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Metal Detecting Laws in New South Wales

By the LuckyFind team Sourced from official state and Commonwealth rules
Sources checked October 7, 2026 ~6 min read

Short answer for New South Wales: leave the detector out of national parks, where using one is an offense unless the park authority consents. Gold fossickers have better luck in state forests, where a $27.50 yearly authorization from Forestry Corporation covers metal detectors, while beaches and council parks follow whatever their land manager has posted. Underneath it all sit two heritage laws that care a lot about what you dig up.

Can I detect in New South Wales?

The short answer for each kind of land. Tap a card for the detail and the rule’s own words.

Open in many areas without a permitPermit, registration, or designated beaches onlyProhibited or effectively closed

The rules, land by land

National parks & reserves

Prohibited

Using a metal detector is an offense in NSW national parks and every other park the NPWS manages, unless the park authority consents. The only standing consents are for small-scale fossicking for minerals and gemstones in a few parks whose plans of management allow it, such as Torrington State Conservation Area.

  • 'park' means a national park, historic site, state conservation area, regional park, nature reserve, karst conservation reserve or Aboriginal area, including the roads and waters inside it (National Parks and Wildlife Regulation 2019 cl 3)
  • maximum penalty 30 penalty units (cl 19(3))
  • no offense if done with the consent of a park authority and on its conditions (cl 19(4))
  • NPWS fossicking policy: where a plan of management or written NPWS consent permits fossicking, electronic handheld metal detectors are allowed; current examples are Torrington State Conservation Area, Nuggetty State Conservation Area (not the banks and alluvial flats by Tuena Creek) and the Grove Creek part of Abercrombie Karst Conservation Reserve
  • consent to fossick is never considered for nature reserves, historic sites, Aboriginal areas or places, wilderness areas or most karst conservation reserves
  • fossicking means looking for minerals and gemstones; heritage items, including fossils, may not be removed
  • Booderee National Park in the Jervis Bay Territory is a Commonwealth reserve with its own ban
What the rule says
“A person must not in a park— (a) use any metal detector or other apparatus for detecting any metal or metal object”

Digging

Prohibited

Digging in an NSW park is an offense without the park authority's consent: the regulation bars digging up or removing soil, sand, gravel, rock or minerals for any purpose.

  • maximum penalty 50 penalty units (cl 13(1))
  • no offense with the consent of a park authority (cl 13(2)(a))
  • where fossicking is permitted, only handheld, manually operated equipment may be used, no bushrock may be damaged or removed, and consent may require you to replace disturbed material (NPWS fossicking policy)
What the rule says
“A person must not— ... (h) carry or possess, interfere with, dig up, cut up, collect or remove for any purpose any soil, sand, gravel, fossil, clay, rock, ochre, mineral”

Keeping finds

Prohibited

Historic objects more than 25 years old, and Aboriginal objects, may not be removed from an NSW park. Where fossicking is permitted, only the minerals or gemstones named in the consent may be taken.

  • no interfering with or removing any deposit, object or material evidence of non-Aboriginal settlement more than 25 years old (cl 19(3)(d)); maximum penalty 30 penalty units
  • no touching or interfering with an Aboriginal object (cl 19(3)(b))
  • fossicking consent names the substances you may remove, up to the prescribed amount in any 48 hours (NPWS fossicking policy, citing Mining Regulation 2016 cl 12)
  • no source found on modern lost property found in parks
What the rule says
“A person must not in a park— ... (d) interfere with or remove ... any deposit, object or material evidence relating to the settlement or occupation of New South Wales ... (not being settlement or occupation by Aboriginal people) if the deposit, object or material evidence is more than 25 years old”

State forests & Crown land

Varies by site

Fossicking with a metal detector, for gold or gems, is legal in NSW, and what you need depends on the land: vacant Crown land needs no permission, Crown reserves need the land manager's OK, and state forests need a $27.50, 12-month authorization from Forestry Corporation of NSW.

