Queensland life jacket laws: when you must wear one and which type
Updated 11 min read
The short answer
Queensland's life jacket laws changed on 1 December 2024, and Maritime Safety Queensland has enforced them since 1 July 2025. You must now wear a life jacket, not just carry one, when boating alone or at night in an open boat under 4.8 metres, and children aged 1 to 11 wear one whenever an open boat is underway. Jet ski riders always wear one. The level you need depends on the water.
Since December 2024, Queensland requires you to wear a life jacket in set situations
Queensland's life jacket laws require you to wear a life jacket in a set list of higher-risk situations. The rules started on 1 December 2024 through amendments to the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2016, and Maritime Safety Queensland began enforcing them from 1 July 2025 after an education period.
You must wear a life jacket when you are the only person aged 12 or over in an open boat under 4.8 metres that is underway in daytime, which covers boating alone or only with children under 12. Everyone aged 1 or over wears one in an open boat under 4.8 metres that is underway at night. Children aged 1 to 11 wear one in any open boat that is underway, whatever its length, and in the open areas of boats with a cabin. Everyone in an open boat also wears one while crossing a designated coastal bar.
Outside these situations the law still requires a correctly sized life jacket on board for every person aged 1 or over.
Open boat, underway and night-time: the three terms that decide whether the rules apply
Whether the wear rules apply to your trip turns on three terms the regulation defines. An open boat is a boat with no permanent, rigid deckhouse or cabin, and no other enclosed space a person can only enter or leave through one opening. A tinny with no cabin or other enclosed space is an open boat, so the 4.8 metre rules reach many small boats.
Underway means not at anchor, moored, made fast to the shore or aground. Maritime Safety Queensland says a boat held in position by a spot-lock or GPS lock is still underway, because the GPS signal can drop out or the battery can go flat and the boat can drift. Once you are anchored, MSQ says the alone, night and children rules no longer apply and people are free to move about the boat.
Night-time runs from sunset to sunrise. An open boat under 4.8 metres heading out before dawn means everyone aged 1 or over on board wears a life jacket until the sun is up.
Children aged 1 to 11 wear a life jacket whenever an open boat is underway
Children aged 1 to 11 must wear a life jacket in any open boat that is underway, whatever the boat's length. Before December 2024, Maritime Safety Queensland notes, that rule only covered open boats under 4.8 metres, so it now covers larger open boats.
On a boat with a cabin, the same children must wear one whenever they are in an open area of the boat while it is underway, meaning anywhere outside the cabin. Inside the cabin the wear rule does not apply.
The jacket has to fit. The regulation requires a life jacket of an appropriate size for each person, so an adult jacket handed to a small child does not meet it.
The law starts at age 1. For babies under 12 months, MSQ does not recommend travelling on a boat unless it is necessary. If an infant has to travel, MSQ advises that a parent or another adult holds them securely, and that they wear a suitable life jacket if one is available.
Jet ski riders and passengers must wear a life jacket every time they ride
Everyone on a jet ski aged 1 or over must wear a life jacket for the whole ride. Section 15 of the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2016 says a personal watercraft is only treated as carrying the required life jacket for a person if that person is wearing it, so a jacket stowed under the seat does not count.
The accepted types on a jet ski are narrower than on a boat. In smooth waters a rider or passenger can wear a level 50 or a level 50S. In partially smooth waters and beyond, only level 50 is accepted, so a 50S vest that is legal on a river does not cover a ride in partially smooth waters.
Maritime Safety Queensland notes that the December 2024 changes left the jet ski life jacket rules as they were. A jet ski in or beyond partially smooth waters must also carry a V sheet, two handheld red flares and two orange smoke signals, unless an exception in the regulation applies.
The life jacket level you need depends on the water you are on
The level of life jacket a boat must carry is set by the type of water it is on. In smooth waters a boat can carry level 50, level 50S or level 100 jackets, or a compliant inflatable diver's jacket that the person wears. In partially smooth waters the choice narrows to level 50 or level 100, or a compliant inflatable diver's jacket that is worn. Beyond partially smooth waters, in open water offshore, only level 100 is accepted, or a compliant inflatable diver's jacket if the person is wearing it.
Smooth waters include rivers, creeks, streams and lakes, and the water inside breakwaters. Partially smooth waters are the areas listed in schedule 7 of the regulation, other than water within half a nautical mile of land. Our Maroochydore and Noosa venues sit on the Maroochy River and the Noosa River, and the regulation's definition treats river water as smooth waters.
A level 50 or 50S jacket is classified under AS 4758 and carries the 50 or 50S symbol from its manufacturer. Level 100 also takes in AS 4758 level 150 and 275 jackets and jackets marked SOLAS.
Inflatable life jackets need a readable expiry date and a recorded service
An inflatable life jacket only counts as legal equipment if it shows a legible expiry date that has not passed, is in good working order, and has been serviced as the regulation requires. The regulation does not set one servicing interval for every brand. It points to the manufacturer's requirements, so the interval for an inflatable is whatever its manufacturer specifies.
Who can do the service also comes from the manufacturer. Unless the manufacturer allows someone else to service it, the work goes to the manufacturer or its authorised service agent. The service date then has to be recorded. If the manufacturer does not set its own marking method, the month and year go on the bladder, opposite the firing mechanism, in MM-YY format, so a service in January 2026 reads 01-26. Where the manufacturer or its agent did the service, you can instead show a shipping inspector the service record within 72 hours of the inspection.
Before each trip, check every inflatable's expiry date and latest service mark.
