This regulation replaces the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Regulation 2017 and establishes the procedural and pricing detail that gives operational effect to the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995 (the Act) in New South Wales. It commences on 1 July 2025 (s 2). Mechanically it does four classes of things.

• Prescribes the specific data items that must be supplied to the Registrar for a range of registrable events and related dealings: notification and registration of births (ss 4-5), registration of adoptions and deceased persons' prior intentions to adopt (ss 6-7), registration of parentage orders (s 8), registration of change of name (s 9), registration of relationships (s 10), and the information funeral directors or other persons must supply about human remains and deaths (ss 11-14). Several of those clauses include a standard that information is not required if the person, after making all reasonable inquiries, is unable to supply it (for example ss 5(2), 11(2), 12(2), 13(2), 14(2)).
• Sets out fee mechanics and fees for Registrar services (Part 3, ss 15-19, Schedule 1). It introduces a fee unit that is $100 for 2025-26 and thereafter indexed by the Sydney CPI for the March quarter using the formula in s 17(1)(b). Schedule 1 expresses many specific service charges as fractions of a fee unit and prescribes flat postage and handling charges in dollars for mailed certificates (Schedule 1 cl 3).
• Provides limited operational and administrative rules: authorises digital reproduction of the Registrar’s signature and seal for a digital certificate (s 20), prescribes classes of restricted persons and exempt classes for the Act’s provisions on restricted persons (ss 21-23), prescribes who counts as a “qualified counsellor” for the Act’s counselling provisions (s 24), and designates Corrective Services NSW as a law enforcement agency for Act purposes (s 25).
• Repeals the 2017 regulation but carries forward the effect of acts or things in force immediately before repeal (s 26).

The regulation contains no standalone novel criminal offences or penalty provisions; it primarily implements and elaborates administrative detail for the Act (for instance the linkages to Act sections are explicit in the headings and text, eg Part 3, the Act, s 54). Its operational effects are immediate on commencement for indexed fees and regulatory requirements that reference it.

The regulation’s own text contains limited policy statements or explanatory material beyond the formal commencement and repeal notes. Where it does impose standards, for example the “all reasonable inquiries” qualifier, that is a practical compliance test rather than a detailed procedure. Where the regulation leaves discretion, for instance to the Registrar to fix unspecified fees by negotiation (s 16(2)), it creates administrative choices for private actors and the Registrar rather than prescriptive rules.

Readers should therefore treat the instrument primarily as a technical implementing regulation: it specifies required particulars, fixes how fees are calculated and rounded, delegates discrete classifications and administrative authorities, and ensures continuity with the previous instrument (s 26). The remainder of this note examines the core concepts, parties affected, duties, enforcement pointers, legal interactions, amendment history, litigation record included in the instrument, practical pitfalls, and compliance steps. Throughout the rest of this note references are to provisions in the regulation unless otherwise stated.

The regulation’s organising concepts are procedural specification, fee mechanisation, evidential requirements and limited classification for Act-linked purposes.

• Procedural specification of required particulars. The regulation lists the precise particulars that must be supplied to the Registrar for a wide range of events. For births the lists differ between notification (the immediate notice under the Act, s 12(1)) and full registration (ss 4-5). The registration lists extend to parental details, marriage details, other children, Indigenous status and overseas-born parents’ periods of residence (s 5(1)(e)-(k)). Death and human-remains reporting require similarly detailed particulars: occupation, pensioner/retired status, marital and relationship histories, parentage and children (ss 11-14). For adoptions and parentage orders the regulation prescribes the adoptive/intended parents’ details and other children of those parents (ss 6, 8).
• Fee mechanics by indexed fee unit. The regulation creates a fee unit construct (s 17). For 2025-26 the unit is $100 (s 17(1)(a)). In later years the fee unit is indexed automatically by reference to the Consumer Price Index (All Groups Index) for Sydney for the March quarter (s 15 definition and s 17(1)(b) formula). Fees in Schedule 1 are stated in fee units, so dollar amounts rise and fall with the value of the fee unit. The regulation prescribes rounding rules both for the fee unit (to the nearest cent with 0.5 cent rounding down, s 17(2)) and for fees calculated with the fee unit (to the nearest dollar with 50 cents rounded down, s 18).
• Delegated discretion on unspecified fees and operational notice obligations. If a service is not specified in Schedule 1, the Registrar and the requester must negotiate the fee (s 16(2)). The Registrar must notify Parliamentary Counsel of the fee unit amount and publish the fees on an appropriate government website as soon as practicable after the relevant CPI number is published (s 19(1)(a)-(b)), but the change in fees operates independently of that notice (s 19(2)). This separates the operational effect of indexing from the timetable of public notice.
• Evidentiary and identity concepts. The regulation contemplates identity work and verification: Schedule 1 item 11 charges for manual verification following use of the Commonwealth Document Verification Service. The registration of change of name requires detailed prior names and parental names (s 9). The regulation defines “standard certificate” and “family history certificate” in Sch 1 cl 1, and distinguishes standard and priority processing fees.

