Under the Aboriginal Housing Act 1998 (NSW), an Aboriginal person (includes Torres Strait Islanders) means a person who:
- is a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia, and
- identifies as an Aboriginal person, and
- is accepted by the Aboriginal community as an Aboriginal person.
Confirmation can be provided in any of the following ways:
Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC)
The NSW Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 (as amended) states that to be a member of a Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC), you must be an Aboriginal person. A letter, on LALC letterhead and signed by either the LALC Chairperson or Chief Executive Officer confirming your acceptance as a member of a LALC, can be provided as proof of Aboriginality.
OR
Aboriginal Organisation
You can provide a letter of Confirmation from a registered Aboriginal community organisation as proof of Aboriginality.
The letter of Confirmation must:
- be from a registered Aboriginal community organisation, that is:
- an Aboriginal association incorporated under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (formerly the Aboriginal Councils and Associations Act 1976), OR
- an incorporated Aboriginal community organisation where all the members of the organisation are Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander or both, AND
- be on the organisation's letterhead, AND
- state that you are of Aboriginal descent, and identify as an Aboriginal person, and are accepted by the Aboriginal community as an Aboriginal person, AND
- state that your Aboriginality has been confirmed and resolved at a duly constituted meeting of the organisation's governing body, AND
- be signed in accordance with the rules of the organisation.
OR, if neither of the above is possible,
Statutory Declaration
A Statutory Declaration can only be used in circumstances where an individual is unable to provide evidence from a Local Aboriginal Land Council or Aboriginal Corporation - this must be explained in the statutory declaration along with evidentiary examples to assist in the determination of Aboriginality. Statutory declarations should only be used as a last resort.