  • vacant Crown land (not leased, licensed or managed by a trustee or public authority): no permission needed; the Mining Act gives a right of entry for fossicking (s 12(2A); Crown Lands)
  • Crown reserves with a Crown land manager: the manager's permission first; licensed land: permission from Crown Lands; leased land: the lessee has exclusive tenure; apply 2 months ahead (Crown Lands)
  • state forests: Forestry Corporation authorization, $27.50 including GST, valid 12 months across all NSW state forests; one covers a family group of up to 2 adults and 3 children; carry it; check the map of areas where fossicking is allowed; quarries are off limits and no digging within 2 meters of a tree
  • fossicking is a small-scale search for minerals or gemstones with hand-held tools, for recreational, tourist or educational purposes only; metal detectors are permitted equipment, powered digging equipment is not
  • minerals you find while lawfully fossicking are yours once they are separated from the land (Mining Act s 12(3))
  • land under a mining title needs the holder's consent; land under a native title determination needs the native title body's consent (s 12(4), (6))
  • looking for coins or relics is not fossicking; no Crown land rule naming it was found, and the heritage laws apply everywhere
  • national parks have their own ban
What the rule says
“Fossicking is looking for and collecting gems or mineral with hand tools. This includes looking for gold using metal detectors or pans. You must have a permit to fossick in a NSW state forest.”

Beaches

Varies by site

No NSW law names metal detectors on beaches, so the beach's manager decides. Councils can ban activities by notice in public places, Crown reserve managers can prohibit uses by notice at the entrances, and beaches inside national parks fall under the park ban.

  • Crown reserves: the responsible manager can restrict or prohibit uses by public notice at each entrance; breaking a notice can bring 50 penalty units (Crown Land Management Regulation 2018 cl 5)
  • council public places: failing to follow a council notice is an offense (Local Government Act 1993 s 632)
  • beaches in NPWS parks: detectors are banned without consent
  • historic shipwrecks: the remains of any ship, and its associated articles, that have been in State waters for 75 years or more may not be moved or damaged without a permit (Heritage Act 1977 ss 47, 51)
  • shipwrecks in Australian waters beyond State limits: Commonwealth Underwater Cultural Heritage Act 2018
What the rule says
“A responsible manager of dedicated or reserved Crown land may, by a public notice displayed at or adjacent to each entrance to the land, do any of the following— ... (d) prohibit the use of the whole or any part of the land, or any structure or enclosure in or on the land, for any purpose specified in the notice.”

Council parks

Varies by site

Council parks set their own rules. No statewide NSW rule names metal detectors in council parks, but a council can control activities in a public place by posted notice, and breaking the notice is an offense.

  • a council notice may cover the use of any thing in the place and the doing of any thing in the place (Local Government Act 1993 s 632(2)(d), (e)); maximum penalty 10 penalty units
  • Crown reserves that councils manage can also be restricted by notice (Crown Land Management Regulation 2018 cl 5)
  • no council policy that names detectors was read; ask the council first
What the rule says
“A person who, in a public place within the area of a council, fails to comply with the terms of a notice erected by the council is guilty of an offence.”

Private land

Permit required

On private land in NSW you need the owner's or occupier's consent. Entering fenced or walled land without it is an offense, and the right to fossick gives no right to enter private land.

  • 'inclosed lands' includes any land surrounded by a fence, wall or other erection, or partly by a natural feature such as a river or cliff (Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901 s 3)
  • penalty up to 5 penalty units, or 10 at prescribed premises such as schools and hospitals (s 4(1))
  • fossicking gives no right of entry to land other than unleased, unmanaged Crown land (Mining Act 1992 s 12(2)(b))
  • the heritage laws apply on private land too
What the rule says
“Any person who, without lawful excuse (proof of which lies on the person), enters into inclosed lands without the consent of the owner, occupier or person apparently in charge of those lands”

All land: heritage law

Digging

Research permits only

Digging anywhere in NSW, public or private land, when you know or suspect it will turn up a historic relic needs an excavation permit from the Heritage Council, and those permits are for archaeological projects with a qualified excavation director. If you do find a relic, you must tell the Heritage Council.

