The Victorian Government has recently published new information to support people impacted by adoption to be aware of their rights in relation to accessing information from the Births, Deaths and Marriages (BDM) Register and privacy related matters.
This information aims to:
- Make it easier to find and understand how to access information from the BDM Register;
- Explain BDM’s role in adoptions and how the BDM Registrar assesses applications made to BDM for information in the BDM Register;
- Set out how to get an adopted person’s legal birth certificate and original birth certificate; and
- Provide a dedicated email for questions about adoptions.
This information reflects Recommendation 33 from the Inquiry into responses to historical forced adoption in Victoria and recognises the importance of clarifying and clearly publicising the rights of people to access current information from the Births, Deaths and Marriages Register that may contain identifying information about other people.
You can access this information and learn more about Births, Deaths and Marriage’s role in relation to adoptions here.
If you are searching for your natural (sometimes known as birth or biological family), VANISH may be able to assist.
Learn more about what is involved in searching for family or contact us.