Russell Brand's sentence of 10 years and 6 months is far past that 30-month line. In his sentencing remarks, Mr Justice Bennathan told Brand that on release he will "indefinitely" be subject to the notification requirements under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. The Metropolitan Police put it more simply: he will be on the register for life.
"Indefinite" and "for life" aren't quite the same thing, though. Most explainers skip that gap, and they rarely spell out how the timing works for someone serving a long prison sentence.
When is the earliest Brand could ask to come off the register?
On current reporting, the earliest would be around the late 2040s, about 22 years after he was sentenced. Here is how that adds up:
- He was sentenced on 9 November 2026, and CBS News reports he is expected to serve at least seven years in prison before release on licence.
- People on the register indefinitely can apply for a review no earlier than 15 years after their first notification, according to the House of Commons Library. For someone in prison, that first notification comes after release. The judge's wording reflects this: the requirements apply "on your release."
- Seven years in custody plus 15 years after first registering comes to roughly 22 years from sentencing.
The Met gives his birth date as 4 June 1975, so he would be in his early 70s by then. Those dates could still move. Appeals or the early-release rules could change when he gets out, and the review date would shift with it.
Does the 15-year clock start at sentencing or at release?
The official sources say it starts at first notification, not sentencing, but not every source agrees. The Commons Library says 15 years from first notification. So did members of the Northern Ireland Assembly when they debated the equivalent scheme there. A local newspaper report describes it as running from sentence. For someone who leaves court and goes home, the two dates are close together. For someone serving seven years first, they are years apart.
How long are the other notification periods?
They depend on the sentence, not on the type of offence. Periods in England and Wales, as set out by JD Spicer Zeb Solicitors:
| Outcome | Time on the register |
|---|---|
| Caution | 2 years |
| Conditional discharge | Length of the discharge |
| Other disposals, such as a community order over 12 months | 5 years |
| Prison for 6 months or less | 7 years |
| Prison for between 6 and 30 months | 10 years |
| Prison for more than 30 months, or a hospital order with restrictions | Indefinite |
Under-18s get shorter periods. The government told petitioners that the periods are halved for them. Juveniles on the register indefinitely can seek a review after 8 years instead of 15, according to a parliamentary written answer.
Is the cut-off "more than 30 months" or "30 months or more"?
It's 30 months or more. Some guides say "more than 30 months," but the notification table in the 2003 Act covers a term "of 30 months or more," and Unlock, a charity for people with criminal records, uses the same wording. That makes no difference for Brand, but it matters for a sentence of exactly 30 months.
Unlock adds a less obvious point. With an extended sentence, the period is based on the whole term, including the extended licence. So someone can end up on the register indefinitely once that total passes 30 months.
What does being on the register actually involve?
It's a set of reporting duties. Offenders must give police their name, address and bank details, and repeat this every year and whenever any of those details change, according to a government written answer. The government calls these some of "the toughest powers in the world."
This runs separately from his licence. CBS reports that once Brand is released, he will spend the rest of his sentence on licence, under conditions such as wearing an electronic tag. The licence ends when the 10 years and 6 months run out. Notification carries on beyond that, with no end date unless a review lifts it.
Why can someone on the register for life ask for a review at all?
Because the Supreme Court ruled that lifetime registration with no review was unlawful. In April 2010, in a case called R (F and Thompson) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, the court found that indefinite notification with no chance of review breached Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the right to private and family life.
The decision was unanimous. As the UKSC Blog explains, the judges said not everyone jailed for 30 months or more needs lifelong notification with no review, because the 2003 Act had no way to deal with offenders who pose no real risk of reoffending. The ruling was a declaration of incompatibility under the Human Rights Act.
The review route opened under Home Secretary Theresa May. The East Anglian Daily Times dates it to 2011. Unlock links it to the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (Remedial) Order 2012.
How does a review work, and how often do they succeed?
The person applies to their local police force, who decide whether they still pose a risk. Unlock says no solicitor is needed. But the application has to wait until any Sexual Harm Prevention Order has ended. That's a separate court order that can restrict things like internet use or travel. None of the coverage reviewed for this article says whether Brand was given one.
Success isn't automatic, and the figures are old:
- About 60,000 people were on the register in March 2018. Between April 2017 and March 2018, 335 of 588 applications to end indefinite notification succeeded, a 57% success rate. Unlock reported this from BBC Freedom of Information figures.
- Between April 2020 and March 2021, 402 registered sex offenders nationally had their lifetime requirements lifted on application, according to the East Anglian Daily Times.
No recent national figures turned up. A review is a police judgment about risk made at the time, so nobody can say how one would go for any person decades from now.