Strip searches of anyone under 18 would be banned
Federal police can now strip search children aged 10 and over. Senator Lidia Thorpe wants a national ban. It would cover every child, in every state, even kids visiting someone in jail.
Official name: Crimes Amendment (Prohibiting the Strip Searching of Children) Bill 2026
- No one under 18 could be strip searched, fully or partly, by anyone with power over them in Australia.
- The ban covers children thought to have done a crime, under arrest or locked up. It also covers children visiting someone who is.
- Under federal law today, only children under 10 are fully protected.
- It would override any state or territory law that allows strip searching children.
- It is a private bill from Senator Lidia Thorpe and has not been debated yet.
Who it affects
- Children under 18 stopped or arrested by police: You could not be made to take off some or all of your clothes to be searched.
- Children in youth detention (jail for young people): Strip searches on you would be banned.
- Children visiting a parent in prison: You could not be strip searched as part of the visit.
- Police and prison officers: You would have to use other ways to search anyone under 18.
- State and territory governments: Any of your laws that allow strip searching children would stop working.
Children strip searched by police
A strip search is when officers make a person take off some or all of their clothes. They do it to check for hidden things. Police and prison staff in Australia can do this in some cases, even on children.
Senator Lidia Thorpe says strip searching children is harmful and shameful. She says it leaves lasting hurt and does not work. She says state and territory laws have not stopped it.
Her notes on the bill say Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are hit hardest. That is because far more of them end up in the justice system. The notes also say the ban is needed to keep Australia's promises in human rights treaties. A treaty is a written deal between countries. One is the world treaty on the rights of the child.
Federal strip search rules change
The Crimes Act 1914 is a main federal crime law. Section 3ZI sets the rules for strip searches by federal officers, such as the Australian Federal Police.
Right now, that section bans strip searching children under 10. Children aged 10 to 17 can be strip searched, under extra rules. The same extra rules apply to adults who cannot look after their own affairs.
The bill would raise the age from 10 to 18. It would take children aged 10 to 17 out of the extra rules, because they could no longer be searched at all. The extra rules would still cover adults who cannot look after their own affairs.
A national ban
The bill also adds a new section 90C to the Crimes Act. It says no one under 18 can be strip searched if they are thought to have done a crime or are under arrest. The ban also covers children held in prison, held in a hospital, or locked up in any other way.
It also covers any child visiting, or linked to, a person in one of those places. That would protect a child visiting their mum or dad in jail.
The ban covers part strip searches too, such as being told to lift a shirt or drop pants.
It applies no matter what any other federal, state or territory law says. A prison here includes a jail, a police lock-up or any other place where people are held.
Say a 15 year old is picked up by state police. Police think they are carrying drugs. Today, in some states, officers might strip search them at the station. Under this bill, they could not. They would need to search in other ways.
Overriding state laws
The states and territories run most police and prisons. The bill says any law that clashes with the ban would not work. State laws that fit with the ban would keep working.
The federal government relies on a power in the Constitution, the top law that sets up how Australia is run. It lets the federal government make laws to carry out world treaties. As a backup, the ban would also apply in the territories and on federal land.
The bill does not set a fine or jail term for breaking the rule. It only applies to searches after the law starts.
Waiting in the Senate
If passed, the law would start the day after the Governor-General, the King's representative, signs it.
Senator Thorpe brought the bill to the Senate, Parliament's second house, on 18 August 2026. The debate on its main idea was opened that day. She brought in a separate bill on chaining women during childbirth on the same day. Neither has been debated yet.
To become law, it would need to pass the Senate, then the House of Representatives, where the government is formed. Then the Governor-General would need to sign it.
How they voted
| Vote | Result |
|---|---|
| Vote to end debate Senate, 15 October 2026 Labor 20 no, Greens 7 aye, Liberal 4 no, Independent 2 aye, Australia's Voice 1 aye | Noes won 24 to 10 |
Its journey through Parliament
| 18 Aug 2026 | Senate: Introduced and read a first time |
| 18 Aug 2026 | Senate: Second reading moved |
| 15 Oct 2026 | Senate: Second reading debate |