The Miners Right

Extracted from:   http://www.finders.com.au


Miners Right Relevant Information:

Each State of Australia have their own licence requirements for prospecting and mining activities, the information which is included on this page relates to the State of Victoria only and is not applicable to any other State in Australia.

Miner's Right

Privileges Of Holder:

(1) A Miner's Right entitles the holder to search for minerals on -
        a) Private land (other than land covered by a Mining Licence) with the consent of the owner or occupier; or
        b) Crown land, other than -
                (i) land exempted under Section 6 or 7 of the Act or nominated under Section 7(1) of the Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978; and
                (ii) land covered by a Mining Licence.

(2) A consent granted under sub-section (1) (a) by an owner or occupier may be
        a) granted subject to conditions; and
        b) withdrawn at any time by the owner or occupier.

(3) A Miner's Right is current for the time, not exceeding 2 years, specified in the Miner's Right.

Obligations Of Holder:

(1) The holder of a Miner's Right who searches on land under that Right must not -
        (a) use any equipment for the purposes of excavation on the land, other than non- mechanical hand tools; or
        (b) use explosives on the land; or
        (c) remove or damage any tree or shrub on the land; or
        (d) disturb any Aboriginal place or Aboriginal object on the land.
 
(2) The holder of a Miner's Right must repair any damage to the land arising  out of the search.


The following information is by no means the total privileges or requirements of the holder of a Miners Right but merely intended as a quick guide to some of the most commonly asked questions. More detailed information can be found on the Department of Natural Resources and Environment website at (http://www.nre.vic.gov.au/minpet/titles/mcaqomr.htm).

All adults (18 years and over) who prospect or fossick for gold, gems or other minerals in the state of Victoria need to have an exploration licence, a mining licence or a Miner's Right. Children under supervision of an adult with a Miner's Right do not need to be a holder.

If the intention is to search for gold gems or minerals a licence is required regardless of method used such as Electronic Detecting, Panning, Dowsing, Sluicing, Dry Blowing or Washing, etc.

The original licence (a copy is not acceptable) must be carried by the holder when prospecting or mining and must be produced when requested by an Officer of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, anywhere within the State of Victoria, or by an Officer of Land Management on Crown Land.

The holder of a Miners Right may prospect over an Exploration Lease without the permission of the Licence holder and is not required to notify the Licence holder of any gold finds. Any gold found upon a Exploration Lease remains the property of the Miners Right holder providing only hand tools were used for recovery.

The holder of a Miners Right may also prospect over an application for a Mining Licence. However once a Miners Right Claim or Mining Licence has been granted, permission must be then obtained from the Title Holder to prospect over or remove any minerals from the claim or licenced area.

A Miners Right holder may use motorised equipment to process gravel that has been excavated using hand held equipment and is loaded into the processing equipment by hand and provided no significant land disturbance is caused by the process.

The holder of a Miners Right has the right to prospect or pan in designated Victorian river beds.