The regulation allocates costs, data-collection burdens and decision rights among a set of identifiable actors.

• Registrants and applicants. Parents, birth mothers, intended parents, adoptive parents, persons seeking to change their name, parties to registered relationships and persons applying for certificates are the primary private actors who must provide the particulars set out in Parts 2 and Schedule 1. For example, a person giving notice of a birth must supply the sex of the child, date/time/place of birth, weight, live/stillborn status, mother’s name and DOB, residence and contact details for the notifier (s 4). Persons seeking certificates pay fees set in Schedule 1 (sch 1 cl 2) and postage/handling fees (sch 1 cl 3).
• Funeral directors and persons arranging disposal or removal of human remains. Clauses 11-13 and 14 place substantive information obligations on funeral directors or other persons who arrange disposal, removal from the State, or custody of remains after 30 days. Those obligations include provision of dates, places, occupations, relationship and parental histories, Indigenous status and residence periods for overseas-born deceased persons (ss 11-14). These are practical information-gathering obligations on the funeral industry and others who control or process remains.
• The Registrar. The Registrar gains decision-making responsibilities: to accept particulars and identify parents in the Register as mother or father per the wishes supplied (s 5(3)), to include further information in the Register at the Registrar’s discretion (note to s 5(3) referencing Act s 43(2)) and to negotiate fees where Schedule 1 is silent (s 16(2)). The Registrar must also publish indexed fee information and notify Parliamentary Counsel (s 19(1)).
• Government agencies and professionals. Corrective Services NSW is prescribed as a law enforcement agency for Act purposes (s 25). The regulation’s classifications for restricted persons (ss 21-22) refer to persons subject to reintegration home detention and to specified categories of inmates, parolees and detainees with particular Federal or Defence Force reasons for custody. The “qualified counsellor” definition (s 24) affects clinicians and counsellors by listing who counts, linking to registration under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law and eligibility for professional bodies’ membership.
• Third parties needing certified documents. Passport offices, high commissions, embassies and consulates are recipients to whom the Registrar will supply records for a specified fee (Schedule 1 item 12). Agencies or applicants needing manual verification after a Commonwealth Document Verification Service check will pay a specified fee (Schedule 1 item 11).

The regulation frames duties primarily as information-provision duties on registrants, funeral directors and others, and procedural duties on the Registrar. It also creates rights over how certain particulars are recorded.

Duties of private actors

• To supply specified particulars. The person giving notice of a birth must supply the particulars listed in s 4. The person registering a birth must supply the particulars in s 5(1). Funeral directors or other persons arranging disposal or removal of human remains must supply the particulars in ss 11-13, depending on the circumstance. The person registering a death must supply the particulars in s 14(1).
• To make reasonable enquiries. Several provisions make the furnishing of certain particulars conditional on the person, after making all reasonable inquiries, being unable to supply the information. Examples include s 5(2) (registration particulars not required if, after reasonable inquiries, unable to supply) and s 11(2)-14(2) for funeral directors and registrants. The regulation thereby imposes an evidentially loaded duty to attempt to obtain particulars and to be able to show those attempts, without specifying precisely what those inquiries must be.
• To pay fees. Applicants for certificates, name changes and other Registrar services must pay the statutory fees in Schedule 1, expressed in fee units, and postage/handling fees in dollars where applicable (Schedule 1 cll 2-3). For services not listed, the fee is to be negotiated with the Registrar (s 16(2)).
• To provide documents for verification. Where the national Document Verification Service is used, manual verification attracts a fee (Schedule 1 item 11).

Duties of the Registrar and other officials

• To calculate and publicise the fee unit. The Registrar must notify Parliamentary Counsel of the upcoming financial year fee unit and publish actual fees on an appropriate government website as soon as practicable after the CPI number is published (s 19(1)). That publication duty is procedural; s 19(2) makes clear that fee changes operate without waiting for the notice.
• To allow digital certificates. The regulation authorises the Registrar’s signature and seal to be reproduced in digital form for digital certificates (s 20(1)), giving a practical route for electronic issuance.
• To accept parental identification choices. When registering a birth, particulars supplied can direct the Registrar as to whether a parent is identified as father or mother in the Register (s 5(3)).

The regulation itself does not create new offences or detail enforcement mechanisms; enforcement and penalties remain those available under the Act and other applicable legislation. The instrument repeatedly cross-references the Act for the substantive registration powers and obligations: for example Part 3 is expressly “the Act, s 54” and the various required particulars are stated as particulars required “for the Act” (for example ss 4, 5, 11, 14). Consequently:

• The regulation imposes duties (supply of particulars, payment of fees) but does not set out direct fines or criminal penalties inside its text. Where a sanction or enforcement step is needed, users must consult the Act for the relevant remedy or penalty, since the regulation provides the administrative content rather than the punitive architecture.
• Practical enforcement levers available to the Registrar will be the operational tools embedded in the Act: acceptance or refusal of registrations, refusal to issue certificates, or invoking Act-based offences or administrative penalties where the Act provides them. The regulation enables those decisions by specifying the particulars required and the fee amounts, but it leaves the legal consequences for non-compliance to the Act.
• Administrative enforcement around fees: the regulation fixes fees and requires payment for services. Non-payment, or payment disputes where fees are negotiated under s 16(2), will be matters handled under the Act’s governance or by normal administrative remedies. The regulation does not supply dispute resolution mechanisms for a disagreement over a negotiated fee.
• Rounding and indexing rules (ss 17-19 and s 18) are machine-operational; failure to apply them correctly by the Registrar would be an administrative error rather than a statutory offence under this regulation unless the Act makes specific contraventions penalised.

For practitioners advising clients, the immediate takeaway is that compliance obligations (data collection, payment of prescribed fees, procedural steps) are enforceable through Act-based mechanisms and administrative decisions, but the regulation does not itself list penalties. To determine criminal or civil consequences, consult the Act provisions referenced throughout this regulation (for example where the regulation notes “for the Act, section X” in the headings).

The regulation is explicitly written as a subordinate instrument to the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995 and it cross-references and imports multiple other statutory regimes.

• The Act and Interpretation Act. The regulation repeatedly states particular obligations as being “for the Act” (for example Part 3 is “the Act, s 54”; many provisions open “For the Act, section X”). That ties its content directly to the Act’s powers, duties and enforcement machinery. The regulation also invokes the Interpretation Act 1987 for meanings of certain terms (s 3 note and s 24 note) so established interpretive rules will apply.
• Subordinate Legislation Act 1989. The commencement note (s 2) explains that the new regulation repeals and replaces the 2017 regulation which would otherwise be repealed on 1 September 2025 by the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989 s 10(2). The regulation therefore is intended to ensure a smooth transition of subordinate law and continuity of delegations and specifications.
• Relationships Register Act 2010. Section 10 requires particulars to be registered where the Registrar determines a relationship may be registered under the Relationships Register Act 2010. That means the Registrar must apply the Relationships Register Act criteria and the regulation supplies the particulars to be recorded where the Registrar determines registration is appropriate.
• Crimes (Administration of Sentences) Act 1999 and Migration Act 1958 and Defence Force Discipline Act 1982. Section 21 expands the class of restricted persons under the Act by including persons subject to reintegration home detention orders within the meaning of the Crimes (Administration of Sentences) Act 1999. Section 22 creates exempt classes of persons for the Act’s restricted person provisions but only where the person is subject to custody for certain federal reasons, including a warrant under the Defence Force Discipline Act 1982 or detainees under the Migration Act 1958. These references mean the regulation’s effect on restricted-person status depends on federal and other state countervailing regimes.
• Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (NSW). Section 24 defines who counts as a “qualified counsellor” by reference to registration under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law and membership eligibility for professional bodies such as the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia and the Australian Association of Social Workers. This links counselling qualifications under the Act to national health practitioner regulation.

