Background: Prehistoric settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia at least 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession of the east coast in the name of Great Britain (all of Australia was claimed as British territory in 1829 with the creation of the colony of Western Australia). Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the Allied effort in World Wars I and II.

Geographic coordinates: 27 00 S, 133 00 E

Map reference: Oceania

Area
Total: 7,741,220 km²
Land: 7,682,300 km²
Water: 58,920 km²
Note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
Rank: 7
Comparative: slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 25,760 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate: generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north

Terrain: mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast

Elevation
Mean elevation: 330 m
Lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
Highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,228 m

Natural resources: alumina, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, rare earth elements, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum; note - Australia is the world's largest net exporter of coal accounting for 29% of global coal exports

Land use
Agricultural land: 52.9% (2016 est.)
Forest: 16.2% (2016 est.)
Other: 30.9% (2016 est.)

Irrigated land: 25,460 km² (2014)

Natural hazards: cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest firesvolcanism: volcanic activity on Heard and McDonald Islands

Geography
Note: note 1: world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; the largest country in Oceania, the largest country entirely in the Southern Hemisphere, and the largest country without land borders; the only continent without glaciers; the invigorating sea breeze known as the 'Fremantle Doctor' affects the city of Perth on the west coast and is one of the most consistent winds in the worldnote 2: the Great Dividing Range that runs along eastern Australia is that continent’s longest mountain range and the third-longest land-based range in the world; the term 'Great Dividing Range' refers to the fact that the mountains form a watershed crest from which all of the rivers of eastern Australia flow - east, west, north, and south

Population
Distribution: population is primarily located on the periphery, with the highest concentration of people residing in the east and southeast; a secondary population center is located in and around Perth in the west; of the States and Territories, New South Wales has, by far, the largest population; the interior, or 'outback', has a very sparse population: 25,466,459 (July 2020 est.)
Rank: 55
Growth rate: 1.4% (2020 est.)
Growth rate rank: 78
Below poverty line note: NA

Nationality
Noun: Australian(s)
Adjective: Australian

Ethnic groups: English 25.9%, Australian 25.4%, Irish 7.5%, Scottish 6.4%, Italian 3.3%, German 3.2%, Chinese 3.1%, Indian 1.4%, Greek 1.4%, Dutch 1.2%, other 15.8% (includes Australian aboriginal .5%), unspecified 5.4% (2011 est.)
Note:  data represent self-identified ancestry, over a third of respondents reported two ancestries

Languages: English 72.7%, Mandarin 2.5%, Arabic 1.4%, Cantonese 1.2%, Vietnamese 1.2%, Italian 1.2%, Greek 1%, other 14.8%, unspecified 6.5% (2016 est.)
Note: data represent language spoken at home

Religions: Protestant 23.1% (Anglican 13.3%, Uniting Church 3.7%, Presbyterian and Reformed 2.3%, Baptist 1.5%, Pentecostal 1.1%, Lutheran .7%, other Protestant .5%), Roman Catholic 22.6%, other Christian 4.2%, Muslim 2.6%, Buddhist 2.4%, Orthodox 2.3% (Eastern Orthodox 2.1%, Oriental Orthodox .2%), Hindu 1.9%, other 1.3%, none 30.1%, unspecified 9.6% (2016 est.)

Age structure
0-14 years: 18.72% (male 2,457,418/female 2,309,706)
15-24 years: 12.89% (male 1,710,253/female 1,572,794)
25-54 years: 41.15% (male 5,224,840/female 5,255,041)
55-64 years: 11.35% (male 1,395,844/female 1,495,806)
65 years and over: 15.88% (male 1,866,761/female 2,177,996) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 55.1
Youth dependency ratio: 29.9
Elderly dependency ratio: 25.1
Potential support ratio: 4 (2020 est.)

