(1)  A person must not manufacture, distribute, supply, sell or possess body armour unless he or she holds a permit from the Commissioner to do so.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding 100 penalty units or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both.

(1A)  Subsection (1) does not apply to –

(a) a police officer acting in the performance of his or her duties; or

(b) a person, or group of persons, excluded in writing by the Commissioner from the application of that subsection.

(2)  A person may apply to the Commissioner for a permit to manufacture, distribute, supply, sell or possess body armour.

(3)  An application for a permit is to –

(a) be in a form approved by the Commissioner; and

(b) include details of the following:

(i) the type of body armour;

(ii) the reason for its manufacture, distribution, supply, sale or possession;

(iii) the means by which it is to be stored when not in use;

(iv) any other prescribed matter.

(4)  The Commissioner may grant an application subject to any conditions the Commissioner considers appropriate.

(5)  The Commissioner must not grant an application unless the Commissioner is satisfied that the applicant –

(a) is at least 18 years of age; and

(b) is a natural person; and

(c) is a fit and proper person to manufacture, distribute, supply, sell or possess body armour; and

(d) is able to safely store the body armour; and

(e) has a legitimate reason for manufacturing, distributing, supplying, selling or possessing body armour.

(6)  In deciding whether a person is a fit and proper person, the Commissioner is to take into account the following:

(a) any likelihood of the person using body armour for an unlawful purpose;

(b) the mental condition of the person;

(c) any criminal activity of the person, whether in Tasmania or elsewhere;

(d) any offence committed by the person under this Act, the Guns Act 1991 or the Firearms Act 1996 ;

(e) whether the person is subject to a restraint order or interim restraint order under Part XA of the Justices Act 1959 , or a family violence order, or has at any time within the previous 5 years been subject to such an order;

(ea) whether a recognised DVO, within the meaning of the Domestic Violence Orders (National Recognition) Act 2016 , is in force under that Act in respect of the person;

(f) whether the person is subject to a recognisance, granted in Tasmania or elsewhere, to keep the peace.

(7)  A person issued with a permit under this section must produce a copy of the permit on the demand of a police officer while the person is manufacturing, distributing, supplying, selling or in possession of body armour.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding 20 penalty units.

(8)  A police officer may seize and retain any body armour manufactured, distributed, supplied, sold or possessed in contravention of this section.

(9)  If a person is convicted or found guilty of an offence under this section, the body armour to which the offence relates is forfeited and is to be disposed of as the court orders.

(10)  Nothing in this section prevents a person from being prosecuted for the manufacture, distribution, supply, sale or possession of body armour in contravention of another Act.