17 Apr 2026Stricter laws making it a criminal offence to display Nazi symbols in public are starting to bite, with the first person jailed for giving the Hitler salute.
Member of neo-Nazi group jailed for Nazi salute
The man, a leading member of a neo-Nazi group, gave the raised right arm salute in 2023 and cried “Heil Hitler” in front of media outside a Melbourne court, just six days after Victorian laws banning the gesture came into effect.
The salute came just minutes after he avoided jail for pleading guilty to a violent disorder charge for his role in an attack on hikers in a park by a group of neo-Nazis.
In 2024 he was sentenced to a month in jail for the salute, but he appealed and was on bail until December 2025, when a court rejected his appeal and ordered he serve his sentence of one month in jail. (Please see Jacob Hersant becomes first Australian jailed for doing Nazi salute after losing appeal, The Guardian, 4 February 2026.)
The court heard there had been 18 cases in Australia of people being charged for giving illegal Nazi salutes, but none had received jail sentences.
Multiple people charged with giving Nazi salute and displaying Nazi symbols
Since then, there have been a string of charges and court appearances of people charged with giving the Nazi salute and displaying Nazi images in public.
In January 2026 a man was charged for revealing Nazi tattoos while on a beach. Another man was refused bail the same month after being charged with having swastika stickers on his boat.
A NSW man was charged in January 2026 over a Nazi symbol painted on his garbage bin. In Canberra an 18-year-old man was charged at Christmas with giving the Hitler salute at shops. (Please see Canberra man charged over allegedly giving Nazi salutes and defacing Commonwealth property, AFP, 26 December 2025.)
A Melbourne airport worker was charged in February 2026 for giving the Nazi salute to a group of Jewish schoolchildren. (Please see Melbourne man charged over allegedly giving Nazi salute to schoolchildren at Melbourne Airport, AFP, 3 February 2026.)
A TV actor avoided jail for giving the Nazi salute at a right-wing rally, after arguing he was describing others who were acting like Nazis. The judge ordered him to apologise to the Jewish community and attend therapy.
Some the charges may be legally questionable. Were the Nazi tattoos created before the law came into force? Did those who were charged know the swastika was banned? Did they have Nazi sympathies?
The ban on displaying Nazi symbols needs to be kept in context. One protester was charged with displaying a swastika in public when he attended a protest against Israel’s attacks on Gaza, holding a poster featuring the Nazi swastika superimposed on the Israeli flag, with the words “the irony of becoming what you once hated”.
The protester argued he was not supporting Nazism at all, but the court disagreed and he was found guilty. (Please see NSW cracks down on rise of far-right with new laws, LSJ Online, 21 November 2025.)
Laws introduced in 2022 banning Nazi symbols and salutes in public
Most of these offenders were charged under a law introduced in 2022, which made it a crime with a maximum penalty of 12 months jail to display Nazi symbols and salutes in public without a reasonable excuse, such as an academic, artistic or educational purpose.
The swastika is not a Nazi symbol when displayed as an ancient religious symbol in connection with Buddhism, Hinduism or Jainism.
But the law was strengthened after neo-Nazis appeared in rallies with Nazi symbols, making it an offence to incite racial hatred with a penalty of two years jail.
New Bill would give police more power to remove suspected Nazi symbols
Legislation adding Nazi and antisemitic chants, songs and slogans to the banned list has been introduced to NSW parliament. Neo-Nazi groups announced they had disbanded in the face of the new laws.
The latest Bill would give police stronger powers to remove suspected Nazi symbols, especially near Jewish religious centres and schools, and act against those responsible for antisemitic graffiti, with fines of up to $2,200 and three months imprisonment. (Please see Crimes and Summary Offences Amendment Bill 2025.)
However, the anti-Nazi laws do not stretch to images posted online, which often come from overseas, and that is where most impressionable people are recruited to neo-Nazi and other violent radical groups. (Please see Australian Neo-Nazis use symbols that may evade hate speech laws, ABC News, 24 January 2026.)
