may be based [ADA s 26]. For example, an employer may only ask questions about a person's previous convictions if there are offences relevant to the position. However, in practice, this is difficult to apply, as most employers seek information about a person's prior convictions by asking for permission to access their entire police records. Advice from the NT Anti-Discrimination Commission should be sought by a person who is concerned about this situation.

Spent convictions and spent records

The Spent Convictions Scheme is outlined in the Criminal Records (Spent Convictions) Act 1992 (NT) (‘CRSCA’).

In the NT, there is no need to apply for a conviction or record to be spent. The conviction or record is spent automatically once the conditions are fulfilled, and all the effects apply (see Effects of spent convictions or records). However, it is important to note that even spent convictions and records can sometimes show on a National Police Certificate, depending the purpose of the police check (see Criminal History Checks and National Police Certificates).

The following information applies to adults. For information in relation to spent convictions for youth, see Youth: Spent Convictions.

Definitions

Spent convictions

A conviction is spent if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

• the offence is not a sexual offence, offence by a body corporate or prescribed offence [CRSCA s 5];
• it is ten years since the date of conviction [CRSCA s 6(2)(b)];
• the sentence imposed (not the sentence served) was a fine, bond, community service order or a prison term of not more than six months [CRSCA s 6 (1)];
• the person has not again been convicted for certain offences or served time in prison during the ten years waiting period [CRSCA ss 2(c) and 2(d)]; and
• an exclusion does not apply (see Exclusions below) [CRSCA ss 15, 15A].

A spent conviction can be ‘revived’ in case there is another conviction for certain offences after the ten year period. In this case, the waiting period starts again [CRSCA s 10].

Please note, the CRSCA does not define ‘prescribed offence’.

Special Case: Where a court does not record or proceed to conviction

Where a person has been convicted of an offence but a court, without recording the conviction, discharges the person absolutely, the criminal record of the conviction is spent immediately the person is discharged. [s 7(1) CRSCA] ('conviction not recorded'). Also, a criminal record of a finding that an offence is proved, but without the court proceeding to conviction, is usually an immediately spent conviction, unless conditions apply [s 7(2) CRSCA] ('not proceed to conviction').

Where an adult is placed on a no-conviction bond, the criminal record for the offence is a spent conviction when the period specified in the bond expires provided the offender has complied with the conditions of the bond [s 7(4) CRSCA].

Spent records

A ‘spent record’ includes spent convictions. It also includes a criminal record in respect of:

• a quashed conviction;
• an offence for which the person has been given an unconditional pardon;
• a charge not proceeded with; or
• a charge that has been withdrawn [CRSCA s 3].

Effects of spent convictions or records

If a person has a spent record:

• they are not required to disclose it to another person [CRSCA s 11(a)];
• a questioning of a person’s criminal history shall be taken to refer only to records that are not spent records [CRSCA s 11(b)];
• in applications and legislation, a reference to conviction, criminal history or criminal record will be taken to refer only to records that are not spent records [CRSCA s 11(c)(i)];
• it is not permitted to take the spent record into account when considering the person’s character or fitness [CRSCA s 11(c)(ii)].

It is an offence for a person who accesses records on behalf of a public authority to disclose information relation to a spent record or conviction without the person’s consent. The offence is punishable by a maximum penalty of 40 penalty units or 6 months imprisonment [CRSCA s 12]

Further, it is an offence for a person who takes a spent record or conviction into account for an unauthorised purpose. The offence is punishable by 40 penalty units [CRSCA s 13].

Exclusions

However, there are circumstances where the effects of spent conviction or records do not apply. These are known as ‘exclusions’.

Exclusions for spent records

In relation, to spent records the effects of spent conviction or records do not apply to:

• an application for appointment or employment to do work principally involving the care, instruction or supervision of vulnerable persons [CRSCA s 15A(1)];
• an application for a screening check to obtain a clearance to provide services under the NDIS [CRSCA s 15A(1AA)];
• an application to become a correctional services officer, a public sector employee administering the Correctional Services Act 2014 (NT), an official visitor or a volunteer [CRSCA s 15A(1A)];
• an application for appointment or employment in certain roles at ICAC or ‘suitability checks’ at ICAC [s 126 Independent Commissioner Against Corruption Act 2017; CRSCA s 15A(1B)];

Exclusions for spent convictions

Additionally, in relation to spent convictions specifically, the effects of spent conviction or records do not apply to:

• an application for appointment or employment as a judge, justice of the peace or police officer [CRSCA s 15(a)];
• in relation to arson or attempted arson offences for a person seeking appointment for a fire fighting or fire prevention role [CRSCA s 15(c)];
• in relation to a violent offence for a person seeking a licence, permit or registration under the Firearms Act 1997 (NT) [CRSCA s 15(d)];
• when considering the person’s suitability to be a juror [CRSCA s 15(e)]; and
• courts, when making decisions, such as sentencing [CRSCA s 15(f)].

