Disability Discrimination Act 1992
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Short title
This Act may be cited as the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
Section 2 — Commencement
(1) Sections 1 and 2 commence on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent. (2) Subject to subsection (3), the remaining provisions of this Act commence on a day or days to be fixed by…
Section 3 — Objects
The objects of this Act are: (a) to eliminate, as far as possible, discrimination against persons on the ground of disability in the areas of: (i) work, accommodation, education, access to premises,…
Section 4 — Interpretation
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: accommodation includes residential or business accommodation. administrative office means: (a) an office established by, or an appointment made…
Section 5 — Direct disability discrimination
(1) For the purposes of this Act, a person (the discriminator) discriminates against another person (the aggrieved person) on the ground of a disability of the aggrieved person if, because of the…
Section 6 — Indirect disability discrimination
(1) For the purposes of this Act, a person (the discriminator) discriminates against another person (the aggrieved person) on the ground of a disability of the aggrieved person if: (a) the…
Section 7 — Discrimination in relation to associates
(1) This Act applies in relation to a person who has an associate with a disability in the same way as it applies in relation to a person with the disability. Example: It is unlawful, under section…
Section 8 — Discrimination in relation to carers, assistants, assistance animals and disability aids
(1) This Act applies in relation to having a carer, assistant, assistance animal or disability aid in the same way as it applies in relation to having a disability. Example: For the purposes of…
Section 9 — Carer, assistant, assistance animal and disability aid definitions
Meanings of carer or assistant, assistance animal and disability aid (1) For the purposes of this Act, a carer or assistant, in relation to a person with a disability, is one of the following who…
Section 10 — Act done because of disability and for other reason
If: (a) an act is done for 2 or more reasons; and (b) one of the reasons is the disability of a person (whether or not it is the dominant or a substantial reason for doing the act); then, for the…
Section 11 — Unjustifiable hardship
(1) For the purposes of this Act, in determining whether a hardship that would be imposed on a person (the first person) would be an unjustifiable hardship, all relevant circumstances of the…
Section 12 — Application of Act
(1) In this section: Australia includes the external Territories. limited application provisions means the provisions of Divisions 1, 2, 2A and 3 of Part 2 other than sections 20, 29 and 30. (2)…
Section 12A — Application of the Criminal Code
Chapter 2 of the Criminal Code (except Part 2.5) applies to all offences against this Act. Note: Chapter 2 of the Criminal Code sets out the general principles of criminal responsibility.
Section 13 — Operation of State and Territory laws
(1) A reference in this section to this Act is a reference to this Act as it has effect because of a provision of section 12. (2) A reference in this section to a law of a State or Territory is a…
Section 14 — Extent to which Act binds the Crown
(1) This Act binds the Crown in right of the Commonwealth and of each of the States. (2) This Act does not render the Crown in right of the Commonwealth or of a State liable to be prosecuted for an…
Section 15 — Discrimination in employment
(1) It is unlawful for an employer or a person acting or purporting to act on behalf of an employer to discriminate against a person on the ground of the other person’s disability: (a) in the…
Section 16 — Discrimination against commission agents
(1) It is unlawful for a principal to discriminate against a person on the ground of the person’s disability: (a) in the arrangements the principal makes for the purpose of determining who should be…
Section 17 — Discrimination against contract workers
It is unlawful for a principal to discriminate against a contract worker on the ground of the contract worker’s disability: (a) in the terms or conditions on which the principal allows the contract…
Section 18 — Partnerships
(1) It is unlawful for 3 or more persons who are proposing to form themselves into a partnership to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s disability: (a) in…
Section 19 — Qualifying bodies
It is unlawful for an authority or body that is empowered to confer, renew, extend, revoke or withdraw an authorisation or qualification that is needed for or facilitates the practice of a…
Section 20 — Registered organisations under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009
(1) It is unlawful for a registered organisation, the committee of management of a registered organisation or a member of the committee of management of a registered organisation to discriminate…
Section 21 — Employment agencies
(1) It is unlawful for an employment agency to discriminate against a person on the ground of the person’s disability: (a) by refusing to provide the person with any of its services; or (b) in the…
Section 21A — Exception—inherent requirements
Inherent requirements (1) This Division does not render it unlawful for a person (the discriminator) to discriminate against another person (the aggrieved person) on the ground of a disability of the…
Section 21B — Exception—unjustifiable hardship
This Division does not render it unlawful for a person (the discriminator) to discriminate against another person on the ground of a disability of the other person if avoiding the discrimination…
Section 22 — Education
