Australian Military Regulations (Amendment)

Administered by Department of Defence

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STATUTORY RULES.

1944. No. 72.

REGULATIONS UNDER THE DEFENCE ACT 1903-1941.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Defence Act 1903-1941.

Dated this nineteenth day of April, 1944.

(SGD.) GOWRIE.

Governor-General.

By His Excellency’s Command,

Minister of State for the Army.

Amendments of the Australian Military Regulations.†

Transfer to R. of O.

1. Regulation 120 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended—

(a) by omitting from paragraph (b) of sub-regulation (1) the words “or of” and inserting the words “the Australian Army Chaplains’ Department,” in their stead; and

(b) by inserting in paragraph (b) of sub-regulation (2), before the words “Australian Army Medical Corps”, the words “Australian Army Chaplains’ Department, the”.

Ages for retirement.

2. Regulation 124 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended—

(a) by inserting in sub-regulation (1), after the words and figures—

“Australian Intelligence Corps—All ranks....................	60	..”
the words and figures—
“Army Chaplains’ Department—
Subject to sub-regulation 4 of this regulation, all classifications....	60	..”;

and

(b) by omitting from sub-regulation (4) the words “a chaplain” and inserting in their stead the words “a chaplain-general, the Senior Jewish Chaplain or a senior chaplain in a Military District”.

* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on , 1944.

† Statutory Rules 1927, No 149, as amended by Statutory Rules 1928, Nos. 23, 28 and 126; 1929, No 123; 1930, Nos. 26 67 and 92; 1931, No. 13; 1932, Nos. 80, 87 and 125; 1933, Nos. 49 and 77; 1934, Nos. 26, and 80; 1935, Nos. 99 and 109; 1936, Nos. 21, 44,and 100; 1937, No. 45; 1938, Nos. 75, 90 and 93; 1939, Nos. 31, 51, 58, 115, 123, 134, 160, and 173; 1940, Nos. 2, 16, 29, 59, 150, 183, 184, 185, 186, 199, 237, 252, 272, and 273; 1941, Nos. 3, 4, 14, 43, 135, 153, 155, 205, 245, 246, 260, and 311, 1942, Nos. 35, 59, 60, 85, 114, 166, 179, 211, 281, 289, 338, 334, 350, 417, 477, 506, 508, 521, 522, 555, and 1943, Nos. 17, 72, 126, and 174.

1467.—Price 3d. 9/2.3.1944.

Penalties.

3. Regulation 215 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended—

(a) by inserting in paragraph (a) of sub-regulation (1), after the word “rank” (wherever occurring), the words “or classification”; and

(b) by inserting in paragraph (ii) of the proviso to sub-regulation (1), after the word “rank” (wherever occurring), the words “or classification”.

Modifications and adaptations of a.a. 44. (War service.)

4. Regulation 216 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended—

(a) by inserting in sub-paragraph (i) of paragraph (a), after the word “rank”, the words “or classification”;

(b) by inserting, after sub-paragraph (ii) of paragraph (c), the following sub-paragraph:—

“(iia) As if in paragraph (3) there were inserted, after the word ‘rank’, the words ‘or classification’.”;

(c) by inserting in paragraph (16) inserted in the proviso to A.A. 44 by sub-paragraph (v) of paragraph (c), after the word “rank” (wherever occurring), the words “or classification”, and by omitting the word “or” (fifth occurring).

5. The Australian Military Regulations are amended by inserting after regulation 266 the following regulation:—

Modification of a.a. 47.

“266a. For the purpose of its application to the Military Forces paragraph (a), first occurring relating to the case of an officer of sub-section (2) of A.A. 47 shall be read as if after the word ‘rank’ there were inserted the words ‘or classification’.”.

Powers of prescribed authority.

6. Regulation 268 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended by inserting in paragraph (i) of sub-regulation (4), after the word “rank”, the words “or classification”.

Modification of R.P. 47.

7. Regulation 319 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended by inserting at the end of paragraph (b) of sub-regulation (2) the following words “and, after the word ‘rank’ (wherever occurring) in the first paragraph, the words ‘or classification’ and, after the word ‘ranks’, the words ‘or classification’”.

Constitution.

8. Regulation 590 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended by omitting all the words from and including the words “serving on—” to the end of the regulation and inserting in their stead the words “appointed to that Department”.

9. Regulations 591, 592 and 593 of the Australian Military Regulations are repealed and the following regulations inserted in their stead:—

Appointments.

