Intercountry adoption authorities
Central adoption authorities
Central authorities ensure Australia meets its commitment to the Hague Convention(Opens in a new tab/window). They also provide support and advice to community members.
Australian Central Authority
The Australian Government Department of Social Services is the Australian Central Authority.
We support:
- Australia's responsibilities under the Hague Convention
- relationships with overseas countries
- leadership on intercountry adoption policy.
State and Territory Central Authorities
There is also a central authority for each state and territory. State and Territory Central Authorities are responsible for:
- adoption applications
- assessing and preparing families for the intercountry adoption process
- helping families with specific country requirements
- tracking applications with the relevant country agency
- helping and supervising families after the placement of adopted children.
The Commonwealth-State Agreement for the Continued Operation of Australia’s Intercountry Adoption Program(Opens in a new tab/window) sets out these roles and responsibilities.
Australian central authorities meet to address issues affecting Australia’s intercountry adoption programs.
Visit the Intercountry Adoption Central Authorities page to read these communiques.
For more information on the role of State and Territory Central Authorities, visit the Intercountry Adoption Australia(Opens in a new tab/window) website.