(1) It is unlawful for an educational authority to discriminate against a person on the ground of the person’s disability: (a) by refusing or failing to accept the person’s application for admission…
Section 23 — Access to premises
It is unlawful for a person to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s disability: (a) by refusing to allow the other person access to, or the use of, any premises…
Section 24 — Goods, services and facilities
It is unlawful for a person who, whether for payment or not, provides goods or services, or makes facilities available, to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s…
Section 25 — Accommodation
(1) It is unlawful for a person, whether as principal or agent, to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s disability: (a) by refusing the other person’s application…
Section 26 — Land
(1) It is unlawful for a person, whether as principal or agent, to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s disability: (a) by refusing or failing to dispose of an…
Section 27 — Clubs and incorporated associations
(1) It is unlawful for a club or incorporated association, the committee of management of a club or a member of the committee of management of a club or incorporated association to discriminate…
Section 28 — Sport
(1) It is unlawful for a person to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s disability by excluding that other person from a sporting activity. (2) In subsection (1), a…
Section 29 — Administration of Commonwealth laws and programs
It is unlawful for a person who performs any function or exercises any power under a Commonwealth law or for the purposes of a Commonwealth program or has any other responsibility for the…
Section 29A — Unjustifiable hardship
This Division (other than section 30) does not render it unlawful for a person (the discriminator) to discriminate against another person on the ground of a disability of the other person if avoiding…
Section 30 — Requests for information
(1) This section applies in relation to a person (the first person) if, under Division 1 or this Division, it would be unlawful for the first person, in doing a particular act, to discriminate…
Section 31 — Disability standards
(1) The Minister may, by legislative instrument, formulate standards, to be known as disability standards, in relation to any area in which it is unlawful under this Part for a person to discriminate…
Section 32 — Unlawful to contravene disability standards
It is unlawful for a person to contravene a disability standard.
Section 33 — Division 5 generally not to apply to disability standards
Division 5 (other than subsections 55(1A) to (1D) and any reference in that Division to those provisions) does not apply in relation to a disability standard.
Section 34 — This Part not to apply if person acts in accordance with disability standards
If a person acts in accordance with a disability standard this Part (other than this Division) does not apply to the person’s act.
Section 35 — Harassment in employment
(1) It is unlawful for a person to harass another person who: (a) is an employee of that person; and (b) has a disability; in relation to the disability. (2) It is unlawful for a person to harass…
Section 37 — Harassment in education
It is unlawful for a person who is a member of the staff of an educational institution to harass another person who: (a) is a student at that educational institution or is seeking admission to that…
Section 39 — Harassment in relation to the provision of goods and services
It is unlawful for a person who, whether for payment or not, provides goods or services, or makes facilities available, to harass another person who: (a) wants to acquire the goods or services or to…
Section 41 — Unlawful act not offence unless expressly so provided
Except as expressly provided by this Division, nothing in this Act makes it an offence to do an act that is unlawful because of a provision of this Part.
Section 42 — Victimisation
(1) It is an offence for a person to commit an act of victimisation against another person. Penalty: Imprisonment for 6 months. (2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a person is taken to commit an…
Section 43 — Offence to incite doing of unlawful acts or offences
It is an offence for a person: (a) to incite the doing of an act that is unlawful under a provision of Division 1, 2, 2A or 3; or (c) to assist or promote whether by financial assistance or otherwise…
Section 44 — Advertisements
(1) It is an offence for a person to publish or display, or cause or permit to be published or displayed, an advertisement or notice that indicates, or could reasonably be understood as indicating,…
Section 45 — Special measures
(1) This Part does not render it unlawful to do an act that is reasonably intended to: (a) ensure that persons who have a disability have equal opportunities with other persons in circumstances in…
Section 46 — Superannuation and insurance
(1) This Part does not render it unlawful for a person to discriminate against another person, on the ground of the other person’s disability, by refusing to offer the other person: (a) an annuity;…
Section 47 — Acts done under statutory authority
(1) This Part does not render unlawful anything done by a person in direct compliance with: (b) an order of a court; or (c) an instrument (an industrial instrument) that is: (i) a fair work…
Section 48 — Infectious diseases
This Part does not render it unlawful for a person to discriminate against another person on the ground of the other person’s disability if: (a) the person’s disability is an infectious disease; and…
Section 49 — Charities
This Part does not: (a) affect a provision (whether made before or after the commencement of this Part) of the governing rules (within the meaning of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits…