What a Commercial Quantity Trafficking Charge Means
What is commercial quantity drug trafficking?
It is trafficking a drug of dependence in a quantity that reaches the commercial threshold. Trafficking covers selling, offering, preparing, or possessing a drug for sale, and where the amount reaches the commercial quantity set in Schedule 11, it is charged under section 71AA. Understanding what happens after a charge helps you see how serious this is.
The quantity is what lifts the charge to this level. A smaller amount is trafficking under a different section, so the exact quantity, and how it is measured, is central. Our guide on what a commercial quantity means explains the thresholds.
What is the penalty for commercial quantity trafficking?
Up to 25 years imprisonment. Section 71AA carries a maximum of 25 years, which places it among the most serious offences in Victorian law, below only large commercial quantity trafficking. The table below sets out where it sits.
| Charge | Quantity | Maximum penalty |
| Trafficking a drug of dependence (s71AC) | Below commercial | 15 years |
| Commercial quantity (s71AA) | Commercial threshold | 25 years |
| Large commercial quantity (s71) | Large commercial threshold | Life imprisonment |
That maximum is not the automatic sentence, but it shows the seriousness. A charge at this level demands a carefully built defence and, where a plea is appropriate, thorough preparation for sentence.
What Happens After You Are Charged
What happens next after being charged?
The matter moves towards the County Court through a committal. Because commercial quantity trafficking is an indictable offence, it is not finalised by a magistrate. Instead, it passes through a committal in the Magistrates’ Court, where the prosecution case is tested, before proceeding up. Preparing for a plea or a trial begins with analysing the brief.
This early phase is where much of the work happens. The strength of the evidence, the lawfulness of any search, and the quantity are all examined, because they shape whether the matter is contested, negotiated, or resolved by plea.
Which court will hear your matter?
The County Court. Commercial quantity trafficking is dealt with in the County Court, which handles serious indictable offences, rather than the Magistrates’ Court. This is one reason the matter is so serious, and it affects everything from the timeline to the way the case is prepared.
Because it is a serious indictable offence, bail is also difficult, and cannabis matters at this level are treated with the same seriousness, as our guide on cannabis cultivation charges shows. The higher court setting means the case must be built accordingly from the start.
Can the Charge Be Reduced or Defended?
Can a commercial quantity charge be reduced?
Sometimes, depending on the facts. The quantity, the strength of the trafficking evidence, and the lawfulness of the search can all be in issue, and a charge may be reduced to a lesser trafficking offence, or defended, where the evidence does not support it. In one matter, careful work led to a trafficking charge resolved without imprisonment.
Whether the amount truly reaches the commercial threshold is often central. If the quantity is disputed, or the evidence of trafficking is weak, the charge itself can be challenged, which is where detailed analysis of the brief matters.
What should you do if you are charged?
Get legal advice immediately, because the stakes could not be higher. From bail through to the committal and any trial, the decisions made early shape the outcome, and our work on drug offence defence starts by testing the quantity and the strength of the case.
From there, the approach is methodical: analyse the brief, test the search and the evidence, and build either a defence or, where appropriate, thorough preparation for a plea. On a charge this serious, that early strategy is what protects your position.
