News · Commentary
Exit trafficking in Australia.
On 5 August 2026 the Australian Federal Police announced that a Sydney man had been charged with exit trafficking, said to have arranged for his wife to leave Australia against her will. The charge is one count of facilitating the exit of another person from Australia by threat, deception or coercion under section 271.2(1A) of the Criminal Code (Cth). This note sets out what trafficking in persons means in Australian law, how exit trafficking works, the penalties, and how the offence differs from people smuggling.
By Aaron Kernaghan · Published 8 August 2026
Most people picture trafficking as bringing a person into a country. Exit trafficking runs the other way. The offence is about getting a person out of Australia. The Australian Federal Police say reports of this conduct are rising. The Australian Institute of Criminology recorded a jump in exit-trafficking reports from 35 to 75 in a single year, and human-trafficking reports overall have nearly doubled over five years. The charge laid this week is the latest of several in 2026.
A word of caution before the law. The matter announced on 5 August is an allegation. The man charged is presumed innocent. The charge has not been tested. Nothing in this note is a comment on that case or on any person. It is a plain-English account of the legal framework, written so that a person facing a charge of this kind, or a person worried they may be, can understand what the prosecution has to prove.
What is exit trafficking?
Exit trafficking is organising or facilitating the departure of a person from Australia by coercion, threat or deception. It is one form of the trafficking-in-persons offence in Division 271 of the Criminal Code (Cth). The specific provision is section 271.2(1A). The offence was added so that the law caught the person who arranges an unwilling exit, not only the person who arranges an unwanted entry.
It helps to break the offence into three parts. There is an act: organising or facilitating the person's exit. There is a means: coercion, threat or deception. And there is a result the law is aimed at: the person leaves, or agrees to leave, because of that coercion, threat or deception. In many exit-trafficking cases the purpose behind the conduct is control. Reported cases have involved isolating a person from support, forcing or arranging a marriage overseas, or asserting control over shared children. The purpose is not itself an element of the basic offence, but it explains why the conduct is treated as trafficking rather than a family dispute.
The means matter. "Coercion" is defined in section 270.1A of the Criminal Code (Cth) and is wide. It includes force, duress, detention, psychological oppression, abuse of power, and taking advantage of a person's vulnerability. "Deception" covers a misleading account of where the person is going or why, or of what will happen when they arrive. A person can be deceived into boarding a flight they think is a holiday. That is enough to engage the offence if the other elements are made out.
What is the penalty for trafficking in persons in Australia?
The basic trafficking-in-persons offence under section 271.2, which includes exit trafficking, carries a maximum of 12 years' imprisonment. That is the figure the AFP quoted when the charge was announced.
The maximum rises to 20 years for aggravated trafficking under section 271.3. The aggravating features include intending that the victim will be exploited, subjecting the victim to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and engaging in conduct that gives rise to a danger of death or serious harm. Where the victim is a child under 18, the offending is dealt with under the child-trafficking provisions in section 271.4, which carry higher maximums again.
A Commonwealth offence is sentenced under section 16A of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth). There is no standard non-parole period; the standard non-parole period scheme in the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW) does not apply to federal offences. The court fixes a head sentence and a recognizance release order or non-parole period by reference to the factors in section 16A and the comparable cases. Unlike people smuggling, trafficking has no mandatory minimum sentence.
What is the difference between human trafficking and people smuggling?
The two are often confused. They are different crimes with different elements and different homes in the statute book.
People smuggling is arranging the unlawful movement of a person across a border, usually for a fee and with that person's agreement. The person being smuggled is a willing customer. Those offences live in the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), in provisions such as section 233C. We have written about the people-smuggling offences and their mandatory minimum sentences in a separate note.
Trafficking is different. The defining feature is coercion, threat or deception, and the aim is exploitation of the person, not the person's own wish to travel. Those offences live in Division 271 of the Criminal Code (Cth). The person moved is a victim, not a customer. The lines can blur where a person is smuggled and then exploited, but the legal test is clear enough: look for the coercion, threat or deception and for the exploitation.
Where does forced marriage and modern slavery fit in?
Exit trafficking often sits next to the slavery and slavery-like offences in Division 270 of the Criminal Code (Cth). Those offences include slavery under section 270.3, servitude, forced labour, deceptive recruiting, and forced marriage under section 270.7B. Forced marriage is a marriage entered into without the free and full consent of one party because of coercion, threat or deception. It carries a maximum of seven years, or nine years for an aggravated offence.
The reason the two groups of offences appear together is practical. A person taken overseas against their will is sometimes taken for a marriage they have not agreed to. So a single set of facts can raise an exit-trafficking charge under Division 271 and a forced-marriage charge under Division 270. The Australian Institute of Criminology reports that exit trafficking and forced marriage are now the most common modern-slavery offences reported in Australia.
Is consent a defence to a trafficking charge?