“591.—(1) Only a person who is a minister of religion shall be eligible to be appointed a chaplain.

(2) A minister of religion shall not be appointed a chaplain or an officer transferred to the Australian Army Chaplains’ Department, and a chaplain shall not be promoted, except on the recommendation of the appropriate chaplain-general, or, in the case of a minister of the Jewish faith, the Senior Jewish Chaplain.

(3) The examination to be passed to render a person eligible for first appointment as chaplain shall be such examination as is required to be passed to enable that person to be ordained or appointed a minister of religion.

Status, precedence and command.

“592.—(1) A chaplain shall be a commissioned officer of the Military Forces and shall wear badges of rank according with his classification, but shall not hold any rank other than that of chaplain.

(2) Chaplains shall have precedence and command in accordance with A.M.R. 53.

Age limits for appointment to 4th class.

“593. A minister of religion who has attained the age of fifty years shall not be eligible to be appointed as chaplain, 4th class.”.

Classes of chaplains.

10. Regulation 594 of the Australian Military Regulations is amended—

(a) by inserting, in sub-regulation (1), after the word “chaplains”, the words “, other than chaplains-general and the Senior Jewish Chaplain,”;

(b) by omitting from sub-regulation (2) the word “The” (first occurring) and inserting in its stead the words “Subject to sub-regulation (5) of regulation 595, sub-regulation (2) of regulation 595a, sub-regulation (2) of regulation 595b and sub-regulation (3) of regulation 596 of these Regulations, the”; and

11. Regulation 595 of the Australian Military Regulations is repealed and the following regulation inserted in its stead:—

Chaplains-General.

“595.—(1) The Governor-General may appoint five chaplains-general.

(2) There shall be one chaplain-general for chaplains who are ministers of the Church of England or of a Church in communion with the Church of England, one chaplain-general for chaplains who are ministers of the Roman Catholic Church, one chaplain-general for chaplains who are ministers of the Presbyterian Church, one chaplain-general for chaplains who are ministers of the Methodist Church, and, for chaplains who are ministers of other Christian Churches, one chaplain-general, who shall be known as ‘Chaplain-General, United Churches’.

(3) The appointment of chaplain-general, other than Chaplain-General, United Churches, shall not be conferred except upon the head in the Commonwealth of the Church concerned or a minister of religion recommended by that head or by the governing body of that Church in the Commonwealth.

(4) The Chaplain-General, United Churches, shall be a minister of religion of a Christian Church other than the Church of England, or a Church in communion with the Church of England, the Roman Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church or the Methodist Church, selected and appointed as Chaplain-General, United Churches, by the Governor-General.

(5) The classification of chaplain-general shall for precedence correspond with the rank of Major-General.”.

Deputy chaplains-general.

12. Regulation 595a of the Australian Military Regulations is amended by omitting sub-regulation (3).

13. After regulation 595a of the Australian Military Regulations the following regulation is inserted:—

Senior Jewish Chaplain.

“595b.—(1) The Governor-General may appoint a minister of the Jewish faith to be Senior Jewish Chaplain.

(2) The classification of Senior Jewish Chaplain shall for precedence correspond with the rank of colonel.”.

14. Regulations 596, 597, 598, 599 and 599a of the Australian Military Regulations are repealed and the following regulation inserted in its stead:—

Senior chaplains and deputy senior chaplains.

“596.—(1) The Governor-General may appoint five senior chaplains in each Military District, each of whom shall be severally appointed on the recommendation of his respective chaplain-general.

(2) If, in time of war, a senior chaplain in a Military District is the Head of his denomination in the State which forms the greater part of that Military District and is not on part or full-time duty, the Military Board, on the recommendation of the chaplain-general concerned, may appoint a deputy senior chaplain to act for him:

Provided that, if that senior chaplain becomes engaged on part-time or full-time duty, the appointment of his deputy senior chaplain shall be terminated by the Military Board forthwith.

(3) The classification of a deputy senior chaplain shall for precedence correspond with the rank of Major.

Advancement of classification.

“597. The classification of a chaplain may, with the approval of the Military Board, be raised to a higher classification, upon the recommendation of his chaplain-general, or, in the case of a Jewish chaplain, on the recommendation of the Senior Jewish Chaplain, in time of peace, to fill an existing vacancy on a training establishment, or, in time of war, to fill an existing vacancy on an authorized war establishment.

