Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2023

This Act may be cited as the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2023.

This Act commences on a day to be fixed by proclamation.

The objects of this Act are to provide for—

the collection and maintenance, in registers kept by the registrar, of information about—

births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships, adoptions, changes of name and alterations of sex; and

transfers of parentage under the Surrogacy Act 2010; and

transfers of parentage under the Meriba Omasker Kaziw Kazipa (Torres Strait Islander Traditional Child Rearing Practice) Act 2020; and

another matter that the registrar is required to keep information about under another Act; and

the issue of documents that acknowledge the name and sex of persons who are resident in Queensland and were born outside of Queensland; and

access, in appropriate cases, to information—

in a register mentioned in paragraph (a); or

collected and maintained under section 105; and

the issue of certified and uncertified information from a register; and

the collection and dissemination of statistical information.

The dictionary in schedule 2 defines particular words used in this Act.

For each child born in Queensland, the responsible person must give a notice, in the form required by the registrar and in an approved way, to the registrar.

Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.

The responsible person is—

if the child was born in a hospital, or brought to a hospital within 24 hours after birth—the person in charge of the hospital; or

otherwise—

a doctor present at the birth; or

if a doctor was not present at the birth—a midwife present at the birth; or

if neither a doctor nor a midwife were present at the birth—a person, other than the birth parent, present at the birth; or

if the birth parent was alone at the birth—the birth parent; or

if the birth parent dies or abandons the child—the person who takes physical custody of the child, for example, a person who discovers the child with the body of the birth parent.

The notice must be given within 2 working days after the birth.

A person need not comply with subsection (1) if someone else has complied with subsection (1).

In this section—

midwife means a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practise in the midwifery profession, other than as a student.

The birth of a child must be registered if—

the child is born in Queensland; or

a Queensland court—

finds that the child was born in Queensland; and

makes an order that—

directs that the birth be registered; and

states the particulars about the birth that are prescribed by regulation.

For subsection (1)(b)(ii)(B), the Queensland court is only required to state the particulars about the birth that are available to the court at the time of making the order.

In this section—

child includes a stillborn child born after 30 April 1989.

The birth of a child may be registered under this Act if—

the child is born in an aircraft or vessel outside Queensland; and

the child is not, between the time when the child is born and when the child arrives in Queensland, taken to a place outside Queensland.

Example of paragraph (b)—

A woman gives birth on a ship travelling non-stop from Sydney to Tokyo. The mother and child are flown by helicopter from the ship to Brisbane to enable them to receive medical care. The birth may be registered in Queensland.

The birth of a child outside Australia may be registered under this Act if—

the child’s parents intend to live in Queensland; and

when the application for registration is made, the child is—

resident in Queensland; and

not older than 18 months.

The birth of a child may be registered under this Act if a non-Queensland court—

finds that the child was born in Queensland; and

makes an order that—

directs that the birth be registered; and

states the particulars about the birth that are prescribed by regulation.

For subsection (3)(b)(ii), the non-Queensland court is only required to state the particulars about the birth that are available to the court at the time of making the order.

The birth of a stillborn child born in Queensland before 1 May 1989 may be registered under this Act if, at the same time, the registrar is able to register the death of the child.

The registrar must not register under this section a birth that has been registered in another State or country.

In this section—

place does not include an aircraft or vessel.

If the birth of a child must be registered in Queensland, the following persons must apply to register the birth—

both parents of the child;

if the child was found abandoned as a newborn—the person taking care of the child.

Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.

However, the registrar may accept an application completed by only 1 of the parents if the registrar is satisfied—

the applicant is unable or unwilling to give information as to the other parent’s identity or whereabouts; or

Examples—

1 The applicant does not know the other parent’s identity.

2 The applicant does not know the other parent’s whereabouts.

the other parent is unable, unwilling or unlikely to sign the application; or

Examples—

1 The other parent is dead.

2 The other parent can not be located.

the requirement under subsection (1)(a) for the other parent to apply to register the birth would cause the applicant unnecessary distress.