  • 'relic': any deposit, artifact, object or material evidence relating to the non-Aboriginal settlement of NSW that is of State or local heritage significance (Heritage Act 1977 s 4); the definition is no longer based on age (Heritage NSW)
  • an application needs an archaeological assessment, a research design and excavation methodology, and an excavation director who meets the Heritage Council's criteria (Heritage NSW)
  • found a relic: notify the Heritage Council of its location within a reasonable time (s 146)
  • Aboriginal objects: harming one is an offense, and work that will harm one needs an Aboriginal heritage impact permit (National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 ss 86, 90)
  • historic shipwrecks: no moving or damaging without a permit (s 51)
What the rule says
“A person must not disturb or excavate any land knowing or having reasonable cause to suspect that the disturbance or excavation will or is likely to result in a relic being discovered, exposed, moved, damaged or destroyed unless the disturbance or excavation is carried out in accordance with an excavation permit.”

Keeping finds

Prohibited

An Aboriginal object found anywhere in NSW must stay where it is: moving it from the land counts as harming it, which is an offense even if you did not know what it was. Historic relics are not claimed by the state, but finding one must be reported to the Heritage Council.

  • 'Aboriginal object': any deposit, object or material evidence relating to Aboriginal habitation of NSW, including Aboriginal remains (National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 s 5)
  • harming an Aboriginal object: up to 500 penalty units, or 2,500 penalty units or a year in prison if you knew it was one (s 86(1), (2))
  • an Aboriginal object abandoned by anyone other than the Crown is Crown property (s 83(1)(b))
  • if you know where an Aboriginal object is, notify the Secretary within a reasonable time (s 89A)
  • historic relics: report the find to the Heritage Council (Heritage Act 1977 s 146); no provision vesting them in the state was found
What the rule says
“harm an object or place includes any act or omission that— (a) destroys, defaces or damages the object or place, or (b) in relation to an object—moves the object from the land on which it had been situated”

Parks Australia places

Prohibited

Metal detectors are banned in every Commonwealth reserve, including Kakadu, Uluru-Kata Tjuta and Booderee national parks: the regulations make it an offense even to possess one there, let alone use it.

  • Commonwealth reserves include Kakadu, Uluru-Kata Tjuta, Booderee, Christmas Island, Pulu Keeling and Norfolk Island national parks, the Australian National Botanic Gardens and the Australian Marine Parks (managed by the Director of National Parks with Parks Australia)
  • using or possessing 'a device for detecting minerals or metal' is an offense of strict liability, up to 30 penalty units (EPBC Regulations r 12.18(1)(e), (7))
  • 'fossick' is defined to include using a device or technique for detecting minerals or metal, and fossicking is banned separately (r 12.16(b))
  • exception: a detector stowed securely on a vessel passing through, anchored or moored in a marine area (r 12.18(2)(b))
  • the ban does not apply in the Jabiru township in Kakadu (r 12.07(c))
  • the Director can permit a prohibited activity in principle (r 12.06(1)(c), (2)), and a reserve's management plan can provide for one (r 12.06(1)(a)); no hobby detecting permit process was found
  • national parks run by a state or territory follow that state's or territory's own rules
What the rule says
“A person must not use or possess, in a Commonwealth reserve: ... (e) a device for detecting minerals or metal”

Digging

Prohibited

Digging is out in Commonwealth reserves: disturbing or removing sand, stone or other earth materials is an offense, and so is fossicking, which the regulations define to include digging, raking or shoveling to find minerals.

  • no introducing, disturbing or removing minerals, clay, sand, stone or other earth materials; no fossicking; up to 50 penalty units (EPBC Regulations r 12.16)
  • 'fossick' includes digging, raking or shoveling clay, sand, stone or other earth materials to find mineral materials, and using a panning dish, sieve or sluice (dictionary)
  • no excavation in a Commonwealth reserve (r 12.11, strict liability, 50 penalty units)
  • same exceptions as other Part 12 offenses: a Director's permit or the reserve's management plan (r 12.06)
What the rule says
“A person must not, in a Commonwealth reserve: (a) introduce, disturb, or remove minerals, clay, sand, stone or other earth materials; or (b) fossick.”

