Access our Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander services

Here are some ways BDM services can assist mob.

Marguk-bulok koolin-ik Team (Aboriginal Outreach)

The Marguk-bulok koolin-ik Team works to support Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander community access BDM services.

You don't need to wait until you've applied for a certificate before you contact them.

To get in touch, email us at bdm.koori@justice.vic.gov.au (External link).

Support with fees (our fee waiver policy)

In some circumstances, you can ask the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages not to charge the fee. This is available only for certain certificates or registrations. This is called a fee waiver application.

Not all eligible products are eligible for fee waiver in every case. It will depend on your circumstances.

The Registrar may decide to waive fees in circumstances such as:

• Financial hardship
• Natural disasters
• Vulnerability, such as: 
  • People experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness
  • People experiencing or directly impacted by family violence
• Identified community needs.

Help with fees is also available for:

• Children in out of home care, informal kinship care or the youth justice system, and
• Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander people in correctional facilities, or on remand.

For more information, please email bdm.koori@justice.vic.gov.au (External link)

New engagement strategy

The Marguk-bulok koolin-ik Team (Aboriginal Outreach) is developing a new engagement strategy. We are currently consulting with the Aboriginal community and the Victorian Government.

Acknowledgement of Country and language use

The Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages respectfully acknowledges the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, who are the Traditional Owners of the land on which our office is located. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples living in Victoria have diverse cultures.

On this website we use these terms:

• ‘Koori’ and ‘Aboriginal’. Refers to the Aboriginal and Torres-Strait Islander people of Victoria
• ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander’. Refers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across Australia.
• ‘Family’ has many different meanings. Use of the words ‘family’ and ‘families’ is all-encompassing. It acknowledges that a variety of relationships and structures can make up a family unit. These include family-like or care relationships and extended kinship structures.
• ‘Boorai’, meaning ‘baby’ or ‘child’, is used in many Aboriginal language groups.
• ‘Mob’. Refers to a group of Aboriginal people associated with a particular place or Country. It is used to connect and identify Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and where they are from. ‘Mob’ can represent a family group, clan group or wider Aboriginal community group.

Marguk-bulok koolin-ik Team name

Aunty Fay Stewart-Muir is a highly respected Boonwurrung Elder who has served the Victorian community for over 40 years. Aunty Fay has kindly shared her Boonwurrung language by naming our Marguk-bulok koolin-ik Team (Aboriginal Outreach).

The meaning of 'Marguk-bulok koolin-ik' reflects family connections, care, culture and community. All of these are important parts of the team's work to support mob. We are proud for the team to be called Marguk-bulok koolin-ik.

Self Determination

Your voice is important to us.

BDM is guided by the Victorian Aboriginal Affairs Framework and the Self-Determination enablers:

• Prioritise culture
• Address trauma and support healing
• Address racism and promote cultural safety
• Transfer power and resources to communities

To provide feedback, or suggest other ways we can support mob, please contact:

Marguk-bulok koolin-ik Team (Aboriginal Outreach)
Email: bdm.koori@justice.vic.gov.au (External link)

You can also provide feedback on our Contact us page.