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ACT Government records older than 20 years are available for public access*. These records are stored and managed by the agency that has responsibility for them. There is no single archives repository for ACT Government Records.

ACT Government Archives are those records deemed as Retain as Territory Archives (RTA) according to the authorised Records Disposal Schedules. To assist researchers, the Territory Records Office has compiled an index listing all the RTA classes:

Note, a small number of ACT Government records are closed to the public under Section 28 of the Territory Records Act 2002. You may apply to access these records as well as records created within the past 20 years via each agency's Freedom of Information Officer. More information on FOI can be found at Freedom of Information.

To gain access to ACT Government records you must fill in a request form describing your research topic. ArchivesACT will attempt to provide you with relevant records to assist your research.

Note, the ACT Education Directorate manages access requests for student records of former ACT Public School students. If you are a former ACT public school student seeking records available about yourself, please use the Education Directorate Public Access Requests form. For all other ACT Education records requests continue to use the Place a New Request button below.

Request a Record


*Before submitting your request, take the time to check the links below. These relate to a variety of records that ArchivesACT cannot supply. There are also links to several ACT Government self-service resources.

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Section 28 Exemptions Register

A small number of ACT Government records are closed to the public under Section 28 (S28) of the Territory Records Act 2002. A register of S28 exemptions is available to assist researchers.

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Freedom of Information

From October 2011 to December 2017, certain information provided by the ACT Government to applicants under the Freedom of Information Act 1989 was also released for general public access on the Open Government website. Since January 2018, agencies have been required to publish documents released under the Freedom of Information Act 2016 via a disclosure log made available on their agency website.

Requests for personal information are not published on the disclosure log.  Medical Records are also exempt from release under freedom of information in accordance with the Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997.

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2016, agencies are also required to proactively publish certain categories of information for public access. The Open Access website is a searchable repository of information on agencies functional arrangements, policies and grants administration. It also contains links to other important sources of ACT Government information such as legislation, budget documents and open data.

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ACT Court Records

For Court records on cases heard by the ACT Civil & Administrative Tribunal.

For Court records on cases heard by the ACT Magistrates Court, Children's Court and Coronial Inquests.

For Court records on cases heard by the ACT Supreme Court.

For divorce records, go to the Family Court of Australia.

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ACT Health Medical Records

Health records are confidential documents and remain the property of ACT Health. Copies of health records are not released to consumers or third parties without a written request and signed authorisation from the patient.

Requests to access health records are assessed under the ACT Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997 and fees apply.

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Asbestos Removal Program

The loose-fill asbestos insulation 'Mr Fluffy' removal program was undertaken between 1988 and 1993. This program aimed to remove all visible and accessible loose-fill asbestos insulation from properties. The program did not cover forms of bonded asbestos. In 2013, it was discovered that remnant loose-fill asbestos insulation remained in affected properties. Additional precautions and legal obligations were applied to these properties. The Asbestos Response Taskforce was established in 2014 to provide assistance and support to affected homeowners.

For information on properties that contained loose-fill asbestos insulation (Mr Fluffy), contact Access Canberra.

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Births, Deaths and Marriages

The Births, Deaths and Marriages unit operates within Access Canberra. They register births, deaths, marriages, adoptions, changes of name and deaths that occurred within the ACT.

For divorce records, go to the Family Court of Australia.

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Block and Section Numbers in the ACT

ACTMAPi is a web-based tool for viewing maps and geographic information about Canberra and the ACT. It allows you to view, interact with and query a range of different types of information in graphic form.

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Citizenship/Naturalisation Papers

Citizenship/Naturalisation records are held by the Commonwealth Government.

Contact the National Archives of Australia for naturalisation records up to 1962.

For more recent naturalisation records, contact the Department of Immigration and Citizenship.

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Contaminated Sites in the ACT

Contaminated sites contain concentrations of hazardous substances above safe levels that pose an immediate or long term risk of harm to human health or the environment. Under Section 21A of the Environment Protection Act 1997, the Environment Protection Authority is required to keep a Register of Contaminated Sites.

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Land Titles

Land Titles are responsible for the registration of transactions of land under the Land Titles Act 1925. The office also provides access to Land Titles searching that provides access to ownership, encumbrance and survey data for all registered land in the ACT.

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Lease & Development Conditions Register

The Lease and Development Conditions Register provides specific information about developing blocks of land in the ACT. The register includes information on where you can build, restrictions on the height or appearance of the building and fencing and responsibilities for tree preservation, servicing, landscaping. Development conditions must also be considered for any future building work such as home extensions.

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Student Records & Graduation Certificates for ACT Students

ACT student records including those older than 20 years are closed to the public under Section 28 of the Territory Records Act 2002. You can apply to access your own records under the Freedom of Information Act 2016

. Use one of the following links for details on how to access specific record requests.

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Water, Sewerage and Drainage Plan Search

This component of the Environment and Planning Website is under development. It is possible that you may not find the tie information that you are seeking. This may occur as a result of incorrect entry of block and section details or incorrect address. Additionally, it may be possible that the scanned copy of the tie information is not yet available.

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