Reduction of classification.

“598.—(1) The classification of a chaplain may, with the consent of the Adjutant-General, be reduced to a lower classification at the request of that chaplain, and in any special circumstances may be reduced for such period as is specified by the Adjutant-General when consenting thereto.

(2) The classification of a chaplain may be reduced to a lower classification, with the consent of the Adjutant-General, upon the recommendation of his chaplain-general or a senior chaplain in a Military District, or, in the case of a chaplain of the Jewish faith, upon the recommendation of the Senior Jewish. Chaplain.

Termination of appointment.

“599.—(1) If a chaplain ceases to be a minister of his church or faith, or is, in the opinion of his chaplain-general, or, in the case of a chaplain of the Jewish faith, in the opinion of the Senior Jewish Chaplain, unsuited for the duties of a chaplain, his appointment may be terminated on the recommendation of that chaplain-general, or the Senior Jewish Chaplain, as the case may be.

(2) Subject to such exceptions in special cases as are made by the Military Board, the appointment of a chaplain who ceases to reside permanently in the Commonwealth shall be terminated.”.

By Authority: L. F. Johnston, Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberra.

Overview

The Statutory Rules of 1944, No. 72, under the Defence Act 1903-1941, were enacted by the Governor-General in Council to amend the Australian Military Regulations. These regulations were introduced to address specific administrative and operational aspects within the Australian Defence Force, particularly concerning the roles and responsibilities of chaplains. The objective was to clarify and refine the procedures governing the appointment, classification, and retirement of chaplains, ensuring that these positions were managed in line with the requirements of military service and the religious needs of the personnel. The enacting body responsible for these regulations was the Governor-General in Council, reflecting the constitutional framework under which the Commonwealth of Australia operates. The amendments aimed to provide a more structured and formalised approach to the integration of religious services within the military framework, addressing gaps in the existing regulations to better support the diverse spiritual needs of the armed forces.

Scope and Application

The Regulations under the Defence Act 1903-1941 apply to the Australian Military Forces, specifically to the Australian Army Chaplains' Department. These Regulations amend various aspects of the Australian Military Regulations, including the retirement ages for chaplains, the criteria for appointments, and the classification of chaplains within the military hierarchy. The scope of these Regulations is limited to the Commonwealth of Australia and affects personnel within the military forces, particularly chaplains. Notably, these Regulations exclude chaplains-general and the Senior Jewish Chaplain from certain classifications and appointment processes. The amendments also clarify the role and authority of chaplains within the military context, including their precedence and command structure. These Regulations extend the application of certain provisions by incorporating them into the Australian Military Regulations, thereby binding all military personnel to the new standards and procedures outlined.

Key Provisions

The regulations under the Defence Act 1903-1941 modify several provisions of the Australian Military Regulations, including the Australian Army Chaplains’ Department, age limits for retirement, and penalties for breaches. Regulation 120 is amended to include the Australian Army Chaplains’ Department in its provisions, while regulation 124 sets the retirement age for Army Chaplains’ Department personnel at 60, subject to certain conditions (reg. 124(1), 124(4)). Further, regulation 215 broadens the scope of penalties to include classifications alongside ranks (reg. 215(1)(a), 215(1)(ii)). The regulations impose specific obligations on parties involved, such as the requirement that only a minister of religion can be appointed as a chaplain, and that such appointments and promotions are to be made on the recommendation of the appropriate chaplain-general or the Senior Jewish Chaplain (reg. 591(1)-(3)). Chaplains must also pass an examination equivalent to that required for ordination or appointment as a minister of religion (reg. 591(2)). Additionally, the regulations set out the eligibility criteria for chaplain appointments, including a maximum age limit of 50 for chaplains of the 4th class (reg. 593). Failure to comply with the provisions of these regulations can result in various consequences. Regulation 215 imposes penalties for breaches, although the specific penalties are not detailed in the provided text. Additionally, termination of a chaplain's appointment may occur if they cease to be a minister of their church or faith, or if they are deemed unsuited for the duties of a chaplain (reg. 599(1)). Appointments may also be terminated if a chaplain ceases to reside permanently in the Commonwealth, subject to certain exceptions (reg. 599(2)). These provisions underscore the importance of adherence to the regulations and the potential consequences for non-compliance.

Area of Law: Military Law
Instrument: Regulation
Concepts: Definitions & Interpretation; Reporting & Disclosure Obligations; Administrative Discretion

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.

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