The regulation records its own immediate replacement of the earlier subordinate instrument and contains an internal amendment note.

• Repeal and replacement. The new regulation expressly repeals the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Regulation 2017 (s 26(1)). The commencement provision states the instrument commences on 1 July 2025 and notes that it repeals and replaces the 2017 regulation, which otherwise would have been repealed on 1 September 2025 under s 10(2) of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989 (s 2 and its note).
• Savings provision. The regulation preserves continuity: any act, matter or thing that, immediately before the repeal of the 2017 regulation, had effect under that regulation continues to have effect under the new regulation (s 26(2)). That is a standard savings mechanism to avoid legal gaps.
• Schedule amendment recorded. Schedule 1 includes the marginal notation “sch 1: Am 2026 No 2, Sch 2.2.” This indicates an amendment to Schedule 1 made by a subsequent amending instrument in 2026 (Amendment No 2, Schedule 2.2). The precise textual change effected by that amending instrument is not set out in this regulation text beyond the marginal note; practitioners must look to the amending instrument to see the precise modifications. The presence of that note indicates Schedule 1 has already been adjusted post-commencement.
• Fee unit and indexing baseline. The regulation sets the initial fee unit of $100 for the 2025-26 financial year (s 17(1)(a)), and prescribes indexing thereafter by reference to the Sydney CPI March quarter numbers and the mathematical formula in s 17(1)(b). Section 17(3) provides a floor: if the calculated fee unit for a later year is less than the prior year’s fee unit, the prior year’s amount prevails.
• Other discrete choices. The regulation sets fixed postage/handling fees expressed in dollars (Schedule 1 cl 3) and specifies rounding rules (s 17(2) and s 18). These operational provisions are part of the instrument’s initial content and will be subject to further amendment only if a later instrument changes them in future.

For a full audit trail, practitioners should consult the legislation register and the printed marginal notes for any amending instruments referred to in the marginalia, notably the mentioned 2026 amending instrument.

The regulation does not contain or cite any judicial decisions; there is no litigation history recorded in the instrument itself. The statutory text includes no references to case law, and no sections indicate that previous judicial interpretations are being codified or clarified by the regulation.

Implications for researchers and litigators

• There are therefore no cases to quote from the regulation. Any legal challenges that might arise from application of this instrument would turn on interpretations of the Act and on the ordinary principles of statutory interpretation applied to the particulars and procedural obligations in this regulation. For instance, disputes could conceivably arise over the meaning of “reasonable inquiries” in ss 5(2), 11(2), 12(2), 13(2) and 14(2), or over the Registrar’s discretion in negotiating fees under s 16(2). Those are the types of points that litigants would likely test in court if a significant dispute occurred.
• If a practitioner needs to know whether prior case law on the 2017 regulation or on the Act is relevant, they must search case databases and the Act itself; the regulation does not attempt to summarise or record that material. The regulation’s savings provision (s 26(2)) preserves the legal effect of any acts done under the 2017 regulation, which may include administrative decisions that have been the subject of litigation; the regulation text does not, however, provide a litigation history or interpret past decisions.

In short: no litigation history is embedded in or referenced by the instrument. Any case development will be in external sources or future judicial decisions.

The regulation contains several practical traps or areas that create ambiguity, implementation risk or transactional friction. Here are concrete items to flag.

