{"id":"sl-2012-38","name":"Domestic Relationships Regulation 2012","slug":"domestic-relationships-regulation-2012","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"act","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"38 of 2012","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":173344,"registerId":"act-sl-2012-38-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Domestic Relationships Regulation 2012","content":"Australian Capital Territory\nDomestic Relationships Regulation\n2012\nSL2012-38\nmade under the\nDomestic Relationships Act 1994\nRepublication No 1\nEffective: 11 September 2012\nRepublication date: 11 September 2012\nRegulation not amended\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel\n\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAbout this republication\nThe republished law\nThis is a republication of the Domestic Relationships Regulation 2012, made under the\nDomestic Relationships Act 1994 (including any amendment made under the Legislation Act\n2001, part 11.3 (Editorial changes)) as in force on 11 September 2012. It also includes any\ncommencement, repeal or expiry affecting this republished law.\nThe legislation history and amendment history of the republished law are set out in endnotes 3\nand 4.\nKinds of republications\nThe Parliamentary Counsel’s Office prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws (see the\nACT legislation register at www.legislation.act.gov.au):\n authorised republications to which the Legislation Act 2001 applies\n unauthorised republications.\nThe status of this republication appears on the bottom of each page.\nEditorial amendments\nThe Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel to make editorial\namendments and other changes of a formal nature when preparing a law for republication.\nEditorial changes do not change the effect of the law, but have effect as if they had been made\nby an Act commencing on the republication date (see Legislation Act 2001, s 115 and s 117).\nThe changes are made if the Parliamentary Counsel considers they are desirable to bring the law\ninto line, or more closely into line, with current legislative drafting practice.\nThis republication does not include amendments made under part 11.3 (see endnote 1).\nUncommenced provisions and amendments\nIf a provision of the republished law has not commenced, the symbol U appears immediately\nbefore the provision heading. Any uncommenced amendments that affect this republished law\nare accessible on the ACT legislation register (www.legislation.act.gov.au). For more\ninformation, see the home page for this law on the register.\nModifications\nIf a provision of the republished law is affected by a current modification, the symbol M\nappears immediately before the provision heading. The text of the modifying provision appears\nin the endnotes. For the legal status of modifications, see the Legislation Act 2001, section 95.\nPenalties\nAt the republication date, the value of a penalty unit for an offence against this law is $110 for\nan individual and $550 for a corporation (see Legislation Act 2001, s 133).\n\nR1\n11/09/12\nDomestic Relationships Regulation 2012\nEffective: 11/09/12\ncontents 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nDomestic Relationships Regulation\n2012\nmade under the\nDomestic Relationships Act 1994\nContents\nPage\n1 Name of regulation 2\n2 Civil partnerships under corresponding laws—Act, s 37P 2\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes 3\n2 Abbreviation key 3\n3 Legislation history 4\n\n\n\nR1\n11/09/12\nDomestic Relationships Regulation 2012\nEffective: 11/09/12\npage 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nDomestic Relationships Regulation\n2012\nmade under the\nDomestic Relationships Act 1994\n\nSection 1\npage 2 Domestic Relationships Regulation 2012\nEffective: 11/09/12\nR1\n11/09/12\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n1 Name of regulation\nThis regulation is the Domestic Relationships Regulation 2012.\n2 Civil partnerships under corresponding laws—Act, s 37P\nA relationship is a civil partnership for territory law if it is—\n(a) a registered relationship under the Relationships Register\nAct 2010 (NSW); or\n(b) a registered domestic relationship under the Relationships\nAct 2008 (Vic); or\n(c) a registered relationship under the Relationships Act 2011\n(Qld); or\n(d) a significant relationship registered by a deed of relationship\nunder the Relationships Act 2003 (Tas), section 13 (3) (a); or\n(e) a civil union under the Civil Union Act 2004 (NZ).\n\nEndnotes\nAbout the endnotes 1\nR1\n11/09/12\nDomestic Relationships Regulation 2012\nEffective: 11/09/12\npage 3\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes\nAmending and modifying laws are annotated in the legislation history and the\namendment history. Current modifications are not included in the republished\nlaw but are set out in the endnotes.\nNot all editorial amendments made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 are\nannotated in the amendment history. Full details of any amendments can be\nobtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.\nUncommenced amending laws are not included in the republished law. The\ndetails of these laws are underlined in the legislation history. Uncommenced\nexpiries are underlined in the legislation history and amendment history.\nIf all the provisions of the law have been renumbered, a table of renumbered\nprovisions gives details of previous and current numbering.\nThe endnotes also include a table of earlier republications.\n2 Abbreviation key\nA = Act NI = Notifiable instrument\nAF = Approved form o = order\nam = amended om = omitted/repealed\namdt = amendment ord = ordinance\nAR = Assembly resolution orig = original\nch = chapter par = paragraph/subparagraph\nCN = Commencement notice pres = present\ndef = definition prev = previous\nDI = Disallowable instrument (prev...) = previously\ndict = dictionary pt = part\ndisallowed = disallowed by the Legislative r = rule/subrule\nAssembly reloc = relocated\ndiv = division renum = renumbered\nexp = expires/expired R[X] = Republication No\nGaz = gazette RI = reissue\nhdg = heading s = section/subsection\nIA = Interpretation Act 1967 sch = schedule\nins = inserted/added sdiv = subdivision\nLA = Legislation Act 2001 SL = Subordinate law\nLR = legislation register sub = substituted\nLRA = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 underlining = whole or part not commenced\nmod = modified/modification or to be expired\n\nEndnotes\n3 Legislation history\npage 4 Domestic Relationships Regulation 2012\nEffective: 11/09/12\nR1\n11/09/12\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n3 Legislation history\nThese regulations were made as part of the Civil Unions Act 2012 (see\nA2012-40, s 31 and sch 2).\nDomestic Relationships Regulation 2012 SL2012-38\ntaken to have been notified LR 4 September 2012 (A2012-40,\ns 31 (3) (a))\ns 1 commenced 4 September 2012 (LA s 75 (1))\nremainder commenced 11 September 2012 (A2012-40, s 31 (3) (b))\n© Australian Capital Territory 2012","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulation implements a narrow, mechanical purpose: to list which out‑of‑jurisdiction registered relationships count as civil partnerships for ACT law. It does not expand the policy beyond that original, limited recognition function. The instrument is a direct, list‑based clarification of recognition rather than a substantive change to the Domestic Relationships Act's subject matter."},"complexity_factors":["Very short instrument: 2 substantive sections (name and operative provision).","One operative provision (regulation 2) that contains a 5‑item list.","Cross‑references to 5 external Acts (NSW, Vic, Qld, Tas, and NZ) but no nested conditions or exceptions.","No defined terms or interpretative provisions within the regulation itself.","Deterministic rule (fixed list) — minimal conditional logic or bureaucratic discretion."],"plain_english_summary":"**What this regulation does (mechanical effect)\n\n- Mechanically, the regulation tells the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) which registered relationships from other jurisdictions count as a \"civil partnership\" for the purposes of the Territory's Domestic Relationships Act 1994 (see regulation, section 2).\n\n**Who is affected\n\n- People: couples whose relationship is registered under one of the listed laws in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, or a civil union in New Zealand — those registered relationships will be treated as \"civil partnerships\" in the ACT for territory law purposes.\n- Public agencies and courts: ACT government bodies and courts that apply the Domestic Relationships Act must treat those out‑of‑jurisdiction registrations as civil partnerships when deciding rights and obligations created by the Territory law.\n- Private organisations and service providers: employers, insurers, banks, and other entities that rely on ACT law labels (for example, to determine entitlements or next‑of‑kin status) will see those status decisions align with the Territory's recognition.\n\n**Why it matters (purpose statement and practical effect)\n\n- The regulation's stated purpose is to achieve cross‑jurisdictional recognition: to ensure certain registered relationships formed under specified NSW, Victorian, Queensland, Tasmanian and New Zealand laws are treated as \"civil partnerships\" under the ACT Domestic Relationships Act (reg 2).