Keeping finds

Prohibited

Nothing of heritage value may be moved or kept in a Commonwealth reserve. Possessing or moving 'heritage', which covers objects of archaeological or historic significance, is an offense, and so is removing any object or natural feature.

  • 'heritage' includes places, features, structures and objects of aesthetic, archaeological, historic, scientific or social significance (dictionary)
  • no damaging, defacing, moving, possessing or interfering with heritage: strict liability, up to 50 penalty units (r 12.13)
  • no damaging, removing or interfering with a natural feature or an object, sign or structure (r 12.12)
  • scientific research, including archaeological research, needs authorization (r 12.10, r 12.06)
  • no source found on handing in modern lost property
What the rule says
“A person must not, in a Commonwealth reserve, damage, deface, move, possess or interfere with heritage.”

Shipwrecks & Commonwealth

Digging

Permit required

Historic shipwrecks and sunken aircraft are protected by Commonwealth law once they have been in Australian waters for 75 years. Disturbing one, or removing anything from it or from its archaeological context, needs a permit from the federal environment Minister.

  • automatically protected: remains of vessels in Australian waters for at least 75 years, every associated article, and aircraft remains and associated articles in Commonwealth waters for at least 75 years (Underwater Cultural Heritage Act 2018 s 16(1))
  • protected whether or not anyone knows where the article is, and even after it has been removed from the water (s 16(2), (3))
  • 'Australian waters' covers the territorial sea and beyond, but not waters within the limits of a state, such as many bays, harbors and rivers, where state heritage law applies (s 11)
  • penalty: up to 5 years in prison or 300 penalty units, or both (s 30(4)); civil penalty up to 800 penalty units (s 30(6))
  • declared protected zones around some wrecks restrict listed conduct without a permit (s 29)
  • permits are granted by the Minister (s 23)
What the rule says
“Conduct has an adverse impact on protected underwater cultural heritage if the conduct: (a) directly or indirectly physically disturbs or otherwise damages the protected underwater cultural heritage; or (b) causes the removal of the protected underwater cultural heritage from waters or from its archaeological context.”

Keeping finds

Permit required

You may not keep an artifact from a protected shipwreck or sunken aircraft without a permit: having possession, custody or control of protected underwater cultural heritage is itself an offense. Finding an article of archaeological character in Australian waters must be reported within 21 days.

  • possession, custody or control without a permit: up to 5 years in prison or 300 penalty units, or both (s 31(1), (4))
  • supplying or offering to supply protected underwater cultural heritage also needs a permit (s 32)
  • found an article of underwater cultural heritage that appears to be of archaeological character in Australian waters: written notice to the Minister within 21 days, describing it and where it is (s 40)
  • protection continues after an article has been removed from the water (s 16(3))
  • permits come from the Minister (s 23); the department's own guidance page could not be read (blocked)
What the rule says
“A person contravenes this subsection if the person has possession, custody or control of protected underwater cultural heritage. ... Subsection (1) does not apply if the person has possession, custody or control in accordance with a permit granted under section 23.”

Even where detecting is allowed, archaeological and historic sites are protected, and you must fill every hole and follow posted rules. Always confirm the current rule with the land manager.

Please read: this is general information for detectorists, not legal advice. Rules change and vary by individual park, city, and agency. We cite the official sources below, but always confirm the current rule with the specific land manager before you detect — and when in doubt, ask first. Sources checked October 7, 2026; see the source notes for scope.

Metal detecting in NSW national parks and reserves

The National Parks and Wildlife Regulation 2019 is blunt: a person must not “use any metal detector or other apparatus for detecting any metal or metal object” in a park (clause 19). That covers national parks, state conservation areas, regional parks, nature reserves, historic sites, karst conservation reserves and Aboriginal areas, including the roads and waters inside them. The same regulation bars digging up soil, sand, rock or minerals, and removing any object of non-Aboriginal settlement more than 25 years old.

There is one narrow door. The regulation allows activities done with the park authority’s consent, and the NPWS fossicking policy says that where a plan of management permits fossicking, “Electronic handheld metal detectors are allowed.” Current examples are Torrington State Conservation Area, Nuggetty State Conservation Area and the Grove Creek part of Abercrombie Karst Conservation Reserve. That consent is for minerals and gemstones only; heritage items stay put, and nature reserves, historic sites and wilderness areas are never considered.

