Over the years, the law has adapted to generally give de facto relationships the same recognition and status as a marriage.
Until recently, however, a de facto relationship was not able to be included on a person’s death certificate.
The Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2023 came into effect on June 24, 2024, to permit current and past de facto relationships to now be recorded.
Some other changes include:
(a) The ability to record an alias – for example, if your name is John but you’ve always been known as ‘Jack’, your death certificate can reflect this; and
(b) It is now possible to obtain a limited Death Certificate which does not include information regarding a person’s cause of death or burial/cremation wishes.
If you don’t mind sharing these details, you can apply for a standard Death Certificate.
Also of interest is a change to the information recorded in a Birth Certificate.
A person’s gender will not be included on the Birth Certificate unless it is specifically requested.
Descriptors of gender are no longer limited to ‘male’ or ‘female’.
The forms reflect ‘the times’ in this ever-changing world.