This release includes information from various ABS collections. The collections used and their respective methodologies are available in Table 1.
| Collection | Methodology |
|---|---|
| Census of Population and Housing (Census) | |
| Births, Australia | Births, Australia methodology, 2021 |
| Deaths, Australia | Deaths, Australia methodology, 2021 |
| 2021 Census Post Enumeration Survey | 2021 Census overcount and undercount methodology, 2021 |
In the Census, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status is collected using the Standard Indigenous Question. The Standard Indigenous Question was first introduced in 1996 and has remained unchanged since. The Census is a self-response questionnaire and responses to the Standard Indigenous Question are either made by the person themselves or on behalf of them if someone else is filling in the questionnaire.
The question is based on self-identification and does not include community recognition or acceptance. The section of the release on changing identification in the Census and throughout life explores some of the many personal and external influences that inform a person’s decision to identify as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin in the Census.
The Census does not collect information that could explain why a person may have consistently identified in the Census or why their Indigenous status may change.
The ABS has previously released analysis from the 2006-2011-2016 Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) that enables Census users to better understand changes in the counts of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in these three Censuses in Identification as an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person in the Census over time.
Further analysis using longitudinal data to explore change in identification between Censuses, as well as further geographic breakdowns (including Remoteness) is planned. These analyses are expected to be released later in 2023 and early 2024.
Changes in counts of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people between Censuses are influenced by factors that are either demographic or non-demographic. To determine the amount of change in counts that is demographic or non-demographic, a three-step method is applied.
\(\small{Census \ count \ A* - Census \ count \ B = intercensal \ change \ in \ counts}\)
*Census count A is the most recent time point.
\(\small{Census \ count \ of \ 0-4 \ year \ olds \ - \ intercensal \ deaths(a) \ + \ net \ migration(b)\ =\ demographic \ change}\)
a. Excludes deaths of persons in the 0-4 year age cohort born in the 2016-2021 intercensal period.
b. Net migration excludes: i) people who did not provide information about their place of usual residence five years ago, and ii) people who moved overseas between 2016 and 2021 as data on people who identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander migrating out of Australia is not available (see understanding data quality). At the National level, only migration to Australia from overseas is included in the calculation of intercensal change that is demographic. Below National level, a net migration figure is used that includes people who moved in and out of a region and people who moved into a region from overseas between Censuses.
\(\small{Intercensal \ change \ in \ counts \ - \ demographic \ change \ = \ non-demographic \ change}\)
The methodology for measuring demographic change has been updated from previous releases of this publication to use Census counts of children aged under five years instead of registered births[1].
While registered births are demographic in nature, including them in the measurement of change masks some of the non-demographic change that occurs between Censuses. Using Census counts of children aged under five years brings more consistency in data sources used in the calculation of demographic change.
Registered births still provide valuable insight when understanding change over multiple Censuses (using age cohort analysis), and they are used in this context in this release.
Table 2 shows the differences in the calculation of demographic and non-demographic change in Census counts when using Census count children aged under five years in place of registered births for 2016-2011 and 2016-2021.
| New methodology | Old methodology | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-2011 | 2011-2016 | 2016-2021 | 2006-2011 | 2011-2016 | 2016-2021 | ||
| Intercensal change | no. | 93,340 | 100,803 | 163,557 | 93,340 | 100,803 | 163,557 |
| Registered births | no. | .. | .. | .. | 76,378 | 91,608 | 107,272 |
| Census count children aged 0-4 years | no. | 67,416 | 73,265 | 85,941 | .. | .. | .. |
| Deaths(a) | no. | 11,544 | 13,777 | 17,713 | 12,218 | 14,305 | 18,284 |
| Overseas migration(b) | no. | 1,375 | 1,969 | 2,858 | 1,375 | 1,969 | 2,858 |
| Total demographic change | no. | 57,247 | 61,457 | 71,086 | 65,535 | 79,272 | 91,846 |
| % | 61.3 | 61.0 | 43.5 | 70.2 | 78.6 | 56.2 | |
| Total non-demographic change | no. | 36,093 | 39,346 | 92,471 | 27,807 | 21,531 | 71,711 |
| % | 38.7 | 39.0 | 56.5 | 29.8 | 21.4 | 43.8 | |
Data is based on place of usual residence. Excludes overseas visitors.