• Automatic fee changes operate independently of notice. Section 19(2) states that the part on indexing operates to change fee amounts and that the change is not dependent on the notification or other notice the Registrar must give. Practically this means fees can change on indexation before applicants receive formal published notice. Organisations charging or budgeting for fees must track the CPI and the announced fee unit rather than relying on posted website notices.
• Fee unit indexing granularity and rounding. The fee unit calculation is tied to the Sydney CPI for the March quarter (s 15 definition and s 17(1)(b)). The fee unit is rounded to the nearest cent with 0.5 cent rounding down (s 17(2)). Fees that are multiples of the fee unit are then rounded to the nearest dollar with 50 cents rounded down (s 18). The double rounding process can cause discontinuities between expected CPI-percentage increases and the final dollar amount paid, particularly for small fee-unit fractions in Schedule 1 (for example a fee defined as 0.57 fee units).
• Fee unit floor prevents nominal decreases. Section 17(3) expressly prevents the fee unit from falling below the previous year’s amount. This introduces an asymmetry in indexing: fees can rise but cannot be reduced automatically by negative CPI movements. That affects long-term fee forecasting for frequent users.
• Negotiated fees create potential inconsistency. Where Schedule 1 does not specify a fee, the Registrar negotiates the fee with the requester (s 16(2)). This creates operational discretion for the Registrar and potential inconsistency between different applicants for bespoke services. It also creates negotiation friction and possible transaction costs for applicants who must agree terms rather than rely on a published tariff.
• “Reasonable inquiries” undefined. Several provisions allow non-provision of particulars if the person registering is, after making all reasonable inquiries, unable to supply the particulars (for example s 5(2) and ss 11-14(2)). The regulation does not define what constitutes “reasonable inquiries” or the standard of proof required, leaving room for dispute or for variable administrative practices by funeral directors, registrars or applicants.
• Sensitive data collection. The regulation requires collection of sensitive personal data such as Indigenous status, periods of residence for overseas-born persons, marital and relationship histories and parentage details (for example ss 5(1)(j)-(k), 11(1)(g)-(i), 14(1)(g)-(k)). Entities collecting this data must ensure they comply with privacy law and record-keeping obligations; the regulation does not itself set privacy safeguards beyond specifying the information required.

This section gives a practical compliance checklist referencing the exact provisions that establish duties and detailing pragmatic steps for registrars, funeral directors, applicants and advisers.

Data collection and documentation

• Record the required particulars exactly as listed. Use the lists in ss 4-5 for births, ss 6-8 for adoptions and parentage orders, ss 11-14 for deaths and human remains, s 9 for change-of-name particulars and s 10 for relationship registrations. Ensure forms capture each discrete item the regulation requires (for example s 4 requires the notifier’s contact phone number and email).
• Document “reasonable inquiries”. Where a provision permits omission of particulars because the person is, after making all reasonable inquiries, unable to supply the information (for example s 5(2), ss 11-13(2), s 14(2)), record the steps taken to obtain the information. Practical records should include dates, persons contacted, searches performed (electoral roll, previous records, next-of-kin inquiries) and any returned correspondence. Those contemporaneous notes will be crucial if the Registrar or a third party later questions the adequacy of the inquiries.
• Verify identity and eligibility for “qualified counsellor” status. For services or forms requiring a qualified counsellor under s 24, obtain evidence of registration (medical practitioner or nurse practitioner registration under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law) or evidence of eligibility to be a member of the named professional bodies (Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia or Australian Association of Social Workers). Keep copies of registration numbers or letters of eligibility.
• Manage restricted person status. Where an application engages the Act’s restricted-person provisions, review whether the applicant falls into the classes in s 21 or the exempt classes in s 22. That will require checking custody orders, reintegration home detention orders and the statutory basis for detention or conviction.

Fees and financial administration

• Calculate fees using the fee unit. For 2025-26 use $100 (s 17(1)(a)). For subsequent financial years use the formula in s 17(1)(b) based on the Sydney CPI March quarter numbers, round the fee unit to the nearest cent with the rounding rule in s 17(2), and ensure the fee unit does not fall below the prior year’s amount (s 17(3)). Apply the fee rounding rule in s 18 when converting fee-unit multiples in Schedule 1 into payable dollar amounts. Maintain a simple spreadsheet that multiplies Schedule 1 fee-unit fractions by the current fee unit and applies the s 18 rounding rule to produce exact fee amounts.