NSW heritage law: relics and Aboriginal objects

The Heritage Act 1977 protects “relics”: objects and deposits from the non-Aboriginal settlement of NSW that have State or local heritage significance, whatever their age. Disturbing or excavating land when you know or suspect it will expose a relic needs an excavation permit (section 139), and Heritage NSW’s permit page makes clear those are for archaeological projects with a research design and a qualified excavation director. Found a relic anyway? Section 146 says to notify the Heritage Council. The Act also protects the remains of any ship that has been in State waters for 75 years.

Aboriginal objects are protected by the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974. Harming one is an offense, and the Act counts simply moving an object from the land where it lay as harm, so a stone tool or other Aboriginal object stays where you found it. Penalties start at 500 penalty units even if you did not know what it was.

Fossicking, beaches, council parks and private land

Fossicking, the small-scale search for minerals and gemstones with hand tools, is lawful under the Mining Act 1992, and the Resources Regulator’s fossicking guide lists metal detectors as permitted equipment. In state forests you need an authorization from Forestry Corporation ($27.50 for 12 months, covering a family group). On Crown land, Crown Lands says vacant land needs no permission, but reserves need their manager’s permission and leased land is the lessee’s. Coin and relic hunting is not fossicking, and we found no Crown land rule that covers it.

No NSW law names detectors on beaches or in council parks, so the land manager decides. Councils can control what happens in a public place by posted notice (Local Government Act 1993, section 632), and Crown reserve managers can prohibit uses by notice at the entrances. Read the signs, and ask the council if in doubt. On private land you need the owner’s or occupier’s consent: entering fenced land without it is an offense under the Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901.

Sources

Official and statutory sources this page is based on (source check: October 7, 2026):

Checked the National Parks and Wildlife Regulation 2019 and Act 1974, the NPWS fossicking policy, the Heritage Act 1977 and Heritage NSW's permit pages, the Mining Act 1992, the Resources Regulator's fossicking guide, Crown Lands, Service NSW and Forestry Corporation fossicking pages, the Crown Land Management Regulation 2018, the Local Government Act 1993 and the Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901 on October 7, 2026. No individual council's detector policy was read.

Keep your permitted New South Wales spots organized

Once you’ve confirmed where you’re allowed to hunt, LuckyFind helps you make the most of it — track your route on the map, log each find with its location, and revisit your saved hunt records. LuckyFind does not verify land access or grant detecting permission. Free for iPhone and Android.

New to LuckyFind? Follow the first-hunt checklist, then learn how to record a hunt and add finds.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is metal detecting allowed in NSW national parks?
No, not without the park authority's consent. Clause 19 of the National Parks and Wildlife Regulation 2019 makes it an offense to use any metal detector in a park, which includes national parks, state conservation areas, regional parks and nature reserves. The only standing consents are for fossicking for minerals and gemstones in a few parks whose plans of management allow it, such as Torrington State Conservation Area.
Do I need a permit to use a metal detector in NSW state forests?
Yes, to fossick. Service NSW says fossicking includes looking for gold with metal detectors and that you must have a permit to fossick in a state forest. Forestry Corporation's authorization costs $27.50 including GST and lasts 12 months across all NSW state forests.
Can I metal detect on NSW beaches?
No NSW law names detectors on beaches, so it depends on who manages the beach. Councils and Crown reserve managers can restrict activities by posted notice, and beaches inside national parks fall under the park ban. Old shipwreck remains are protected by state and Commonwealth law.
Who owns artifacts I find in NSW?
Aboriginal objects must not be moved at all; the law counts moving one from where it lay as harm. Historic relics are not automatically taken by the state, but you must notify the Heritage Council when you find one, and digging for them needs an excavation permit.
Do I need permission to metal detect on private land in NSW?
Yes. You need the owner's or occupier's consent, and entering fenced land without it is an offense under the Inclosed Lands Protection Act 1901. The right to fossick does not give a right to enter private land.

Find more, remember where

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