a. The updated methodology includes only registered deaths of children born before the previous Census.
b. People whose place of usual residence 5 years prior to Census night was overseas. Excludes people who moved overseas between Censuses as data on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people migrating out of Australia is not available.
.. not applicable.
Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.
Source: Census of Population and Housing, 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021, ABS Birth Registrations, ABS Deaths Registrations, Census of Population and Housing: Understanding the Increase in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Counts, 2006-2011 and Census of Population and Housing: Understanding the Increase in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Counts, 2016.
To determine whether one or both partners in a couple identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander in the Census, three Census data items are used:
These three data items are used to form the following categories:
Information about the Indigenous status of couple families is only available for couples where both partners were at home on Census night. It is therefore likely that the information in this release underestimates the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander couple families.
A parent/guardian usually completes the Census form on behalf of a child. This can mean that a child’s Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status can change between Censuses depending on factors such as:
A person’s Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status can also change between Censuses if/when they fill out the Census form on their own behalf, such as when they first leave the parental home.
It is not possible to determine which parent/guardian completed the Census form or whether they provided information about the Indigenous status of the child/ren in the household, or if the child/ren responded to the Standard Indigenous Question themselves.
In 2021:
| Couple family with children (%) | Lone parent family (%) | Total (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ABORIGINAL AND/OR TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER CHILD | |||
| One parent/guardian of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin(a) | 86.8 | 96.5 | 90.8 |
| Male parent/guardian is of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin | 83.8 | 94.0 | 85.1 |
| Female parent is of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin | 89.7 | 96.7 | 93.7 |
| Both parents/guardians of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin | 99.0 | .. | 99.0 |
| Total | 89.5 | 96.5 | 92.0 |
| NON-INDIGENOUS CHILD(b) | |||
| One parent/guardian of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin(a) | 13.2 | 3.5 | 9.2 |
| Male parent is of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin | 16.2 | 6.0 | 14.9 |
| Female parent is of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin | 10.3 | 3.2 | 6.3 |
| Both parents/guardians of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin | 1.0 | .. | 1.0 |
| Total | 10.5 | 3.5 | 8.0 |
| Total number of children aged 0-14 years with an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander parent/guardian | 134,355 | 73,342 | 207,700 |
Data is based on place of usual residence. Excludes overseas visitors.a. Includes lone parents.b. Includes Indigenous status not stated.
.. not applicable
Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.
Source: Census of Population and Housing, 2021.
Information about the methodology of the 2021 Census overcount and undercount as measured by the PES is available in 2021 Census overcount and undercount methodology, 2021.
Information on state and territory overcount and undercount for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians is reported in Estimates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, June 2021 (Preliminary). To generate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander overcount and undercount results for the states and territories, the Empirical Bayes Estimation method is applied to the raw Post Enumeration Survey (PES estimates).
The method smooths the raw PES estimate of the net undercount based on the Census characteristics of the region (specifically the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons and the level of Census non-response in the region). The aim of smoothing is to provide stable estimates with lower standard errors.
For more information, see Estimates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians methodology, June 2021 and Estimating the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resident population.
Births and deaths data used in this release have some limitations:
A child is recorded as being of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander origin if either the mother or father identifies as being of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander origin on the birth registration form.
