The Adoption Act 2009 enables identifying adoption information to be provided to an adopted person or birth parent once the adopted person is 18 years of age. An adopted person is entitled to receive identifying information about any sibling he or she may have who has also been adopted.
The Adoption Act 2009 enables information to be released to relatives of an adopted person, or relatives of a birth parent, only if the adopted person or birth parent has died or is permanently incapable of applying for information. A relative is defined as the spouse, parent, sibling or child of an adopted person or the spouse, parent, sibling or child of a birth parent.
Once an adopted person and birth sibling (a sibling who was not adopted) are adults, the sibling can apply for identifying information about the adopted person.
With the adopted person's consent, identifying information can be given to the sibling.
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How to apply for identifying information
A person can apply for identifying information by completing the application for adoption information form and returning it to Adoption Services Queensland.
Identifying information and documents provided to an adopted person or birth parent
After an adopted person (or eligible relative) applies for identifying information and documents that establish his or her identity, the identifying information will be provided to the adopted person in a letter.
The adopted person will receive information about:
- the adopted person's name at the time of the adoption
- the adopted person's birth mother and birth father, if information is available including their:
- name at the time of the adoption
- date of birth
- if the birth parent has agreed in writing, his or her last known name and address
- any adopted siblings.
The birth parent will receive information about:
- the adopted person's name after adoption
- the names, of the adopted person's adoptive parents (at the time of adoption),
- the adopted person's last known name and address (if the adopted person has agreed in writing).
In addition, Adoption Services Queensland will provide the adopted person and birth parent with copies of the following documents, where available:
- a birth parent's consent to the adoption
- a court order dispensing with the need for a birth parent's consent
- the adoption order.
Any available non-identifying information will also be provided.
The adopted person will receive an authorisation from Adoption Services Queensland for the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to provide him or her with a copy of, or information from, the adopted person's original birth certificate. If a copy of a certificate is provided, it will be endorsed 'not to be used for official purposes'.
The birth parent or parents will also receive an authorisation from Adoption Services Queensland for the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to provide them with a copy of, or information from, the adopted person's amended (after adoption) birth certificate. If a copy of a certificate is provided, it will be endorsed 'not to be used for official purposes'.
The authorisation to obtain a copy of a birth certificate can specify that details on the certificate (other than identifying information that must be provided under the Act) are to be excluded if the department is satisfied that allowing access to the information would be an unreasonable invasion of a person's privacy or otherwise unreasonably harm a person's interests.
If this applies, the authorisation Adoption Services Queensland provides to the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages will enable information from a certificate, rather than a copy of the certificate itself, to be provided to the relevant party.
Adoption Services Queensland is able to provide an authorisation for the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to give birth parents, regardless of whether they have received identifying information about an adopted person, a copy of the adopted child's original birth certificate, endorsed 'not to be used for official purposes'.
When can information be provided to or about a birth father?
Identifying information can be provided to an adopted person about his or her birth father and to the birth father about the adopted person if:
- he consented to the adoption, or the need for his consent was dispensed with
- he is recorded on the birth certificate as the person's father
- Adoption Services Queensland's records demonstrate he accepted paternity of the adopted person before or at the time of the adoption
- there is otherwise sufficient evidence to satisfy Adoption Services Queensland that the man is the adopted person's biological father.
Further information
Contact Adoption Services Queensland.
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