What a security guard can and can't legally do in Queensland.

A licensed security officer in Queensland has no police powers. A security licence is permission to do the work, and it gives the holder the same legal authority as any other member of the public, plus the authority the property occupier passes on to them. In practice an officer can ask, direct, refuse entry, remove a trespasser using force that is reasonably necessary, and make a citizen's arrest in narrow circumstances. It does not include a power to search you, demand your name, or hold you because you look suspicious.

What a security licence actually gives an officer

Under the Security Providers Act 1993 (Qld), anyone doing security work for reward needs the right licence from the Office of Fair Trading. Crowd controllers and unarmed officers both sit under that scheme, and we set out how the classes and the public register work in the Queensland security licence explained.

The licence confirms the holder has been screened and trained for the job. It hands over no power a member of the public does not already have. Officers who think the badge carries authority get their employer sued.

The authority an officer actually works with comes from the occupier of the property. You decide who may be on your site and on what terms, and engaging a security firm delegates the job of applying that decision.

Removing someone from your property

Section 277 of the Criminal Code covers this. A person in peaceable possession of a place, or entitled to its control or management, may use force that is reasonably necessary to stop someone entering wrongfully or to remove someone wrongfully remaining. The section extends that protection to anyone lawfully assisting them or acting by their authority, which is the clause a security officer on your site relies on.

Two limits sit on it. The force must be reasonably necessary for the situation actually in front of the officer, and it must stop well short of grievous bodily harm.

Removal also depends on permission being withdrawn first. Someone in a shop during trading hours is there lawfully until told to leave. That direction is what turns them into a trespasser, and it has to be clear, heard, and given a chance to be followed. We covered the occupier's side of it in what you can do about a trespasser on a commercial property.

Arrest: what the Criminal Code actually allows

Chapter 58 of the Criminal Code Act 1899 (Qld) sets out the citizen's arrest. Any person may arrest someone they find committing an offence for which police could arrest without a warrant, or someone they believe on reasonable grounds has committed one. A security officer relies on that same provision, with no extra allowance for being licensed.

Three things have to follow. The person should be told they are under arrest and why, unless the reason is obvious because they were caught in the act. Only force that is reasonably necessary may be used. And they must be handed to police without delay.

An arrest that turns out to be unfounded opens the door to claims for wrongful arrest, false imprisonment and assault, and on a commercial site the client usually gets named alongside the provider.

Detaining and arresting are the same decision

Plenty of people use "detain" as though it were something short of arrest. In law it is the same act. The moment someone is not free to walk away, they have been arrested, whatever word gets used. Blocking a doorway, taking their keys or their bag, or telling them police are coming and they cannot leave are all the same act in the eyes of a court.

We brief officers to be precise about it. Asking someone to wait is a request, and a request can be declined. If the answer is no and there is no lawful basis to arrest, the job is to record what happened, get a description and a plate, and let police do the rest.

Bag checks and searches

An officer cannot search a person or their property without consent. There is no exception for retail, and none because a receipt looks wrong.

What makes bag checks workable is conditions of entry. A shop, centre or venue can make consent to a check a condition of coming in, and can refuse entry or ask someone to leave if they decline. The check itself stays voluntary, and the officer should ask the customer to open the bag rather than reach into it. Hands stay off the bag and off the person.

Done well it is quiet and applied to everyone the same way. That consistency matters for discrimination reasons as much as legal ones, and our loss prevention work is built around it.

Name, address and identification

An officer can ask for a name. Nobody has to give one. The power to require a person to state their correct name and address sits with police under sections 40 and 41 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 (Qld), and only in the circumstances that Act prescribes.

The same goes for ID. A venue can require proof of age as a condition of entry and refuse entry without it. That is a condition of doing business rather than a power to demand documents, and an officer cannot take a wallet or a licence out of someone's hands.

What a good officer relies on instead

Read that list and the powers look thin. In practice, most incidents get settled by things that carry no legal authority at all:

• Presence. A uniformed officer at a door changes behaviour before anything is said.
• A lawful direction, calmly repeated. Most people leave when told plainly to leave.
• Distance and time. Stepping back to let a situation cool is nearly always available, and usually the better call.
• Cameras and notes. Times, descriptions, plates and what was said give police something to act on.
• The phone. Knowing when a job stops being a security matter and becomes a police one is a trained skill.

Training and supervision matter more than the size of the officer at your door. The legal risk on a site comes from officers doing more than the law allows.

What to ask before you hire

• Ask for the firm licence number and each officer's individual licence, then check them on the Office of Fair Trading register yourself.
• Ask what the standing instruction is on physical intervention, and listen for whether de-escalation and withdrawal are named options.
• Ask how incidents get written up, and when you receive the report.
• Ask what an officer is told to do when a direction is refused.
• Ask about public liability cover, because a claim will look for both of you.

We supply licensed officers for site and venue presence through static guards and concierge, and for retail through loss prevention, across Ipswich and Brisbane CBD.

Talk to us about your site

If you are not certain what your officers should do when something goes wrong, that is worth an hour. Tell us about the site and the incidents you are seeing, and we will put the instructions in writing. Request a site visit → or call 0414 829 850.

This article is general information about Queensland law, not legal advice. For a specific incident or site, get advice from a lawyer.

Common questions

Can a security guard search my bag in Queensland?

Only with your consent. A security officer has no power to search a person or their belongings, and cannot open or touch a bag without permission. Many shops, venues and shopping centres make bag checks a condition of entry, so refusing can mean you are refused entry or asked to leave, but the check itself stays voluntary. The officer should ask you to open the bag yourself rather than reach into it.

Can a security guard detain someone until police arrive?

Yes, in narrow circumstances. Chapter 58 of the Criminal Code Act 1899 (Qld) lets any person, including a security officer, arrest someone found committing an offence police could arrest for without a warrant. The person must be told why and handed to police without delay, and only force that is reasonably necessary may be used. Getting it wrong exposes the officer and the client to claims for wrongful arrest, false imprisonment and assault, so a well run team treats it as a last resort.

Published 1 September 2026 · Anthony Tupper, Founder · Tupper Security Services holds Queensland Security Firm Licence (Class 1) #4572076.