Old PFD type 1, 2 and 3 jackets stopped counting by 1 September 2025
Life jackets labelled PFD type 1, 2 or 3 under the old 2004 rules no longer count towards the required safety equipment. The 2016 regulation let them stand in for the newer levels, with type 1 treated as level 100, type 2 as level 50 and type 3 as level 50S, only until the end of their serviceable life or 1 September 2025, whichever came first. From 1 September 2025 the jackets you carry must meet the current level 50, 50S or 100 definitions in the regulation: jackets classified and marked under the Australian Standard AS 4758, plus, for level 100, jackets marked SOLAS.
Read the label: if it shows a PFD type rather than a level 50, 50S or 100 marking, it does not meet the requirement.
When it announced enforcement, the Department of Transport and Main Roads pointed to the drowning figures: 64 people drowned in Queensland boating accidents from 2019 to 2023, and only five of them were wearing a life jacket.
Who must wear a life jacket in Queensland, when, and which level is accepted (Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2016, checked 2 October 2026)
Scroll sideways to see every column
| Situation | Who must wear one | When it applies | Accepted levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open boat under 4.8 m with only one person aged 12 or over on board | That person and every child aged 1 to 11 | Underway in daytime | Smooth waters: 50, 50S or 100. Partially smooth: 50 or 100. Beyond: 100 |
| Open boat under 4.8 m at night | Everyone aged 1 or over | Underway between sunset and sunrise | Smooth waters: 50, 50S or 100. Partially smooth: 50 or 100. Beyond: 100 |
| Open boat of any length | Children aged 1 to 11 | Underway | Smooth waters: 50, 50S or 100. Partially smooth: 50 or 100. Beyond: 100 |
| Boat with a cabin | Children aged 1 to 11 in an open area outside the cabin | Underway | Smooth waters: 50, 50S or 100. Partially smooth: 50 or 100. Beyond: 100 |
| Jet ski (personal watercraft) | Rider and every passenger aged 1 or over | Every time they are on it | Smooth waters: 50 or 50S. Partially smooth and beyond: 50 only |
| Water skier being towed | The skier | While skiing, with a narrow exception for skiing events | 50, 50S or 100 |
| Any boat at anchor or moored | No wear requirement under the alone, night or children rules | At anchor, moored, made fast to the shore or aground | Still carry one correctly sized jacket per person aged 1 or over |
Frequently Asked
When do you have to wear a life jacket in Queensland?
You wear one in an open boat under 4.8 metres when you are the only person aged 12 or over aboard and the boat is underway, and in the same size of open boat at night. Children aged 1 to 11 wear one in any open boat underway and in open areas of cabin boats. Jet ski riders and passengers wear one every time. These rules sit in sections 15 and 24 of the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2016.
Do jet ski riders always have to wear a life jacket?
Yes. Under the Queensland regulation a jet ski only counts as carrying the required life jacket when each person aged 1 or over is wearing theirs, so the rider and every passenger wear one for the whole ride. Level 50 or 50S is accepted in smooth waters such as rivers and lakes. In partially smooth waters and beyond, only a level 50 jacket is accepted for jet ski riders.
Which life jacket level do I need offshore versus on a river?
On a river, creek or lake, which count as smooth waters, a boat can carry level 50, 50S or 100. Offshore, beyond partially smooth waters, a boat needs level 100 for each person, or a compliant inflatable diver's jacket that the person wears. In partially smooth waters, level 50 or 100 is accepted, or a compliant inflatable diver's jacket if it is worn. If one set of jackets has to cover every trip, level 100 is the only boat level accepted on all three types of water.
Do children have to wear a life jacket on a boat?
Yes, in most situations. A child aged 1 to 11 must wear a correctly sized life jacket whenever an open boat is underway, regardless of its length, and whenever they are in an open area of a boat with a cabin. Inside the cabin, or once the boat is anchored or moored, the requirement to wear one does not apply, although the boat must still carry a jacket for them.
How often does an inflatable life jacket need servicing?
As often as its manufacturer requires. Queensland's regulation does not set a fixed interval. It requires inflatables to be serviced to the manufacturer's requirements, by the manufacturer or its authorised agent unless the manufacturer allows otherwise, with the service month and year marked on the jacket, or, for a service by the manufacturer or its agent, a service record shown to a shipping inspector within 72 hours. An inflatable past its printed expiry date, or not in good working order, does not count as legal equipment.
What are the fines for not wearing a life jacket?
Maritime Safety Queensland began enforcing the wear rules on 1 July 2025 after an education period, and boaties who do not comply can be fined. Check with Maritime Safety Queensland for the current fine amount before you rely on any figure you have seen quoted. Separately from the wear rules, the boat must still carry a correctly sized life jacket for every person aged 1 or over.
Where do life jackets have to be kept on a boat?
Any life jacket not being worn must be either clearly visible or stored somewhere readily accessible and marked with a clearly visible sign showing the word lifejackets in red letters on a white background. The owner or skipper must also tell everyone aboard where the safety equipment is kept, for example by saying it out loud, showing them, or using a printed sign.
Do I need to bring a life jacket to my licence course on the Sunshine Coast?
No. We provide the vessels, life jackets and all training equipment on the one-day course at Caloundra, Maroochydore and Noosa. Just bring photo ID, sun protection and clothes you do not mind getting a little wet. If you plan to buy your own jackets afterwards, check that the level printed on each one suits the water you will use most.
Sources
- Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Regulation 2016 (current version), Queensland Legislation (accessed )
- Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Legislation Amendment Regulation 2024 (as made), Queensland Legislation (accessed )
- Lifejacket Laws, Marine Information Bulletin MSQ-227 (February 2025), Maritime Safety Queensland (accessed )
- New lifejacket laws to be enforced from 1 July, media alert (23 June 2025), Department of Transport and Main Roads (accessed )
Rules can change. This guide was last reviewed on ; check the official source before you rely on a specific figure.
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