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Domestic Abuse

This guide is intended to help members of the public understand the offence of domestic abuse and the orders a court can make. It is not legal advice.

The Domestic Abuse (Jersey) Law 2022 came into force on 21 June 2023. The Law created a new offence of domestic abuse.

What is domestic abuse?

  1. The Law says that domestic abuse is abusive behaviour by one person aged 16 or over (A) towards another person aged 16 or over (B), which happens more than once and which causes or is reasonably likely to cause harm.

  2. The two people involved have to be personally connected. This means that:

    1. they are (or once were) married, in a civil partnership, or in an intimate personal relationship;

    2. they have agreed (or they once agreed) to marry or enter into a civil partnership;

    3. they are (or have been) parents of the same child, or share parental responsibility for a child;

    4. they are relatives by blood, adoption, marriage or civil partnership;

    5. one is the carer of the other.

What counts as abuse?

  1. Abusive behaviour means:

    1. Something that is an offence under Jersey law which involves:

      1. physical or sexual abuse;

      2. violence or threats;

      3. harassment;

      4. neglect.

    2. Behaviour that is coercive or controlling, which means behaviour that is reasonably likely to:

      1. make B dependent on or subordinate to A;

      2. isolate B from their friends, family or other sources of social interaction or support;

      3. control, regulate or monitor B’s day-to-day activities;

      4. restrict B’s freedom of action.

What does harm mean?

  1. Harm can be physical or psychological.

  2. Psychological harm includes fear, alarm, distress, humiliation or degradation.

What can domestic abuse look like?

  1. Domestic abuse can take many different forms. The following are some examples. Not every instance of this sort of behaviour will be an offence of domestic abuse.

    1. Emotional abuse: A calling B names, criticising their appearance, behaviour or parenting; hiding or stealing favoured possessions; pressuring B into sexual behaviour; ‘gaslighting’ – making B doubt their own sanity or memory; threatening B or their family or friends; telling B they deserve or cause the abuse.

    2. Harassment: A making unwanted visits to B’s workplace or house, calling or messaging them repeatedly, sending them unwanted letters or cards.

    3. Coercive control: A monitoring or tracking B in person or online; accessing phones and reading diaries without permission; controlling who B can see; controlling what B can wear; depriving B of food or basic needs.

    4. Physical abuse: beating or punching, grabbing by the neck, spitting.

    5. Economic abuse: A preventing B from managing their own money; controlling B’s income and spending; controlling bank accounts; running up debts in B’s name; making B work or stopping them from doing so.

    6. Immigration abuse: A using B’s insecure immigration status and fear of deportation as a lever to control them, threatening to report them to authorities, locking away immigration paperwork, isolating them from immigration support services, bringing them to Jersey on a false promise that they would have legal status there.

What geographical area does the Law cover?

  1. If the suspect, A, ordinarily lives in Jersey then they can be prosecuted in Jersey for domestic abuse that took place overseas.

Domestic Abuse Protection Orders

  1. Where there has been a conviction for an offence of domestic abuse (or certain other offences), the Court can make an order protecting B from domestic abuse where it is more likely than not that there is a risk of further domestic abuse by A towards B and an order is necessary to protect B.

  2. A protection order will generally be made at the time of sentencing, but in some circumstances an application can be made later.

  3. An order can prevent A from doing things like contacting B or going to their workplace. It can make A do things like moving out of a house shared with B, attending counselling or undertaking a course.

  4. An order can last for a set time or indefinitely.

  5. Disobeying an order is a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment of up to five years or a fine.

Issued: 1 July 2025

Reviewed: 20 August 2025