Therefore, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births may be attributed to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander:
Registration of deaths is the responsibility of the state and territory Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages (RBDM). Information about the deceased is acquired from the Death Registration Form (DRF). All states and territories use information from the DRF to identify an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander death. In addition, some states and territories also use the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) to identify an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander death. In 2007, the MCCD was introduced in South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. The Queensland RBDM introduced the MCCD in 2015. This resulted in a noticeable decrease in the number of deaths for which the Indigenous status was 'not stated' and an increase in the number of deaths identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander in Queensland. If the Indigenous status reported in the DRF does not agree with that in the MCCD, an identification from either source that the deceased was an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander is given preference over non-Indigenous.
Whilst data is provided to the ABS for Indigenous status (99.4% of all deaths registered in 2021), it may underestimate the level of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander deaths and mortality in Australia.
For more information about Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status in birth and death registrations, see: Births, Australia methodology, 2021 and Deaths, Australia methodology, 2021.
Internal migration information is available from the Census data item Place of Usual Residence 5 years ago (PUR5P). PUR5P is derived from two Census questions:
In 2021, 7.6% or 55,436 people who identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander in the Census did not provide information about their place of usual residence five years ago because they did not answer the questions used to derive PUR5P. These people are coded to ‘not stated’ and are excluded from the internal migration information used in this release. Excluding people coded to ‘not stated’ in PUR5P is consistent with previous editions of this release.
Table 4 shows the impact of excluding and including people coded to ‘not stated’ in PUR5P on calculations of internal migration. Including people coded to ‘not stated’ changes the count of people who moved into a state or territory because they are included in the 2021 Census count for the state or territory they were counted in for 2021. Consequently, people coded to ‘not stated’ also impact the calculation of change due to interstate migration.
| Place of usual residence 5 years ago, excluding not stated PUR5P | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State/Territory | Overseas migration | Moved into state/territory | Moved out of state/territory | Change due to interstate migration |
| New South Wales | 936 | 6,772 | 10,979 | -4,207 |
| Victoria | 336 | 4,290 | 3,725 | 565 |
| Queensland | 888 | 11,186 | 7,176 | 4,010 |
| South Australia | 139 | 1,936 | 1,860 | 76 |
| Western Australia | 322 | 2,680 | 2,358 | 322 |
| Tasmania | 88 | 1,170 | 1,254 | -84 |
| Northern Territory | 79 | 2,312 | 3,170 | -858 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 76 | 1,604 | 1,419 | 185 |
| Place of usual residence 5 years ago, including not stated PUR5P | ||||
| New South Wales | 936 | 11,062 | 10,979 | 83 |
| Victoria | 336 | 5,546 | 3,725 | 1,821 |
| Queensland | 888 | 15,856 | 7,176 | 8,680 |
| South Australia | 139 | 2,643 | 1,860 | 783 |
| Western Australia | 322 | 4,199 | 2,358 | 1,841 |
| Tasmania | 88 | 1,528 | 1,254 | 274 |
| Northern Territory | 79 | 2.933 | 3,170 | -237 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 76 | 1,714 | 1,419 | 295 |
Data is based on place of usual residence. Excludes overseas visitors. Includes Other Territories.Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.Source: Census of Population and Housing, 2021.
The base area that is output for PUR5P is Statistical area level 2 (SA2). These areas can be aggregated to form higher Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) areas. To extract information about PUR5P for Indigenous Regions (IREGs), a correspondence for 2021 SA2 to 2021 IREGs was used.
Correspondences at the SA2 level are not as accurate as correspondences at the meshblock level. Meshblock level correspondences are used in related releases such as Census of Population and Housing - Counts of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2021.
Most SA2s mapped directly to an IREG, but some mapped across two IREGs. For example, the SA2 of Young Surrounds spanned across the IREGs of Riverina (0.69) and South-Eastern NSW (0.31). In this scenario, Young Surrounds was mapped to the IREG where the greatest proportion of the SA2 was – Riverina. The effect of split SA2s on the data is minimal.
