Breach of a Domestic Violence Order in Queensland
Domestic Violence — 2026-06-20 — by Sacha Sarah Smith, Civic Law
Charged with contravening a DVO in Queensland? What the offence involves, the penalties, and what the court considers at sentence.
You have a <a href="/understanding-domestic-violence-orders-queensland">domestic violence order</a> against you — a protection order or a temporary protection order — and you have been charged with breaching it. This is one of the most commonly charged offences in Queensland, and it carries serious consequences. If you have been charged with contravening a police protection notice, that is a separate offence under section 178 of the same Act with a lower maximum penalty (2 years / 60 penalty…
The Offence
Contravention of a domestic violence order is an offence under section 177 of the <em>Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012</em> (Qld). The prosecution must prove three things: that an order was in force, that you knew about it and its conditions, and that you did something that breached one of those conditions.
The most common breaches are:
<strong>Contact</strong> — sending a text message, making a phone call, emailing, or messaging through social media when the order says no contact
<strong>Proximity</strong> — going to or remaining near the aggrieved person's home, workplace, or school when the order includes a distance condition
<strong>Threatening or intimidating behaviour</strong> — verbal threats, property damage, or conduct directed at the aggrieved person
<strong>Third-party contact</strong> — getting someone else to contact the aggrieved person on your behalf, which is also a contravention
A breach does not require violence. A single text message — even one that looks harmless on its face, like a message about the children — is a breach if the order prohibits all contact. The legal question is whether you breached a condition, not whether the contact was threatening.
Penalties
The maximum penalties are:
<strong>Standard contravention:</strong> 3 years imprisonment (or 120 penalty units)
<strong>Aggravated contravention:</strong> 5 years imprisonment (or 240 penalty units) — this applies where you have been convicted of a <a href="/domestic-violence-lawyer-cairns">domestic violence offence</a> within the previous 5 years. A "domestic violence offence" is not limited to DVO breaches — it includes any criminal offence committed in a domestic violence context, such as assault, threats, stalking, or property damage
According to the <a href="https://www.sentencingcouncil.qld.gov.au" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council</a>, around 31% of DVO contravention sentences from 2016–17 to 2023–24 resulted in a custodial penalty. The most common outcome is still a fine — but the risk of imprisonment is real, particularly for repeat contraventions or breaches involving violence.