Queensland Birth, Death and Marriage Certificates: Fees, Eligibility and How to Apply

Queensland's Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages issues birth, death and marriage certificates under the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2023 (Qld), charging $58.10 for a standard certificate of any type as of 18 August 2026.

This page is one of eight state guides in our Australian birth, death and marriage certificates hub.

The Registry and Queensland's Governing Act

The Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages (RBDM) administers Queensland's birth, death and marriage register. Its governing law is the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2023 (Qld), No. 17 of 2023, assented on 23 June 2023. The current reprint of the Act is dated as current at 1 March 2026, and its own text repeals the earlier Act that previously governed this register in full. A reference anywhere to that earlier Act as still in force is outdated; the 2023 Act is the current law.

The Act's object clause extends the register to cover births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships, adoptions, changes of name and alterations of sex, along with documents that acknowledge the name and sex of a person born outside Queensland. The current reprint also flags a further amending Act, described only as having been enacted but not yet commenced as of the 1 March 2026 reprint date. Its subject matter had not been confirmed at the time this article was researched, so readers dealing with a recent or upcoming change should check directly with the Registry.

Certificate Fees

All figures below are quoted from the Registry's own certificate ordering pages, accessed 18 August 2026. Queensland Government fees typically move on 1 July each year, so confirm the current figure with the Registry before paying if this article is being read well after that date.

A standard birth, death and marriage certificate all cost exactly the same amount in Queensland, $58.10, which is worth knowing before assuming one type costs more than another.

Who Can Apply

Eligibility is set separately for each certificate type, and each ordering page also links to a Registry policy document listing further eligible applicants beyond the categories below; readers who do not fit these categories should confirm with the Registry directly rather than assume they cannot apply.

• Birth certificate: the person themselves, their parent, a legal guardian or person with legal parental responsibility, their solicitor, or the executor of their estate.
• Death certificate: the deceased's spouse, parent or child, the person who provided the details and signed the death registration, a funeral director, or the executor of the estate.
• Marriage certificate: one of the parties to the marriage, their solicitor, or the executor of one of the parties' estates.

Proof of Identity

Queensland does not use a points based proof of identity system. The Registry instead asks for documents across three categories: personal identification such as a passport, driver licence or proof of age card carrying a photo; community documents such as a Medicare card, birth certificate, student ID or workplace identification; and home address evidence such as a utility bill, lease, rates notice or vehicle registration renewal. Applicants generally need three current documents, either one from each category, or two community documents plus one home address document. Documents must be current or issued within the last six months, and documents not in English need a professional translation.

How to Apply and Processing Times

Queensland offers the same three channels for birth, death and marriage certificates. Applications can be lodged online through the Registry's application portal, by post to the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, PO Box 15188, City East QLD 4002, or in person at a Queensland Magistrates Court or QGAP office outside Brisbane, a JPs in the Community location, or the Brisbane registry's customer service centre at Level 32, 180 Ann Street, open weekdays 8:30am to 4:30pm.

Standard processing is published as up to 10 business days, and an urgent application is processed within 2 business days for the extra fee. Applications missing required documents take longer, and postage adds further delivery time on top of processing.

Registering a Birth

Section 9 of the Act sets the birth registration deadline at 60 days after the birth, extended to 180 days where variations of sex characteristics have been identified. A registration application lodged after that window is still accepted where the registrar is satisfied the birth happened, so a late application is not automatically barred. This 60 day deadline is separate from an earlier duty under section 5, which requires the hospital in charge or the attending doctor to notify the registrar of the birth in the first place, and carries its own penalty for the hospital or doctor if missed. The two duties apply to different people and should not be treated as one rule.

Registering a Death

Death registration must be lodged within 14 days after the death happens or is discovered, under section 92 of the Act. It is usually completed by the funeral director on the family's behalf; where no funeral director is involved, the deceased's spouse, partner, relative or friend, the person in charge of the place the death occurred, the person who found the body, or the person who arranged disposal of the body can register it instead. A late application is still accepted where the registrar is satisfied the death happened, and a stillborn child born before 1 May 1989 has no fixed deadline at all.

The registration application must be accompanied by the document the Act itself calls the cause of death certificate. A doctor cannot charge for providing this certificate. Where the death is reportable to a coroner, the coronial process supplies the equivalent document instead. A death certificate ordered from the Registry is a standard supporting document for a Queensland probate application; see the Queensland probate guide for what an executor needs it for.

Historical Records and Closed Periods

The Act itself does not fix a specific number of years before a record becomes historical. Its dictionary defines historical information as information registered before a period set by regulation, and gives 90 years only as a non binding drafting example, not an enacted rule. The Registry could not be confirmed to have published the underlying regulation's own cutoff at the time of writing.

In practice, the Registry's own family history guide currently treats births registered before 1925, deaths before 1980 for full image and certificate access (and before 1996 for certificate only access), and marriages before 1950 as historical records. Anyone can search these historical records online and order a historical certificate or image without providing proof of identity. These cutoffs are the Registry's current published operating practice rather than a fixed statutory rule, and the fixed calendar years quoted may not have moved since the guide was last updated, so readers should treat them as current as of this page's access date rather than a permanent formula.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Queensland's governing Act for birth, death and marriage certificates?

The Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2023 (Qld), No. 17 of 2023. It repealed and replaced the Act that previously governed the register, under a repeal clause in its own text, so an older reference to that prior Act as current is no longer accurate.

How much does a Queensland birth, death or marriage certificate cost?

$58.10 for a standard certificate of any of the three types, current as of 18 August 2026. A commemorative package costs $75.60, and urgent processing adds $34.45. Queensland Government fees generally change on 1 July each year, so confirm the figure before paying if it has been some time since this was current.

How long do I have to register a birth in Queensland?

60 days from the birth under section 9 of the Act, extended to 180 days where variations of sex characteristics have been identified. Registration lodged after that window is still accepted if the registrar is satisfied the birth happened, so a late application is not barred outright.

Who registers a death in Queensland, and by when?

Usually the funeral director, on the family's behalf. The application must reach the registrar within 14 days after the death happens or is discovered, under section 92 of the Act, and must include the document the Act calls the cause of death certificate, which the treating doctor cannot charge for.

Does Queensland use a points system for proof of identity?

No. The Registry uses a three category document system, personal photo ID, community documents and home address evidence, and generally asks for three current documents across those categories rather than a total number of points.

When do Queensland birth, death and marriage records become historical records?

The Registry's family history guide currently treats births registered before 1925, deaths before 1980 for full image access and before 1996 for certificate only access, and marriages before 1950 as historical. These are the Registry's published operating cutoffs rather than a number of years set out in the Act itself.