The body of this shark is slightly compressed, and its rostrum is narrow.

In color, the dorsal side of this sawshark tends to be uniformly slate gray, with few or no markings.

Because of stable commercial catch rates, reduced Total Allowable Catch, protection in Victorian waters, and a high rate of biological productivity, the shortnose sawshark is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List.

While the shortnose sawshark is fairly popular commercially, the largest threat to the species is being caught as bycatch in gillnet operations.

Because of its habitat, size, and behavior, this species is considered to be harmless to humans.