Median age
Total: 37.5 years
Male: 36.5 years
Female: 38.5 years (2020 est.)
Rank: 69

Population growth rate: 1.4% (2020 est.)
Rank: 78

Birth rate: 12.4 births/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 155

Death rate: 6.9 deaths/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 127

Net migration rate: 8.1 migrant(s)/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 11

Population distribution: population is primarily located on the periphery, with the highest concentration of people residing in the east and southeast; a secondary population center is located in and around Perth in the west; of the States and Territories, New South Wales has, by far, the largest population; the interior, or 'outback', has a very sparse population

Urbanization
Urban population: 86.2% of total population
Note:
Rate of urbanization: 1.43% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: 4.968 million Melbourne, 4.926 million Sydney, 2.406 million Brisbane, 2.042 million Perth, 1.336 million Adelaide, 457,000 CANBERRA (capital) (2020)

Environment
Current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing, deforestation, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; limited natural freshwater resources; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; drought, desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; disruption of the fragile ecosystem has resulted in significant floral extinctions; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; overfishing, pollution, and invasive species are also problems
International agreements party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.09 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 28.7 years (2014 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 3.1 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 3.3 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 2.9 deaths/1000 live births (2020 est.)
Rank: 213

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 82.7 years
Male: 80.5 years
Female: 85 years (2020 est.)
Rank: 14

Total fertility rate: 1.74 children born/woman (2020 est.)
Rank: 161

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 66.9% (2015/16)
Note: percent of women aged 18-45

Drinking water source
Urban: 0% of population
Rural: 0% of population
Total: 0% of population (2017 est.)

Current health expenditure: 9.2% (2017)

Physicians density: 3.68 physicians/1000 population (2017)

Hospital bed density: 3.8 beds/1000 population (2016)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2019 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 117
People living with hivaids: 29,000 (2019 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 76
Deaths note: <100 (201 est.)

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 29% (2016)
Rank: 27

Education expenditures: 5.1% of GDP (2017)
Rank: 53

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 21 years
Male: 20 years
Female: 21 years (2018)

Country name
Conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia
Conventional short form: Australia
Etymology: the name Australia derives from the Latin australis meaning southern; the Australian landmass was long referred to as Terra Australis or the Southern Land

Government type: federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

Capital
Name: Canberra
Geographic coordinates: 35 16 S, 149 08 E
Time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in October; ends first Sunday in April: note: Australia has four time zones, including Lord Howe Island (UTC+10:30)etymolgy: the name is claimed to derive from either Kambera or Camberry, which are names corrupted from the original native designation for the area 'Nganbra' or 'Nganbira'

Administrative divisions: 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia

Dependent areas: (6) Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island

Independence: 1 January 1901 (from the federation of UK colonies)

National holiday: Australia Day (commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet of Australian settlers), 26 January (1788); ANZAC Day (commemorates the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915)

Constitution
History: approved in a series of referenda from 1898 through 1900 and became law 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage requires approval of a referendum bill by absolute majority vote in both houses of Parliament, approval in a referendum by a majority of voters in at least four states and in the territories, and Royal Assent; proposals that would reduce a state’s representation in either house or change a state’s boundaries require that state’s approval prior to Royal Assent; amended several times, last in 1977

Legal system: common law system based on the English model

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen or permanent resident of Australia
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch
Chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General David HURLEY (since 1 July 2019)
Head of government: Prime Minister Scott MORRISON (since 24 August 2018)
Cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the prime minister from among members of Parliament and sworn in by the governor general
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general

Judicial branch
Highest courts: High Court of Australia (consists of 7 justices, including the chief justice); note - each of the 6 states, 2 territories, and Norfolk Island has a Supreme Court; the High Court is the final appellate court beyond the state and territory supreme courts
Judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the governor-general in council for life with mandatory retirement at age 70
Subordinate courts: at the federal level: Federal Court; Federal Magistrates Courts of Australia; Family Court; at the state and territory level: Local Court - New South Wales; Magistrates Courts - Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory; District Courts - New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia; County Court - Victoria; Family Court - Western Australia; Court of Petty Sessions - Norfolk Island

