Consent Laws in Victoria: What You Need to Know

What does consent mean under Victorian law?

Consent in Victoria means a free and voluntary agreement to engage in a sexual act. It is not enough that a person did not resist or object, because the law focuses on positive, freely given agreement rather than the absence of a “no”. Consent must also be given for each act, so agreement to one thing is not agreement to another, and it is never simply assumed.

This definition sits at the heart of every sexual offence, which is why these cases so often turn entirely on the question of consent. For anyone who has been accused, understanding what happens after being charged is important, but the starting point is grasping exactly what the law means by consent, because that is the ground on which the case will be fought.

What is the affirmative consent model?

The affirmative consent model, which began in July 2023, changed the way consent is assessed. Under it, a person must have said or done something to find out whether the other person consents, and the Department of Justice and Community Safety explains that the affirmative consent model requires steps to be taken to ascertain consent rather than assuming it.

The practical effect falls on the accused’s state of mind. A belief that the other person consented is not reasonable if the accused did nothing to check, so silence, passivity, or an assumption based on the situation is no longer enough. The law asks what the person actually did to establish agreement, and that shift is the single most important feature of the current law.

When is there no consent?

The law sets out specific circumstances where there is no consent, whatever the surface impression. These are found in the Crimes Act 1958, and the table below sets out the main ones.

Because any one of these circumstances means there is no consent in law, they are often decisive. Victoria Police sets out these consent laws in plain terms, and they make clear that consent cannot be presumed and must be present for each act.

Can consent be withdrawn or assumed from a relationship?

Consent can always be withdrawn, and it can never be assumed from a relationship. A person is entitled to change their mind at any point, and continuing after consent has been withdrawn is not consensual, regardless of what was agreed earlier. This applies no matter how the encounter began.

Being in a relationship, or having consented on a previous occasion, does not establish consent for a later act. Each act requires its own free and voluntary agreement, and Victoria Legal Aid provides general guidance on how these principles apply. The law treats consent as specific, ongoing, and revocable, not as something granted once and assumed thereafter.

What is the age of consent in Victoria?

The age of consent in Victoria is 16. Below that age, a young person cannot legally consent to sexual activity, and the law provides strong protections for children. There are limited defences in narrow circumstances, such as where two young people are close in age, but these are specific and should never be assumed to apply.

The age-based rules are strict because they exist to protect children, and the consequences of getting this wrong are severe. Anyone uncertain about how the age of consent applies to a particular situation should treat that uncertainty as a reason to get proper advice, not as a grey area to rely on.

What is stealthing, and is it illegal?

Stealthing, which means removing, tampering with, or not using a condom when consent was given on the basis that one would be used, is treated by the law as an absence of consent. Where a person agrees to a sexual act only on the condition that a condom is used, that condition is part of the consent, and disregarding it means the act was not consented to.

This is a clear example of how specific consent is under Victorian law. Consent to an act on certain terms is not consent to the same act on different terms, and the law now recognises that plainly. It is another reason that assumptions are dangerous, because consent is defined by what was actually agreed, not by what one person believed they could take for granted.

What does consent law mean if you are accused?

If you are accused of a sexual offence, consent and your state of mind will usually be the central issue, and what you say early can matter enormously. Because the law asks what you did to ascertain consent, an account given to police without advice can inadvertently damage your position, which is why understanding your rights when you answer police questions is so important in these matters.

These are serious indictable charges, and they are usually accompanied by a contested bail process and a matter that proceeds to the higher courts. The preparation that goes into bail for a serious indictable offence is directly relevant, because a sexual offence charge is treated with the gravity its potential penalties reflect. Facing one without experienced representation is a serious risk.

How is a consent case defended?

A consent case is defended by focusing closely on the evidence and on the accused’s state of mind. The central questions are what was actually said and done, whether steps were taken to ascertain consent, and whether the account of events is reliable, and these are exactly the issues an experienced defence examines in detail. You can see how we approach serious sexual offence charges with the care they demand.

Timing is also a common feature of these cases, because allegations are frequently made long after the event. Where a complaint surfaces months or years later, questions arise about evidence, memory, and delay, and our guide on being charged months after a police interview explains how delayed matters can unfold. A careful, early defence strategy is the best protection in a case where so much turns on detail.