OSCA 451331: General Duties Police Officer
Maintains public order, protects life and property, prevents anti-social behaviour, and enforces laws by patrolling public areas, responding to reports of offences, and arresting suspected offenders. This record sits in General Duties Police Officers. Related ANZSIC industry links are included for faster classification cross-checking. Skill level 2 is attached to this occupation record.
Should you use OSCA or ANZSCO?
OSCA 2024 is the current Australian occupation classification for storing, organising and reporting occupation information. Use this OSCA record for current Australian statistical and analytical classification work.
Some migration and administrative programs still specify ANZSCO 2022. Check the exact system named by the agency or form rather than replacing the code automatically.
Official ANZSCO correspondence
Role overview
Maintains public order, protects life and property, prevents anti-social behaviour, and enforces laws by patrolling public areas, responding to reports of offences, and arresting suspected offenders.
Use this page to confirm the official title, the parent unit group, the task list and the related ANZSIC industry context before using the occupation in classification, reporting or migration-adjacent workflows.
Occupation facts
- Skill level
- 2
- Major group
- 4 Community and Personal Service Workers
- Sub-major group
- 45 Protective Service and Security Workers
- Minor group
- 451 Protective Service Workers
- Unit group
- 4513 General Duties Police Officers
Tasks
- Patrols public areas to engage with the community and gather information to prevent crime and improve public safety in accordance with legislation
- Attends emergency calls, accidents and incidents, and manages the scene to preserve evidence
- Identifies unsafe driver behaviour, records vehicle speeds, conducts vehicle stops and pullovers, and tests drivers suspected of drug and alcohol use
- Assesses situations to determine if an offence has been committed and arrests suspected offenders
- Conducts initial investigations, including gathering evidence, conducting interviews and undertaking searches
- Manages people in police care or custody
- Engages with individuals and the community to identify police services options to support their needs
Skill level guidance
Skill level helps place the occupation inside the ABS hierarchy. Use it as a classification cue, then check the actual task list and occupational context before making a decision for HR, visa or reporting work.
How to use this occupation page
Start with the official OSCA title and task list. Then confirm the parent unit group and compare the related occupations on this page if the job title is broad, overlapping or used differently across employers.
The ANZSIC links are there to help when the same occupation appears across several industries and you need the business-side classification as well.
Related occupations
No linked items yet.
Industry context
Alternative titles
No alternative titles are currently attached.
Compliance risk score
4 of 4 factors passing
In this section
Frequently asked questions
What does OSCA 451331 do?
General Duties Police Officer is the current ABS occupation record used to describe a specific occupation. It sits in the OSCA hierarchy and carries skill-level context plus related titles and tasks.
How should I read the skill level?
The skill level tells you the educational or training depth that the ABS associates with the occupation. It is a classification signal, not a salary band or a qualification checklist on its own.
Why is industry context shown on an occupation page?
Industry context helps when the title is common or ambiguous. It shows where the occupation is typically employed so you can compare it with the right ANZSIC family.
Source and trust
- Official source
- ABS OSCA 2024 release and correspondence tables
- Last reviewed
- 2026-04-17
This site is an independent reference resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the ABS, ATO or any Australian Government agency.
Please verify critical classification decisions with the official authority before using them for tax, payroll, licensing, immigration or compliance work.