Next year’s census will offer more options than ever for people to make clear their sex, their gender, and their romantic inclinations.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics published the 2026 Census Topics and Data Release Plan today, revealing what subjects Australians will be asked questions of on August 11 next year.
The bureau revealed public consultation during the development phase led to the realisation that more detailed information was needed, particularly for Australia’s LGBTQ+ community.
The 2026 Census will include more diverse options for stating one’s gender identity and sexual orientation. (Getty)
“The 2026 Census will deliver richer insights, with the addition of a new topic on gender and sexual orientation, and updates to existing topics to meet emerging data needs,” Census general manager Jenny Telford said.
Next year, census takers will note down their sex recorded at birth, and everybody over 16 will also be invited to share their gender, which the ABS plan defined as encompassing “social and cultural identity, expression, and lived experience”.
There will be a “prefer not to say option” as well.
The 2026 Census question on gender. (Australian Bureau of Statistics)
The “sex designated at birth” question will include an “enhanced” third option.
The previous census in 2021 asked people to identify themselves as either “male”, “female”, or “non binary”.
Respondents over 16 will also be asked about their sexual orientation, with answering options including an empty field for them to write their preferred term down if it is not included, a “don’t know” option, and a “prefer not to say” option.
The 2026 Census question on sexual orientation. (Australian Bureau of Statistics)
The ABS said this data would “provide valuable data to complement existing Census information and support more inclusive policy development and service delivery for Australians”.
Other changes include allowing respondents to report up to four ancestries, and updating the wording of the “country of birth of parents” questions.
Women will not be asked how many children they have given birth to this time, as that will return to being a question asked only once a decade.
Australia’s next census night will be on August 11, 2026. (The Age)
The ABS promises it does not release Census information in a way that identifies any individual.
The data will be released publicly in three batches beginning on June 2027.
“We will make Census results freely available across a range of products making it easier than ever for people to access and use,” Telford said.
View the full Topics and Data Release Plan online here.
