About Victoria Police

Risk based compliance: the Licensing and Regulation Division's approach to regulation

Victoria Police is responsible for the regulation of the firearm, private security and weapon industries in Victoria.

Risk based compliance applies risk management to achieve good public policy that ensures public safety and the integrity of firearms, weapons, and private security licensing.

Like many other regulatory bodies across Australia, the Licensing and Regulation Division employs a risk based compliance model in its role as regulator of the firearms, weapons, and private security industries.

As the regulator of these industries, Victoria Police undertakes risk based compliance based on the following general principles:

• Maintaining public safety and the integrity of Victoria's licensing regime through pre-entry assessment to post-entry regulation. 
• Conducting regulation by combining professional experience and judgement with organisational risk policies and tools.
• Using intelligence-based information to identify and prioritise risks. 
• Engaging with stakeholders to encourage compliance and provide transparency regarding policy decisions.
• Reducing regulatory burden by the effective use of technology based application solutions.

Reducing Red Tape - Statement of Expectations

The Licensing and Regulation Division is committed to reducing red tape by promoting greater efficiency and effectiveness in the administration and enforcement of regulation.

In line with the Victorian Government's objective of reducing red tape, the Minister for Police the Hon Lisa Neville MP, issued a Statement of Expectations to the Licensing and Regulation Division on 21 June 2018.

The Statement of Expectations outlines the Government's expectations of how the Licensing and Regulation Division should improve its operations over 2018-20. It aims to promote greater efficiency and effectiveness in the administration and enforcement of regulation in the context of facilitating increased business investment and economic activity in Victoria and benefits both the regulator and the community by:

• establishing clear expectations of regulator performance and improvement between the responsible Minister/s and the regulator;
• promoting greater efficiency and effectiveness in the administration and enforcement of regulation; and
• assisting regulators to reduce the regulatory burden for providers and improve the transparency of regulatory processes.

The Statement of Expectations is available for download here. The Licensing and Regulation Division's response to the Minister's Statement of Expectations is available for download here.

Feedback

To provide feedback online, please complete a Feedback Form (PDF) and email it to us at feedback.lrd@police.vic.gov.au.  Completed feedback forms can also be returned via post to: Licensing and Regulation Division, GPO Box 2807, Melbourne, Victoria 3001.

Further information, forms and contact details

Firearms - www.police.vic.gov.au/firearms
Private Security - www.police.vic.gov.au/privatesecurity
Weapons - www.police.vic.gov.au/weapons
 

Privacy Statements

Information collected by the Licensing and Regulation Division during the course of licensing is being collected on behalf of Victoria Police. It will be used in accordance with the provisions of the Firearms Act 1996, Private Security Act 2004, Control of Weapons Act 1990 and Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014. Your information may be disclosed to employers, approved bodies and other statutory authorities by Victoria Police for the purpose of law enforcement and the administration of justice. Applicants may gain access to their information through application to the Victoria Police Freedom of Information Unit.

Health information collected by the Licensing and Regulation Division during the course of licensing is being collected on behalf of Victoria Police. The health information collected will be used in accordance with the provisions of the Firearms Act 1996, Private Security Act 2004, Control of Weapons Act 1990 and Health Records Act 2001, and is required to be collected under the Firearms Act 1996. Your health information may be disclosed to approved bodies and/or statutory authorities for purposes related to the administration of the above Acts, for the purpose of law enforcement or, if necessary, for the establishment, exercise or defence of a legal or equitable claim. Applicants are able to gain access to their health information through application to the Victoria Police Freedom of Information Unit. Failure to provide the health information upon request may result in an application being refused or delayed.

The personal information collected by the Licensing and Regulation Division during the course of telephone enquiries is being collected on behalf of Victoria Police for the purpose of quality assurance and internal training purposes. It will be used in accordance with the provisions of the Firearms Act 1996, Private Security Act 2004, Control of Weapons Act 1990 and Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014. Your information may be used for the purpose of law enforcement and the administration of justice. You may gain access to your personal information through application to the Victoria Police Freedom of Information Unit.