NSW Police

The NSW Police Force is the principal law enforcement agency in the Australian state of New South Wales. Established in 1862, the organisation has more than 15,000 police officers and is the largest police force in Australia. The force has a jurisdiction covering 801,600 square kilometres and more than 8.2 million people. In 2025, the police force had 20,395 employees – 15,887 police officers and 4,508 administrative staff – with a budget of AUD $5.51 billion. It operates 432 police stations, 3,300 vehicles, 52 boats and 9 aircraft. It is organised into police area commands in metropolitan areas, police districts in rural areas and specialist commands. The police force performs law enforcement in all areas of the state. Local government authorities and other agencies have very limited law enforcement responsibilities. The capacity of magistrates and justices to appoint constables was removed and the commissioner of NSW Police now has sole control of the appointment of constables in the state.