For more than two decades, drug diversion in Queensland has been the difference between a bad day and a criminal record. A person caught with a small amount of a dangerous drug for personal use could, in the right circumstances, be offered a warning or a treatment session instead of a court date, and walk away without a conviction. That framework is now being rebuilt from the ground up.
The Expanding Adult Crime, Adult Time and Taking a Strong Stance on Drugs and Anti-Social Behaviour Amendment Act 2026 (Qld) scraps the three-strike arrangement and replaces it with a single-chance model. The practical effect is blunt: for a great many Queenslanders, the second minor drug offence will no longer be a warning. It will be a fine or a charge.
If you have been caught with drugs, or you have already used a diversion in the past, the window in which you can influence what happens next is short. Our Brisbane and Gold Coast drug charge lawyers have appeared in thousands of court matters and have secured diversion, withdrawal and no-conviction outcomes for clients across Queensland. Acting quickly can make all the difference.
What Is Drug Diversion in Queensland?
Drug diversion is a mechanism that allows police to deal with a minor drug offence outside the court system. Rather than charging you, an officer offers you the chance to complete an education or assessment session. Complete it, and the proceeding is discontinued: no conviction, no criminal history entry for that offence.
Diversion has never been automatic and it has never been available to everyone. Under the current arrangements you must, broadly, satisfy all of the following:
- You have been arrested for or questioned about a minor drugs offence: possession of not more than a prescribed quantity of a dangerous drug, possession of a prescribed quantity of an S4 or S8 medicine, or possession of a pipe, bong or similar utensil.
- You have not committed a related indictable offence arising out of the same circumstances.
- You have not previously been sentenced to imprisonment for supplying, trafficking or producing dangerous drugs.
- The officer reasonably believes the drug was for your personal use.
Two points are commonly misunderstood. First, diversion is an offer, not an entitlement: an officer is not obliged to extend it. Second, whether a quantity is “minor” is a legal question, and the line between personal possession and something more serious is where most of the argument happens. We explain that distinction in detail in our article on the difference between commercial use and personal possession of dangerous drugs.
What Applies Right Now: The Three-Strike System
Until the new provisions are proclaimed to commence, the existing framework under the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 (Qld) continues to operate. In broad terms it gives an eligible person up to three opportunities across their lifetime:
- First eligible offence — a drug diversion warning.
- Second eligible offence — an initial drug diversion assessment program, requiring attendance at an assessment and education session.
- Third eligible offence — a subsequent drug diversion assessment program.
Since 3 May 2024 the program has extended beyond cannabis to a wider range of personal-use possession offences. Importantly, if you were offered cannabis-only diversion before that date, that prior diversion counts against you: it is treated as your initial assessment program, leaving you only the final opportunity.
If you are offered diversion, do not treat the paperwork casually. Failing to attend as directed can itself expose you to being brought before a court. And if you are not offered diversion when you think you should have been, that is a matter worth raising with a lawyer immediately.
What Changes Under the 2026 Reforms
The 2026 Act replaces the existing diversion provisions with a new framework inserted into the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 (Qld). The reforms commence on a day fixed by proclamation, so the precise start date should be confirmed before you rely on them. The structure is as follows.
A cannabis diversion agreement for 50g or less
The new provisions create a distinct pathway for minor cannabis offences: possession of 50 grams or less. An adult who qualifies must be offered the chance to complete a drug diversion program under a cannabis diversion agreement. Where the program is completed, police must discontinue the proceeding.
Infringement notices for other minor drug offences
A separate pathway deals with other minor drug offences, including possession of prescribed quantities of other dangerous drugs and of S4 and S8 medicines. The mechanism changes fundamentally: the person is given an infringement notice together with an information notice, and has 28 days to elect to complete a diversion program instead of paying the fine.
One chance, not three
This is the change that will affect the most people. Under the new framework, the diversion opportunity for these offences is not available to a person who has previously had one. The three-strike ladder is gone. A repeat minor drug offence will attract an on-the-spot fine or a charge.
The reforms have not been uncontroversial. Health and treatment bodies raised concerns during the parliamentary process about the consultation undertaken and about the effect of removing repeat access to treatment-based referral. Whatever view one takes of the policy, the legal consequence for individuals is clear enough: the margin for error has narrowed considerably.
Why This Matters: What Sits Behind a Minor Drug Charge
It is easy to underestimate a possession charge because the quantity is small. The Drugs Misuse Act 1986 (Qld) does not share that view. Under section 9, possessing a dangerous drug listed in schedule 1 or schedule 2 carries a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment, rising to 20 or 25 years where the quantity exceeds the thresholds prescribed in schedules 3 and 4, depending on the drug and on whether the person was drug dependent.
Maximum penalties are reserved for the most serious cases, and the sentence actually imposed depends on the drug, the quantity, your history, and the exercise of judicial discretion. But two consequences bite regardless of sentence length. A recorded conviction for a drug offence can follow you into employment screening, professional registration, visa applications and overseas travel. And a charge that begins as possession can quickly become something far more serious if police form the view that the drug was held for supply, a point we explore in what you need to know about drug charges in Queensland.
How the drugs were found matters just as much as what was found. If the search that produced the evidence was unlawful, that can affect whether the evidence is admitted at all. If you were searched in a car, on the street or at home, read our guides on police searches without a warrant and on whether police can search your car.
How We Can Help
There is a persistent myth that a minor drug matter does not warrant a lawyer. In our experience the opposite is true: the smaller the matter, the greater the proportion of the outcome that turns on how it is handled in the first few weeks.
Depending on your circumstances, our team may be able to:
- Make representations to police for diversion where it has not been offered, or for the withdrawal of a charge.
- Test the lawfulness of the search, detention or questioning that produced the evidence.
- Challenge the characterisation of the quantity or the inference that it was held for supply.
- Prepare a sentencing case directed at avoiding a recorded conviction, including engagement with rehabilitation where appropriate.
The availability and strength of any of these options depends entirely on the facts of your case. Our lawyers appear daily in Queensland courts and are well placed to tell you, honestly, where you stand. You can read more about the people who would act for you on our criminal law team page.
What to Do Next — Don’t Wait
If you have been caught with drugs, offered a diversion, issued an infringement notice or charged with a drug offence in Queensland, the best recommendation is simple: talk to us now. The worst thing to do is nothing. The longer you delay seeking legal help, the fewer options remain on the table, and with the three-strike safety net disappearing, those options are already fewer than they were.
Contact our Brisbane criminal lawyers on (07) 3063 9799, or our Gold Coast office on (07) 5571 2555. You can also reach us through our contact page. The initial consultation is free, and we don’t miss a trick. If you’re in hot water, you need Hannay Criminal Defence.