Political parties and leaders: Australian Greens Party [Adam BANDT]Australian Labor Party or ALP [Anthony ALBANESE]Country Liberal Party or CLP [Gary HIGGINS]Liberal National Party of Queensland or LNP [Deborah FRECKLINGTON]Liberal Party of Australia [Scott MORRISON]The Nationals [Michael MCCORMACK]Centre Alliance [Nick XENOPHON] Pauline Hanson’s One Nation [Pauline HANSON]

International organization participation: ADB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CD, CP, EAS, EBRD, EITI (implementing country), FAO, FATF, G-20, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, PIF, SAARC (observer), SICA (observer), Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMISS, UNMIT, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Arthur SINODINOS (since 6 February 2020)
In the us chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,036
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 797-3,000
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 797-3,168
In the us consulate: Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Arthur B. CULVAHOUSE (since 19 February 2019)
From the us telephone: [61] (02) 6,214-5,600
From the us embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2,600
From the us mailing address: APO AP 96,549
From the us FAX: [61] (02) 6,214-5,970
From the us consulate: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney

Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth or Federation Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; on the fly half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small, five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars

National symbols: Commonwealth Star (seven-pointed Star of Federation), golden wattle tree (Acacia pycnantha Benth), kangaroo, emu; national colors: green, gold

National anthem
Name: Advance Australia Fair
Lyricsmusic: Peter Dodds McCORMICK
Note: adopted 1984; although originally written in the late 19th century, the anthem was not used for all official occasions until 1984; as a Commonwealth country, in addition to the national anthem, 'God Save the Queen' serves as the royal anthem (see United Kingdom)

Real gdp purchasing power parity
Real:
Real note: data are in 2010 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 146

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2010 dollars
Rank: 15

Gross national saving:
Rank: 88

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 56.9% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 18.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 24.1% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: 0.1% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 21.5% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -21% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 3.6% (2017 est.)
Industry: 25.3% (2017 est.)
Services: 71.2% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry

Industries: mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel

Industrial production growth rate: 1.4% (2017 est.)
Rank: 144

Labor force: 12.568 million (2020 est.)
Rank: 43
By occupation agriculture: 3.6%
By occupation industry: 21.1%
By occupation services: 75.3% (2009 est.)

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 83

Population below poverty line
Note: NA

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2%
Highest 10: 25.4% (1994)

Budget
Revenues: 490 billion (2017 est.)
Expenditures: 496.9 billion (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit: -0.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 60

Taxes and other revenues: 35.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Rank: 61

Public debt:
Rank: 123

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 93

Current account balance:
Rank: 27

Exports:
Rank: 20
Partners: China 33.5%, Japan 14.6%, South Korea 6.6%, India 5%, Hong Kong 4% (2017)
Commodities: iron ore, coal, gold, natural gas, beef, aluminum ores and conc, wheat, meat (excluding beef), wool, alumina, alcohol

Imports:
Rank: 22
Commodities: motor vehicles, refined petroleum, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude petroleum, medicaments, goods vehicles, gold, computers
Partners: China 22.9%, US 10.8%, Japan 7.5%, Thailand 5.1%, Germany 4.9%, South Korea 4.5% (2017)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 33

Debt external:
Rank: 11

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Access electrification total population: 100% (2020)
Production: 243 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Production rank: 19
Consumption: 229.4 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Consumption rank: 19
Exports: 0 kWh (2016 est.)
Exports rank: 101
Imports: 0 kWh (2016 est.)
Imports rank: 122
Installed generating capacity: 65.56 million kW (2016 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 18
Generation sources fossil fuels: 72% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 100
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 40
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 11% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 113
Generation sources other renewable sources: 17% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 49

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 284,000 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 31
Crude oil exports: 192,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 31
Crude oil imports: 341,700 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 24
Crude oil proven reserves: 1.821 billion bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 35

