Legislation to fully decriminalise sex work has passed the Northern Territory parliament.

The changes allow the sex industry to operate within all existing laws that apply to other businesses including employment, occupational health and safety, workers compensation, taxation and discrimination.

"All Territorians deserve to be safe at work. Being a sex worker is a recognised profession in the NT, but until today workers have had no protection and minimal rights," Attorney-General Natasha Fyles said.

"I acknowledge this bill and subsequent debate has been contentious for some, but the ultimate goal is better health and safety outcomes for sex workers."

Today sex workers in NT & Australia celebrate the passing of the Sex Industry Bill 2019 in NT Parliament. This bill fully decriminalises sex work providing sex workers with access to the same workplace health & safety protections as other Territorians.https://t.co/VkpNOAlO0I pic.twitter.com/V9qvQripxu — Scarlet Alliance (@scarletalliance) November 26, 2019

The legislation decriminalises the sex industry in order to improve the health and safety of sex workers.

Previously, laws covering sex work were inconsistent with some aspects subject to licensing and others still considered a criminal offence.

The new legislation will be reviewed in five years.

Victoria to review sex work laws

Victoria is set to thoroughly review its laws regulating sex work for the first time in more than 30 years, with a view to potentially decriminalising the industry.

The six-month inquiry, which will start next year, will examine workplace safety, stigma and criminal activity within the industry.

It will be led by Reason Party MP and sex work advocate Fiona Patten, who believes the current legislation is simply not "fit for purpose".

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The laws were written before the internet was commonplace and therefore don't recognise sex work is often advertised online or operates in an online environment.

They also fail to recognise that many people now work in the gig economy, Ms Patten said.

"It's not about legal or illegal brothels," she told reporters on Wednesday,

"But certainly the legislation, because it is so outdated, has made it very difficult for people to actually even comply with the law."

Consumer Affairs Minister Marlene Kairouz said the review was aimed at keeping sex workers safe.

Among the matters Ms Patten will consider are massage parlours offering sex work services.

"As we've seen over the years, there's been a proliferation of massage parlours popping up all over the state, and unfortunately a lot of sex workers are operating outside the legal framework," she said.