This is the point defendants most often misunderstand. The fact that the person agreed to get on the plane does not, by itself, answer the charge. If the prosecution proves that the agreement was produced by coercion, threat or deception, the apparent consent is worth little. A person deceived about the true purpose of a trip has not given real consent to that purpose.
The High Court made the underlying point for slavery offences in The Queen v Tang (2008) 237 CLR 1. The Court held that the victim's apparent agreement did not remove criminal responsibility where the offender exercised powers of ownership over her. The same logic runs through the trafficking offences. Consent is relevant to the facts, because a genuine and informed choice may mean there was no coercion or deception at all. But it is not a switch that turns the offence off once coercion or deception is proved.
Can you be charged in Australia for something that happened overseas?
Yes. Division 271 has extended geographical reach. Conduct that takes place partly in Australia, or conduct by an Australian citizen or resident overseas, can be prosecuted here. That reach is important in an exit-trafficking case, because the person is by definition taken out of the country. The arranging, the booking, the visa steps and the pressure usually happen while everyone is still in Australia, even though the harm plays out abroad. The offence is complete once the elements are made out; the victim does not need to be brought back for a prosecution to run.
What the prosecution has to prove.
A trafficking brief is a documentary case. In an exit-trafficking matter the Crown will usually rely on travel bookings, one-way and return ticketing, visa and immigration records, passport activity, phone and message data, and financial records. The prosecution has to prove the act of organising or facilitating the exit, and the means of coercion, threat or deception, beyond reasonable doubt.
The defence work is in the detail. Was there in fact a threat, or a genuine shared plan that later broke down? Was there deception about the purpose of the travel, or a change of mind after the trip? Was the accused the person who arranged the exit, or a bystander to a family arrangement made by others? These are questions of fact, and they are won or lost on the same records the prosecution relies on. Early advice on the brief matters, because the account a person gives in a first interview can be very hard to unwind later. Our note on the police interview and your right to silence explains why.
What should you do if the AFP contacts you?
Get legal advice before you say anything. A trafficking allegation is serious, the maximum penalty is measured in double figures, and the case will be built on records that are already in the AFP's hands. You are not required to take part in a record of interview. Ask for a lawyer and stay silent until you have one. If you have been charged, the location of the matter and the next court date will be on your bail papers or court attendance notice. The matter announced this week is listed at the Downing Centre Local Court on 28 August 2026.
If you are the person at risk rather than the person accused, help exists that does not depend on making a police report. The Support for Trafficked People Program, delivered by the Australian Red Cross, and the national forced-marriage service My Blue Sky both offer confidential support and advice.
Frequently asked.
What is exit trafficking?
Exit trafficking is organising or facilitating the departure of a person from Australia using coercion, threat or deception. It is charged under section 271.2(1A) of the Criminal Code (Cth). Unlike most trafficking, the offence is about getting the victim out of the country rather than into it. The maximum penalty is 12 years' imprisonment.
What is the penalty for trafficking in persons in Australia?
The basic trafficking offence under section 271.2 of the Criminal Code (Cth), including exit trafficking, carries a maximum of 12 years' imprisonment. Aggravated trafficking under section 271.3 carries a maximum of 20 years. There is no standard non-parole period; a Commonwealth sentence is fixed under section 16A of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth).
What is the difference between human trafficking and people smuggling?
People smuggling is arranging a person's unlawful movement across a border, usually for payment and with the person's agreement. Trafficking uses coercion, threat or deception and is aimed at exploiting the person. Smuggling offences sit in the Migration Act 1958 (Cth); trafficking offences sit in Division 271 of the Criminal Code (Cth).
Is consent a defence to a trafficking charge?
The fact that a person agreed to travel does not answer a trafficking charge where the prosecution proves coercion, threat or deception. The High Court in The Queen v Tang (2008) 237 CLR 1 confirmed that a victim's apparent agreement does not remove criminal responsibility for slavery and slavery-like offences.
Can you be charged in Australia for something that happened overseas?
Yes. Division 271 has extended geographical reach. Conduct partly in Australia, or by an Australian citizen or resident overseas, can be prosecuted here. In an exit-trafficking case the arranging usually happens in Australia even though the victim ends up abroad.
What should you do if the AFP contacts you about a trafficking allegation?
Do not take part in a record of interview before you have spoken to a lawyer. Trafficking briefs are built on phone downloads, travel records, visa applications and financial data. Get advice on your right to silence and on the brief before you answer questions. Call a criminal defence lawyer first.
To speak to a criminal defence lawyer, call Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019.
This article is written by Aaron Kernaghan, criminal defence lawyer at Good Legal Lawyers, as at 8 August 2026. It is commentary and reflects the personal opinion of the author only. It is not legal advice, it is not a substitute for advice on your own matter, and it does not purport to be accurate or complete. Any matter referred to may be before the court and any person charged is presumed innocent. For advice on a specific matter, contact Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019 or contact the firm.
More criminal-law commentary by Aaron Kernaghan.