\n- Practically, that means a relationship registered under one of those listed laws will carry whatever rights, responsibilities or legal consequences the ACT Domestic Relationships Act attaches to a civil partnership (for example, eligibility rules where the Territory law refers to \"civil partnership\").\n\n**Testing that purpose against implementation and policy trade‑offs\n\n- Costs and implementation burden: Administrative cost is low because the regulation is a short, fixed list. Public agencies apply a clear rule (reg 2) rather than making case‑by‑case judgments.\n- Incentives and private behaviour: The regulation increases portability of registered relationship status across the listed jurisdictions. This reduces the incentive for a person to re‑register in the ACT and lowers transaction costs for couples who move between these jurisdictions (section 2 effect).\n- Opportunity costs and trade‑offs: The measure trades minimal legislative detail for legal certainty. It fixes a discrete list rather than setting a general recognition test, which is simpler but rigid (it recognises only named schemes, see reg 2).\n- Compliance and discretion: Compliance burden on individuals is minimal. Bureaucratic discretion is limited because the regulation gives a deterministic list of recognised registrations rather than leaving recognition to administrative decision‑making (reg 2).\n- Market effects (competition, prices, private enterprise): The regulation does not directly regulate business activity, prices, or competition. It may indirectly affect private‑sector decisions that depend on a customer's legal relationship status (for example, employer leave entitlements or insurance claims), by clarifying which out‑of‑jurisdiction registrations the Territory will treat as a civil partnership.\n- Concentrated benefits and diffuse costs: Benefits are concentrated on couples whose relationships were registered under the named laws (they gain portability and recognition). Costs are diffuse and limited — mainly the administrative task of ACT bodies to treat these registrations consistently.\n- Risk of unintended consequences: Because the list is fixed, newly created or amended schemes in other jurisdictions will not be recognised unless the regulation is updated; that can create transitional gaps if partner rights evolve elsewhere (reg 2 reliance on specific Acts).\n\n**Who pays, who decides, and what changes in behaviour\n\n- Who pays: There is no new tax or fee in the regulation. Any administrative cost is borne by public agencies applying the rule and by individuals seeking to rely on recognition (minor transactional costs).\n- Who decides: The regulation (an instrument of the ACT) decides the list of corresponding laws the Territory will recognise (see reg 2).\n- Behaviour change: People with a registered relationship in the listed jurisdictions can expect their status to be recognised in the ACT; some will avoid re‑registration in the ACT and rely on portability instead (reg 2).\n\n**Key provision to check\n\n- Section 2 is the operative clause. It lists the corresponding Acts and the New Zealand Civil Union Act that give rise to an accepted \"civil partnership\" for ACT law purposes.\n\n(End of summary.)"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This regulation appears to serve its original narrow purpose of recognising interstate and international registered relationships. It has not expanded beyond this technical recognition function."},"complexity_factors":["Only 2 operative sections (1 naming, 1 substantive)","No defined terms in the regulation itself","Simple list format with 5 items (a) through (e)","No conditional logic, exceptions, or cross-references within the operative provisions","Single purpose: mutual recognition of interstate and NZ relationship registrations","Total length: approximately 1 page of substantive content"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation treats certain registered relationships from NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania and New Zealand as civil partnerships for ACT law.  \n\nThat means couples who registered their relationship in those jurisdictions will be automatically recognised in the ACT for rights and obligations under the Domestic Relationships Act 1994 (property, inheritance and similar legal matters), avoiding re‑registration and cross‑border uncertainty."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/domestic-relationships-regulation-2012","history":"/api/acts/domestic-relationships-regulation-2012/history","analysis":"/api/acts/domestic-relationships-regulation-2012/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/domestic-relationships-regulation-2012/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/domestic-relationships-regulation-2012/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/domestic-relationships-regulation-2012/documents"}}