Background
The regulations made under the
Nature Conservation Act 2002 provide for the protection and management of wildlife in Tasmania. Before 30 November 2021, these regulations (the 'Wildlife Regulations') comprised three complementary regulatory instruments:
-
Wildlife (General) Regulations 2010
-
Wildlife (Exhibited Animals) Regulations 2010
-
Wildlife (Deer Farming) Regulations 2010
Activities covered by the Wildlife Regulations include possession and trading of wildlife and products of wildlife, hunting, wildlife exhibition and display, and deer farming.
It is a legal requirement that these regulations are reviewed and remade every 10 years. This requirement presented an opportunity for the Department to review the Wildlife Regulations, to improve their functioning and accommodate any emerging or future regulatory needs. The review process included consultation with industry experts, advocacy groups and the general public.
Due to disruption caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic, the review and remaking of the Wildlife Regulations was unlikely to be completed prior to the original expiration date of the regulations (30 November 2020). In response, the expiry date was extended by 12 months under Section 25 of the COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020. The extension allowed for appropriate levels of stakeholder consultation to be considered in the review process.
Remaking of the regulations
The Department has now completed the review of the
Wildlife (General) Regulations 2010 and
Wildlife (Exhibited Animals) Regulations 2010.
The review led to the consolidation of the two regulations under a single regulatory instrument, the
Nature Conservation (Wildlife) Regulations 2021. The new regulations came into effect on 30 November 2021. The regulations can be viewed at the
Tasmanian Government website.
The review process for the
Wildlife (Deer Farming) Regulations 2010 is ongoing due to the need for further stakeholder consultation. These regulations were rolled over as the
Wildlife (Deer Farming) Regulations 2021 on 1 December 2021. No other changes will be made to these regulations until the review is completed, which will occur by the expiry date of these regulations on 1 July 2022.
Permit and licence name changes
This table outlines the permit and licence name changes that have occurred with the creation of the Nature Conservation (Wildlife) Regulations 2021.
Fauna dealers licence (skins) | Commercial wildlife traders licence (R.31) |
Permit to receive skins
| Commercial wildlife traders licence (R.31)
|
Commercial wallaby hunters licence
| Commercial purposes licence (R.29) |
Commercial brushtail possum permit | Commercial purposes licence (R.29)
|
Commercial forester kangaroo permit | Commercial purposes licence (R.29)
|
Commercial muttonbird catchers licence | Authorised under the Nature Conservation Act 2002 |
Recreational game licence (wallaby)
| Hunting licence (R.32) |
Recreational game licence (muttonbird) | Hunting licence (R.32)
|
Recreational game licence (deer) | Hunting licence (R.32)
|
Recreational game licence (duck) | Hunting licence (R.32)
|
Recreational game licence (pheasant) | Hunting licence (R.32)
|
Recreational game licence (brown quail) | Hunting licence (R.32)
|
Commercial taxidermy licence | No change |
Permit for export | Wildlife export permit (R.41) |
Permit for taking specially protected, protected or partly protected wildlife in special cases | Special purposes wildlife permit (R.38) |
Permit to take wildlife for scientific or educational purposes | Scientific or educational wildlife permit (R.36) |
Crop protection permit | Property protection permit (R.34) |
Seal deterrent permit | No change |
Wildlife exhibition licence | No change |
Travelling wildlife exhibition permit | No change
|
Wildlife display permit
| No change |
Not included | Restricted (special purpose) wildlife permit (R.35) (NEW) |
Not included | Wildlife rehabilitation permit (R.42) (NEW) |
Further information
Further information can be found on the pages:
For further information on the
Nature Conservation (Wildlife) Regulations 2021, please contact Wildlife Management.
For further information on the
Nature Conservation (Deer Farming) Regulations 2021 and the ongoing review process, please contact Game Services Tasmania.