Adoption records
Start your adoption search by applying to Adoption Services Queensland to see whether identifying information [new window] on the adoption is available. The process is free for clients of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent and those on certain types of Centrelink benefits. Other relatives such as spouse, parent, sibling or adult child can apply for identifying information under some circumstances.
Prior to 1991 in Queensland, biological parents arranging for the legal adoption of their child could lodge an 'objection to the disclosure of identifying information'. This effectively prevented the adopted child from discovering the names of their biological parents, and was legally binding even after the death of the biological parents. The Adoption Act 2009 (Qld.) [new window] no longer allows 'objections to the disclosure of identifying information' to be lodged but adopted people and birth parents still have the right to not be contacted. For more information see the Child Saftey Services access to identifying information - adoption orders made before 1 June 1991 [new window].
Identifying information [new window] includes the adopted person's full name at time of adoption, information about the birth mother and birth father, if known, and any adopted siblings. Documentation usually includes a copy of your original birth certificate, recording the name of your biological mother and possibly your biological father.
National Archives of Australia [new window] has created an index of names that appear in records relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their history, as the result of a recommendation in Bringing Them Home, the report of the National inquiry into the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, released in 1997. You can find more about the index in National Archives of Australia's Fact Sheet 175 – Bringing Them Home name index [new window]
See also
Last updated: 27th February 2012
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