Complaints

If these rights are breached, complaints can be made to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). The Commissioner will investigate the complaint and may award a wide range of remedies to a complainant where a breach is shown, including financial compensation and reinstatement to a position.

Criminal History Checks and National Police Certificates

Sometimes a criminal conviction or record may appear on a National Police Certificate even if it is considered spent under Northern Territory law and none of the Exclusions apply.

A spent conviction is not deleted from police systems. Police still have full access to these records. In some situations, other laws — especially Commonwealth laws — may require a spent conviction to be shown on a certificate. This can happen, for example, for immigration purposes, including applications for Australian visas or visas for other countries.

Why different certificates may show different information

Not every National Police Certificate for the same person will look the same, even if the application is lodged at the same time. Some may include spent convictions or records, and others may not. What appears depends on the precise purpose of the check and the legislation that applies (federal and state/territory). For example, not every police certificate issued for employment purposes will show identical results, it depends on the type of job and the organisation.

There is a complex mix of laws that must be applied.

How the Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check process works

When a nationally coordinated criminal history check is done, several organisations are usually involved (details about the process can be found on the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) website). In summary, it works as follows:

• The organisation that receives the application - a police agency or another approved organisation or authority (‘accredited body’) - sends the person’s personal details to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC).
• ACIC checks its national database for any possible matches of the personal details received.
• If there is a potential match, ACIC sends the request to the relevant police agencies in the jurisdictions involved.
• The police agencies confirm whether the match is correct and decide what records, if any, must be released on the certificate. This decision depends on the purpose of the check and the legislation that applies.

Why the process can take longer than expected

Police checks are partly manual, and several agencies may need to be involved. Because of this, the time needed to complete a check can vary.

No organisation can obtain results faster than another, and submitting multiple applications will not speed things up.

A check may take longer for reasons such as:

• the person has a common name or a name that matches many others
• older police records need to be manually located or reviewed
• some information is incomplete and needs clarification before release
• information must be shared between different state and territory police agencies
• high workloads within police agencies — more than five million checks are processed each year, and thousands are referred to police daily, which can cause delays during busy periods.

If you think something on the certificate is wrong

If you would like an explanation

If a person does not understand why a conviction or record is included in the certificate and would like an explanation (without disputing the certificate), they can directly contact the police agency of the jurisdiction where the respective conviction or record occurred. That agency is responsible for applying the relevant legislation and can explain the outcome.

For NT convictions and records, this assessment is done by SAFE NT, which is part of the NT Police Force (see Contact Points).

If you would like to formally dispute the certificate

A formal dispute of the certificate should be lodged with the organisation where the original application was submitted (police agency or accredited body). That organisation can provide guidance on the most appropriate way to begin the dispute process. For example, if a person lodged the original application with the Australian Federal Police, there is a website which can be used for disputes: https://forms.afp.gov.au/online_forms/disputed-record-form.

This dispute will then be directed to the relevant jurisdiction for review. There is a brief outline of the dispute process on the ACIC website: Appeals and disputes | Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.

You can also contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) to check whether they can assist with the dispute.

Other protections still apply

If a spent conviction or record appears on a National Police Certificate, this does not remove other legal protections.

A person may still be protected from discrimination based on an irrelevant criminal record, including during employment or job applications (see Convictions and discrimination). Legal advice should be sought where needed.

Child Protection Offender Register

The Child Protection (Offender Reporting and Registration) Act 2004 (NT) (‘CPORR’) will apply if a person is found guilty of one of a range of offences against a child. The offences include (but are not limited to): possession of child pornography; sexual intercourse with a child; murder or manslaughter of a child; and acts of gross indecency against a child.

The Act provides that such 'reportable offenders', if not in custody, must provide information to the Commissioner of Police including their name, date of birth, address, the names of any children who reside in their household or with whom they have unsupervised contact, place of employment, affiliation with any club or organisation that has child members or participants, vehicles, distinguishing marks including tattoos, information regarding relevant criminal history and details of travel plans [CPORR s 16].

The reportable offender must report annually [CPORR s 18] and notify the Commissioner of Police if their personal details change [CPORR s 19]. The reporting period will depend on the nature of the offender's crime. Reporting obligations will generally be imposed for between eight and 15 years [CPORR s 37].

A youth may be a reportable offender. A reduced reporting period applies for child reportable offenders [CPORR s 38].

The information obtained by the Commissioner of Police from the reportable offender is collated and maintained in the child protection offender register [CPORR s 64]. The access to the register is restricted [CPORR s 65].

The Commissioner may apply to a court for a child protection prohibition order which will prohibit the person from engaging in certain conduct [CPORR s 72] including associating with certain people, attending specific locations, or engaging in certain employment [CPORR s 73].

The fact that an offence in respect of which a reportable offender has been found guilty becomes spent does not affect the status of the offence as a reportable offence [CPORR s 97].