Text as at 26 April 2026
This provision has not been checked by a human. The text below was read automatically from the official PDF and has not yet been verified against it, so it may differ from the provision as published — in its wording, its numbering, or where one provision ends and the next begins. For the authorised text, see legislation.vic.gov.au.

49N Loitering near schools etc. by sexual offender

(1)A person (A) commits an offence if—
(a)A has been found guilty of a relevant offence; and
(b)A loiters at or near a place; and
(c)the place is—
(i)a school, a children's service centre or an education and care service premises; or
(ii)a public place within the meaning of the Summary Offences Act 1966 regularly frequented by children and in which children are present at the time of the loitering; and
(d)A knows that the place is—
(i)a school, a children's service centre or an education and care service premises; or
(ii)a public place within the meaning of the Summary Offences Act 1966 regularly frequented by children and in which children are present at the time of the loitering.
(2)A person who commits an offence against subsection (1) is liable to level 6 imprisonment (5 years maximum).
(3)In this section— children's services centre means a place at which a children's service within the meaning of the Children's Services Act 1996 operates; education and care service premises means a place at which an education and care service (other than a family day care service) within the meaning of the Education and Care Services National Law (Victoria) educates or cares for children; relevant offence means—
S. 49N(3) def. of relevant offence amended by No. 7/2022 s. 40(a).S. 49N(3) def. of sexual offence amended by No. 7/2022 s. 40(b).
(a)a sexual offence; or
(b)murder where there are reasonable grounds to believe that a sexual offence was also committed on the victim; or
(c)an offence against—
(i)section 5, 6, 7 or 11 of the Sex Work Act 1994 despite its repeal by the Sex Work Decriminalisation Act 2022; or
(iii)section 59(1)(a) or (b) or 60 inserted in this Act on 1 March 1981 by section 5 of the Crimes (Sexual Offences) Act 1980 and repealed on 5 August 1991 by section 3 of the Crimes (Sexual Offences) Act 1991; or
(iv)section 19 of the Summary Offences Act 1966; or
(v)any of the following provisions as in force at any time before its repeal—
(B)section 57A of the Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) (Enforcement) Act 1995;
(C)section 168A, 168B or 168C of the Police Offences Act 1958; or
(vi)a provision referred to in paragraphs (dam), (dama) or (dan) of clause 1 of Schedule 1 to the Sentencing Act 1991 or of attempting to commit an offence against a provision referred to in paragraph (dama); or
(vii)section 51B(1), 51C(1), 51D(1), 51G(1) or 51H(1) or of attempting to commit an offence against section 51C(1); sexual offence means—
(a)an offence against section 38(1), 39(1), 40(1), 41(1), 47(1), 48(1), 49A(1), 49B(1), 49C(1), 49D(1), 49E(1), 49F(1), 49G(1), 49H(1), 49I(1), 49J(1), 49O(1), 50C(1), 50D(1), 50F(1), 53H(1), 53I(1), 53J(1) or 53K(1); or
(b)an offence against a provision referred to in clause 7A, 7B, 8, 9, 10, 11A 11B, 11D(b), 11D(c), 11D(d), 11D(g), 11D(h), 11E, 11F or 12 of Schedule 8; or
(c)an offence against section 44(1),
(2)or (4) (incest) as inserted in the Crimes Act 1958 on 5 August 1991 by section 3 of the Crimes (Sexual Offences) Act 1991 and repealed by section 16 of the Crimes Amendment (Sexual Offences) Act 2016; or
(d)an offence of conspiracy to commit, incitement to commit or attempting to commit an offence referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c).
(4)If A has at any time been found guilty of an offence against a law of another State or a Territory of the Commonwealth which creates an offence substantially similar to a sexual offence, that finding of guilt must be taken for the purposes of this section to be a finding of guilt of a sexual offence.
An exception applies to this offence—see section 49ZB.