Cross-Border Jurisdictional Protocol
Australia's Hague Service Convention obligations entered into force on November 1, 2010. Australia has not objected to any Article 10 channel, giving requesting parties real flexibility: service can proceed by postal channel, by a competent local official, through the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department as the national Central Authority, or — often faster — by sending the request directly to the Supreme Court registry of the state or territory where the defendant is located.
Where the defendant's state or territory is known, we send the Hague Service Request directly to that jurisdiction's Supreme Court registry, which is often faster than routing through the national Central Authority first.
Request direct state filing →For matters better suited to the formal national channel, we submit the request to the Private International Law Section of the Attorney-General's Department in Canberra, which forwards it to the appropriate state or territory Registrar.
Request AGD submission →Since Australia has not objected to Article 10(a) or 10(b), postal service and service by a competent local official remain valid alternatives where circumstances favor a faster, less formal approach.
Discuss alternative service options →Complete National Jurisdiction
Active network of local agents, court officers, and Central Authority specialists covering every administrative region.
All international document handoffs are executed pursuant to local sovereignty statutes and returned with court-certified evidentiary declarations.
Judicial Knowledge Base
The Private International Law Section within the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department in Canberra, which handles requests under the Hague Service Convention and several related treaties.
Yes. If the state or territory where the person to be served is located is known, a request can be sent directly to that jurisdiction's Supreme Court registry, which can be faster than filing with the Attorney-General's Department first.
Yes. Australia has not objected to Article 10(a), so postal channel service is a valid method, alongside Article 10(b) service by a competent local official.
Documents served through the Central Authority must be translated into English, Australia's official language, though this is typically already satisfied for English-language U.S. filings.
Australia ratified the Convention in March 2010, with it entering into force domestically on November 1, 2010.
Consult with our international legal support specialists about service of process in Australia.