What is the National Archives of Australia?
Q: What is the National Archives of Australia?
A: The National Archives of Australia is an agency established by the Government of Australia. It collects and preserves government records.
Q: When was the National Archives established?
A: The National Archives were established in 1961.
Q: What law was passed to protect Commonwealth archives?
A: The Archives Act 1983 was a law passed to protect Commonwealth archives.
Q: What kind of documents does the collection include?
A: The collection includes records written about Federation, Governors-General, Prime Ministers, Cabinet and Ministries and most of the activities with which the government has been involved.
Q: How can members of the public access information from the collection?
A: Items can be requested for viewing in the reading rooms, and copies of records can be made. Most records over 30 years old are available to the public. Some are released with certain pieces of information deleted.
Q: What kinds of information may be restricted from public access?
A: Information that may be restricted from public access includes documents relating to defence and security, private information, raw census data, and culturally sensitive information related to indigenous Australians.
Q: Are any collections available online?
A: Yes, several collections have been made available online including all Australian military service records (records of those who served in the military) from Second Boer War to Vietnam War as well as immigration and naturalisation documents more than 30 years old which were made available in 2005.