Table 5 provides a summary of the SA2s that corresponded to two IREGs and were mapped to the IREG with the greater ratio. The full correspondence is available in the downloads section and more information about correspondences is available in Correspondences.
| State/territory | 2021 SA2 | 2021 IREG | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | Young Surrounds | Riverina | 0.69 |
| South-Eastern NSW | 0.31 | ||
| Queensland | Northern Highlands | Townsville Mackay | 0.73 |
| Mount Isa | 0.27 | ||
| Far Central West | Mount Isa | 0.85 | |
| Toowoomba | 0.15 | ||
| Western Australia | Exmouth | South Headland | 0.66 |
| Geraldton | 0.34 | ||
| Meekatharra | Geraldton | 0.83 | |
| Kalgoorlie | 0.17 | ||
| Northern Territory | Alligator | Darwin | 0.58 |
| Jabiru - Tiwi | 0.42 | ||
| Gulf | Katherine | 0.83 | |
| Nhulunbuy | 0.17 |
The overseas migration information in this release does not capture net overseas migration.
This release uses overseas migration information from the Census data item Place of Usual Residence 5 years ago (PUR5P). Overseas migration information from this data item relates to people who lived overseas 5 years ago and returned to Australia between Censuses. It does not capture people who migrated overseas from Australia between Censuses and who were living overseas at the time of the 2021 Census.
Administrative data sources of overseas migration (arrival and departure information from the Department of Home Affairs) do not collect the Indigenous status of persons arriving to or departing from Australia. It is therefore not possible to compare Census migration information to administrative records to explore possible differences between the two.
The Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) provides a framework of statistical areas to enable the release of statistics that are comparable and spatially integrated.
The tables in this release are presented by the following ASGS ABS Structures:
Main structure
Indigenous structure
Local Government Areas
Data from the 2016 Census presented for IREGs and LGAs is based on 2021 IREG and LGA boundaries to allow for direct comparisons. As a result, the 2016 Census data in this release may differ to previously published 2016 Census data. More information about correspondences is available in Correspondences.
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander couple family | A couple where one or both partners identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander. |
|---|---|
| Couple | Two people who were present in the same dwelling on Census night who have a relationship of husband, wife, or partner. |
| Demographic change | Change in Census counts that can be explained by factors of population change – births, deaths and migration. |
| Family | In the Census, a family consists of two or more people who usually live in a household where:
Two family members form a family nucleus in these cases:
For more information see: Understanding Family composition and Grandparent families. |
| Gross coverage error | The difference between the PES population estimate and the number of unique persons from which Census received a response. |
| Gross overcount | An estimate of the excess count of persons (according to PES) either from being counted on more than one Census form or from being counted in error (e.g., where a person was overseas on Census night and therefore should not have been counted but was included on a Census form at their usual residence). |
| Gross undercount | An estimate of the number of people who should have been counted in the Census (according to PES) but were missed because:
|
| Indigenous and non-Indigenous partnership couple | A couple where one partner identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander and the other partner identified as non-Indigenous or did not respond to the Standard Indigenous Question. |
| Intercensal | The time between two Census periods. |
| Natural increase | The net effect of intercensal births minus intercensal deaths. |
| Net undercount | The difference between the estimate of how many people should have been counted in the Census as determined through the Post Enumeration Survey (PES) and the actual Census count (including imputed persons). |
| Non-demographic change | Change in Census counts that cannot be explained by factors of population change. |
| Measurement | Downloads table | Collection | Data items used | Inclusions/Exclusions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Census count | 1 | Census 1971-2021 |
|
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| Change in Census counts by sex, state/territory and age group | 2 | Census 2016-2021 |
|
|
| Change in Census counts and demographic and non-demographic factors of change | 3-6 | Census 2016-2021 |
|
|
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander couple families | 7 | Census 1996-2021 |
|
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[1] Using registered births for children aged under five years instead of Census counts meant that the calculation of demographic change in previous releases also needed to include registered deaths of children aged under five years who were born after the previous Census.