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Official secrets / unauthorised disclosureVerified against official source
This range was checked against the official legal text. Last verified: 2026-10-19.
Statutory range
Summary — ss. 1–7, 8(2)–(3) (unauthorised disclosure)
- Imprisonment
- 0 (no mandatory prison) – 6 months
- Fine
- Statutory maximum (unlimited for offences committed on/after 12 Mar 2015)
0 = the law sets no minimum prison term. The court is not required to impose prison. Depending on the offence, jurisdiction, and case, it may instead impose a non-custodial sentence — e.g. a suspended sentence, community order / probation, a fine, or a discharge.
On indictment — ss. 1–7, 8(2)–(3)
- Imprisonment
- 0 (no mandatory prison) – 2 years
- Fine
- Unlimited fine
0 = the law sets no minimum prison term. The court is not required to impose prison. Depending on the offence, jurisdiction, and case, it may instead impose a non-custodial sentence — e.g. a suspended sentence, community order / probation, a fine, or a discharge.
Summary only — s. 8(1), (4), (5) (safeguarding / failure to return official information)
- Imprisonment
- 0 (no mandatory prison) – 3 months
- Fine
- Level 5 on the standard scale (unlimited)
0 = the law sets no minimum prison term. The court is not required to impose prison. Depending on the offence, jurisdiction, and case, it may instead impose a non-custodial sentence — e.g. a suspended sentence, community order / probation, a fine, or a discharge.
s. 10. Prosecution requires the Attorney General's consent (s. 9). The National Security Act 2023 created separate espionage, sabotage and foreign-interference offences with higher maxima — they need their own pass and are not covered here. The older Official Secrets Acts 1911–1920 (e.g. 1911 s. 1 approaching a prohibited place) are likewise not tiered here.