Australia Government - 2024

Country name

conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia

conventional short form: Australia

etymology: the name Australia derives from the Latin "australis" meaning "southern"; the Australian landmass was long referred to as "Terra Australis" or the Southern Land

Government type

federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

Capital

name: Canberra

geographic coordinates: 35 16 S, 149 08 E

time difference: UTC+10 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in October; ends first Sunday in April

time zone note: Australia has four time zones, including Lord Howe Island (UTC+10:30)

etymology: the name is claimed to derive from either Kambera or Camberry, which are names corrupted from the original native designation for the area "Nganbra" or "Nganbira"

Administrative divisions

6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia

Dependent areas

Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island (6)

Independence

1 January 1901 (from the federation of UK colonies)

National holiday

Australia Day (commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet of Australian settlers), 26 January (1788); ANZAC Day (commemorates the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915)

Constitution

history: approved in a series of referenda from 1898 through 1900 and became law 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901

amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage requires approval of a referendum bill by absolute majority vote in both houses of Parliament, approval in a referendum by a majority of voters in at least four states and in the territories, and Royal Assent; proposals that would reduce a state’s representation in either house or change a state’s boundaries require that state’s approval prior to Royal Assent; amended several times, last in 1977

Legal system

common law system based on the English model

International law organization participation

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen or permanent resident of Australia

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch

chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor General David HURLEY (since 1 July 2019)

head of government: Prime Minister Anthony ALBANESE (since 23 May 2022)

cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the prime minister from among members of Parliament and sworn in by the governor general

elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general

Legislative branch

description: bicameral Federal Parliament consists of:
Senate (76 seats; 12 members from each of the 6 states and 2 each from the 2 mainland territories; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 6-year terms with one-half of state membership renewed every 3 years and territory membership renewed every 3 years)
House of Representatives (151 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by majority preferential vote; members serve terms of up to 3 years)

elections: Senate - last held on 21 May 2022 (next to be held in May 2025)
House of Representatives - last held on 21 May 2022 (next to be held in May 2025)

election results: Senate - percent of vote by party/coalition - Liberal/National Coalition 40.7%, ALP 34.2%, Greens 14.5%, Pauline Hansen's One Nation 2.6%, Jacqui Lambee Network 2.6%, United Australia Party 1.3%, independent 3.9%; seats by party/coalition - Liberal/National Coalition 31, ALP 26, Australian Greens 11, Pauline Hansen's One Nation 2, Jacqui Lambee Network 2, United Australia Party 1, independent 3; composition - 33 men, 43 women; percentage of women 56.6%

House of Representatives - percent of vote by party/coalition - ALP 50.9%, Coalition 36.4%, 7.9%, 2.6%, others less than 1%; seats by party/coalition - ALP 77, Coalition 55, independent 12, Greens 4, Katter's 1, Center Alliance 1; composition as of January 2024 - 93 men, 57 women; percentage of women 38% (note - one seat will be filled after a by-election on 2 March 2024)

Judicial branch

highest court(s): High Court of Australia (consists of 7 justices, including the chief justice); note - each of the 6 states, 2 territories, and Norfolk Island has a Supreme Court; the High Court is the final appellate court beyond the state and territory supreme courts

judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the governor-general in council for life with mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts: subordinate courts: at the federal level: Federal Court; Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia;  at the state and territory level: Local Court - New South Wales; Magistrates' Courts – Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory; District Courts – New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia; County Court – Victoria; Family Court – Western Australia; Court of Petty Sessions – Norfolk Island

Political parties and leaders

Australian Greens Party or The Greens [Adam BANDT]
Australian Labor Party or ALP [Anthony ALBANESE]
Centre Alliance (formerly known as the Nick Xenophon Team or NXT) [none]
Jacqui Lambie Network or JLN [Jacqui LAMBIE]
Katter's Australian Party [Robbie KATTER]
Liberal Party of Australia [Peter DUTTON]
The Nationals [David LITTLEPROUD]
One Nation or ONP [Pauline HANSON]
United Australia Party [Clive PALMER]

note: the Labor Party is Australia’s oldest political party, established federally in 1901; the present Liberal Party was formed in 1944; the Country Party was formed in 1920, renamed the National Country Party in 1975, the National Party of Australia in 1982, and since 2003 has been known as the Nationals; since the general election of 1949, the Liberal Party and the Nationals (under various names) when forming government have done so as a coalition

International organization participation

ADB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CD, CP, EAS, EBRD, EITI (implementing country), FAO, FATF, G-20, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, PIF, SAARC (observer), Quad, SICA (observer), Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMISS, UNMIT, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Kevin Michael RUDD(since 19 April 2023)

chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000

FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168

email address and website:
info.us@dfat.gov.au

https://usa.embassy.gov.au/

consulate(s) general: Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Caroline KENNEDY (since 25 July 2022)

embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Australian Capital Territory 2600

mailing address: 7800 Canberra Place, Washington DC  20512-7800

telephone: [61] (02) 6214-5600

FAX: [61] (02) 9373-9184

email address and website:
AskEmbassyCanberra@state.gov

https://au.usembassy.gov/

consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney

Flag description

blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth or Federation Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; on the fly half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small, five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars

National symbol(s)

Commonwealth Star (seven-pointed Star of Federation), golden wattle tree (Acacia pycnantha), kangaroo, emu; national colors: green, gold

Commonwealth Coat of Arms:

National anthem

name: Advance Australia Fair

lyrics/music: Peter Dodds McCORMICK

note 1: adopted 1984; although originally written in the late 19th century, the anthem was not used for all official occasions until 1984; as a Commonwealth country, in addition to the national anthem, "God Save the King" serves as the royal anthem (see United Kingdom)

note 2: the well-known and much-loved bush ballad "Waltzing Matilda" is often referred to as Australia's unofficial national anthem; the original lyrics were written in 1895 by Australian poet Banjo PATERSON, and were first published as sheet music in 1903; since 2012, a Waltzing Matilda Day has been held annually on 6 April, the anniversary of the first performance of the song in 1895

National heritage

total World Heritage Sites: 20 (4 cultural, 12 natural, 4 mixed); note - includes one site on Heard Island and McDonald Islands

selected World Heritage Site locales: (n); (n); (n); Gondwana Rainforests (n); Lord Howe Island Group (n); Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens (c); Shark Bay (n); (c); (m); Kakadu National Park (m)