Adoption registration

For general information about adoption and the adoption process:

• visit the ACT Government website
• contact Child and Youth Protection Services (CYPS) by emailing adoptions@act.gov.au.

Adoption registration in the ACT

Adoption in the ACT operates under the Adoption Act 1993. Access Canberra maintains the ACT adoptions register.

The process for registering adoptions in the ACT includes these steps:

1. The adoption is registered through the ACT Supreme Court who send a sealed copy of the adoption order to Access Canberra
2. Access Canberra updates the ACT adoptions register.
3. If the original birth is held in the ACT register of births, Access Canberra will re-register the birth of the child with adoptive parent information in accordance with the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1997

If the adoption didn’t involve the CYPS you will need to apply to the ACT Supreme Court to make an order to register the adoption and the birth in the ACT.

Adoption records

The adopted person, or their birth parents needs to contact CYPS to gain formal authorisation to access pre-adoption birth records.

Contact Child and Youth Protection Services by emailing adoptions@act.gov.au.

Overseas adoptions

If your child was born and adopted in another country you can register their birth in the ACT if:

• the country is a signatory to The Hague Convention
• the birth hasn’t been registered already in another Australian state or territory.

If you are currently living outside the ACT, you can register the birth in the ACT if:

• you were an ACT resident immediately after the adoption of the child, and
• the adoption was completed under the control of CYPS.

Read about overseas adoption on the ACT Government website.

What you'll need

• Your proof of identity as the adopting parent/s
• Confirmation of the legal status of a person adopted from a Hague Convention signatory, supplied by CYPS
• A completed Birth Registration Statement [PDF 411.7 KB] [DOCX 310.8 KB]
• A certified copy of the adoption orders from the country where the adoption took place. If the certificate is not in English, you’ll also need to provide a certified translation.

You can get a certified translation from:

• a National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters certified translator
• an Australian Institute of Interpreters and Translators accredited translator.

View acceptable proof of identity.

Non-Hague Convention signatory countries

If the adoption took place in a country which is not a signatory to The Hague Convention you will need to apply to the ACT Supreme Court to make an order to register the adoption and the birth in the ACT.

Apply for a birth certificate

If your child was born in the ACT you can apply for a birth certificate after the birth is re-registered.

If your child was born overseas you can apply for a birth certificate after the birth is registered in the ACT.

With approval from CYPS you can also request an Integrated Birth certificate which includes the child’s birth details, before and after adoption.

Read how to apply for a birth certificate.