Examples—

1 The applicant is too frightened to contact the other parent because of a domestic violence situation.

2 Contact between the applicant and the other parent would breach a domestic violence order.

If the registrar accepts an application under subsection (2)(a) or (b) and has an address for the other parent, the registrar must, before registering the birth—

give the other parent—

written notice of the application; and

at least 14 days written notice of the registrar’s intention to register the birth; and

ask the other parent to sign an application.

A failure of the registrar to comply with subsection (3), or a failure of the parent of a child to sign an application as requested under subsection (3)(b), does not prevent the registration of the child’s birth or affect the validity of the registration.

Also, the registrar may accept an application from a person who is not responsible for having the child’s birth registered if the registrar is satisfied—

the child’s parents are unable, or unlikely, to apply to register the birth; and

the person knows the relevant facts.

If the registrar does not receive an application under subsection (1), (2) or (5) for a birth, the registrar may require 1 of the following persons to apply to register the birth—

the person in charge of the place where the child was born;

a person present at the birth;

a person whom the registrar reasonably believes knows the relevant facts.

A person must comply with the registrar’s requirement, unless the person has a reasonable excuse.

Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.

An application to register the birth of a child must be—

in the form required by the registrar (a birth registration application); and

made in an approved way.

The birth registration application must be given to the registrar—

in the case of a birth where variations of sex characteristics have been identified—within 180 days after the birth; or

otherwise—within 60 days after the birth.

However, the registrar may accept a birth registration application given—

in the case of a birth mentioned in subsection (2)(a)—more than 180 days after the birth, if satisfied the birth happened; or

in the case of a birth mentioned in subsection (2)(b)—more than 60 days after the birth, if satisfied the birth happened.

If the birth of the child is being registered under an order of a court directing the birth to be registered, the birth registration application must be accompanied by a copy of the order.

The registrar may require the applicant to give to the registrar other information the registrar believes is relevant to the birth registration application.

The registrar registers the birth of a child by entering in the register of births—

for a birth that is directed by a court to be registered—

the particulars about the birth stated in the court’s order; and

any other information the registrar considers appropriate to enter; or

for another birth—

the particulars prescribed by regulation; and

any other information the registrar considers appropriate to enter.

Despite subsection (1)(b)(i), the registrar may register the birth of a child even though some or all of the particulars mentioned in subsection (1)(b)(i) for the birth are not available to the registrar.

This section applies if a person applies—

to register the birth of a child; or

to include information about the identity of a child’s parent in the register of births after the child’s birth has been registered.

The registrar must not include information in the register of births that identifies a person as the parent of a child unless—

both—

the person signed a birth registration application; and

the registrar is satisfied that the person is a parent of the child; or

the registrar is entitled under the Status of Children Act 1978, section 26 to presume that the person is a parent of the child.

However, the registrar may include information about the identity of a parent who did not sign a birth registration application if—

the registrar is satisfied that the parent did not sign because—

the parent is dead; or

the parent’s whereabouts are unknown; or

the parent is, for another justifiable reason, unable to sign; or

the registrar is satisfied that the parent does not dispute the correctness of the information; or

the registrar is entitled under a law, including a law of another State or the Commonwealth, to make a presumption as to the identity of the child’s parent.

The registrar may require a person who claims that someone is a parent of a child to prove it by giving the registrar a copy of a court finding mentioned in the Status of Children Act 1978, section 26.

In relation to the registration of a relevant event for a child—

each of the child’s parents may be registered as the child’s—

mother; or

father; or

parent; and

not more than 2 people in total may be registered as the child’s parents (however described).

In this section—

final adoption discharge order means—

an order for the discharge of a final adoption order under the Adoption Act 2009; or

an order of another Australian jurisdiction that corresponds to an order mentioned in paragraph (a).

relevant event, for a child, means—

the child’s birth; or

the child’s adoption; or

the child’s transfer of parentage under—

a parentage order or parentage discharge order; or

a final adoption discharge order; or

a cultural recognition order or the discharge of a cultural recognition order.