Millions of Australians began completing the country’s national census on Tuesday, marking the first time in history that citizens can voluntarily report their sexual orientation and gender identity.
The 66-question survey, administered every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, features the new inquiries for household members aged 16 and older. Respondents can choose to skip the questions, as they are non-mandatory. Religion is the only other optional field, a designation it has held since the inaugural 1911 census.
The inclusion follows a turbulent political debate. The center-left Labor government under Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had pledged during its 2022 election campaign to add LGBTQ+ questions to the census. However, government officials temporarily scrapped the plan in mid-2024, citing concerns about stoking public division.
“We do not want to open up divisive debates in the community now,” Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said at the time.
The decision sparked immediate backlash from civil rights advocates and several Labor lawmakers. Within days, the administration relented. Albanese subsequently confirmed in a radio interview that questions regarding sexual orientation would be included on the final form.
Under the updated layout, choices for sexual orientation include straight, gay or lesbian, bisexual, don’t know, prefer not to answer, or a write-in option. For gender identity, respondents whose current gender differs from their sex recorded at birth can choose man, woman, nonbinary, prefer not to answer, or write in their own term.
By Tuesday morning, statistical officials reported that citizens had already submitted more than 5 million forms. Around 11 million total submissions are expected across the nation. The bureau expects roughly 85 percent of responses to arrive digitally, up from nearly 80 percent during the 2021 census, when pandemic lockdowns confined millions of residents to their homes.
Participation in the census is required by law. Citizens who fail to comply with official directions face daily fines of up to 364 Australian dollars ($257 USD). To ensure comprehensive coverage, field personnel are assisting unhoused individuals and communities in remote regions.
Demographers noted that Australia’s update aligns it closer with several key allies, though some experts argue the measure does not go far enough. Britain introduced similar census questions in 2021, New Zealand followed in 2023, and Canada added them earlier this year.
Liz Allen, a demographer at the Australian National University, said Australia had lagged behind global peers on the issue. She pointed out that the current census still omits specific data collection for intersex people, who are born with biological sex traits that do not fit standard male or female definitions.
By comparison, the 2020 U.S. Census maintained binary male and female choices for gender and avoided explicit questions about sexual orientation, though it allowed same-sex cohabiting couples to identify their relationship status for the first time.
ABS Chief Statistician David Gruen explained that extensive public consultations showed widespread demand for identity options, while keeping the questions voluntary protected individual privacy.
“For a proportion of the population … collecting this information is very important. But for other people, it’s information that they simply don’t want to share,” Gruen told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
