The South Australian Parliament has passed reforms aimed at improving how parental roles are recorded on birth certificates for Rainbow families.
The Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration (Birth Certificates) Amendment Bill passed by 33 votes to 8, marking a significant shift in how non-birth parents can be recognised on official documents.
Under the changes, non-birth legal parents — currently listed as the “other parent” under existing law — will now be able to select “mother,” “father,” or “parent” on their child’s birth certificate.
The reforms will also apply retrospectively, allowing families to update birth certificates for children born before the legislation was passed.
However, the law does not extend the same flexibility to birth parents.
People who give birth must still be recorded as “mother” on birth certificates, meaning trans men and non-binary people who give birth will not be able to be registered as “father” or “parent” under the new system.
“A positive advancement for LGBTI rights”
Greens politician Robert Simms welcomed the change, calling it “another positive advancement for LGBTI rights in South Australia”, while acknowledging that more work is needed to modernise birth certificates so they better reflect diverse family structures.
“More than a decade has passed since our state finally changed the law to allow women in same-sex relationships to both be included on their child’s birth certificate but only as mother and co-parent,” Simms said.
“In recent years, same-sex mothers who are seeking to have their status as mothers equally recognised on their child’s birth certificate. Irrespective of whether or not they give birth to the child, both parents should have the right to be acknowledged as mothers, reflecting the reality of their family structure and relationship with their child. Finally, we have changed the law to give these mothers that right.”
Birth certificates are widely used in everyday life, including for school enrolments, sports club participation and access to government services.
Advocates say they should accurately reflect the family structures in which children are raised and cared for.
While the reforms have been welcomed as an important step forward for Rainbow families, advocates say further change is still needed to ensure all parents can be represented in ways that align with their gender identity and lived experience.
Jess Cronin, from Rainbow Families SA, said the bill was a meaningful step forward.
“This bill is a positive step forward for rainbow families in South Australia,” Cronin said.
“My partner and I were fortunate to have our children in the ACT, where we are both recognised as equal parents on their birth certificates. Had our children been born in South Australia, as the birth mother, only I would have been recognised in this way. We moved back to South Australia when our youngest child was eight weeks old. Had he been born just eight weeks later, we would not have had that same legal recognition on his birth certificate here in South Australia.
“We are equal mothers to our two children, and that is exactly how they see us. That is the reality for many rainbow families whose children have been born in South Australia, and they deserve to have that reality reflected on one of their children’s most important legal documents – their birth certificates.”
For many families, the reform is about more than terminology. It is about having the law recognise the relationships, responsibilities and love that already exist within their homes.