Refined petroleum
Products production: 462,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products production rank: 35
Products consumption: 1.175 million bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products consumption rank: 20
Products exports: 64,120 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products exports rank: 48
Products imports: 619,600 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products imports rank: 12

Natural gas
Production: 105.2 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Production rank: 9
Consumption: 45.25 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Consumption rank: 19
Exports: 67.96 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Exports rank: 6
Imports: 5.776 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Imports rank: 33
Proven reserves: 1.989 trillion m³ (1 January 2018 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 17

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 439.1 million Mt (2017 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 15

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 7,792,701
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 31.03 (2019 est.)
Fixed lines rank: 20
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 27,780,491
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 110.62 (2019 est.)
Mobile cellular rank: 47

Broadcast media: the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) runs multiple national and local radio networks and TV stations, as well as Australia Network, a TV service that broadcasts throughout the Asia-Pacific region and is the main public broadcaster; Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), a second large public broadcaster, operates radio and TV networks broadcasting in multiple languages; several large national commercial TV networks, a large number of local commercial TV stations, and hundreds of commercial radio stations are accessible; cable and satellite systems are available

Internet
Country code: .au
Users total: 21,419,302
Users percent of population: 86.55% (July 2018 est.)
Users rank: 35

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 7.64 million
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 31 (2018 est.)
Rank: 22

Military expenditures:
Rank: 54

Military and security forces: Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army (includes Special Operations Command), Royal Australian Navy (includes Naval Aviation Force), Royal Australian Air Force, Joint Operations Command (JOC) (2019)

Military service age and obligation: 17 years of age for voluntary military service (with parental consent); no conscription; women allowed to serve in most combat roles (2018)

Terrorist groups: Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (2020)
Note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in a title='Appendix-T' href='../appendix/appendix-t.html'>Appendix-T/a>

National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 25 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 583
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 75,667,645 (2018)
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 2,027,640,000
Note: mt-km (2018)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: VH (2016)

Airports: 418 (2020)
Rank: 19
With paved runways total: 349 (2017)
With paved runways over 3047 m: 11 (2017)
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 14 (2017)
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 155 (2017)
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 155 (2017)
With paved runways under 914 m: 14 (2017)
With unpaved runways total: 131 (2013)
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 16 (2013)
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 101 (2013)
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 14 (2013)

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: 637 km condensate/gas, 30,054 km gas, 240 km liquid petroleum gas, 3,609 km oil, 110 km oil/gas/water, 72 km refined products (2013)

Railways
Total: 33,343 km (2015)
Standard gauge: 17,446 km
Note: 1.600-m gauge (372 km electrified) (2015)
Narrow gauge: 12,318 km
Broad gauge: 3,247 km
Rank: 8

Roadways
Total: 873,573 km (2015)
Urban: 145,928 km (2015)
Nonurban: 727,645 km (2015)
Rank: 9

Waterways: 2000 km
Note: (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling River systems) (2011)
Rank: 42

Merchant marine
Total: 579
By type: bulk carrier 4general cargo 80, oil tanker 7, other 488 (2019)
Rank: 39

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Fremantle, Geelong, Gladstone, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Port Adelaide, Port Kembla, Sydney
Container port: Melbourne (2,806,436), Sydney (2,530,122) (2017)
LNG terminal: Australia Pacific, Barrow Island, Burrup (Pluto), Curtis Island, Darwin, Karratha, Bladin Point (Ichthys), Gladstone, Prelude (offshore FLNG), Wheatstone
Dry bulk cargo port: Dampier (iron ore), Dalrymple Bay (coal), Hay Point (coal), Port Hedland (iron ore), Port Walcott (iron ore)

Disputes international: In 2007, Australia and Timor-Leste agreed to a 50-year development zone and revenue sharing arrangement and deferred a maritime boundary; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica; Australia's 2004 submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf extends its continental margins over 3.37 million square kilometers, expanding its seabed roughly 30 percent beyond its claimed EEZ; all borders between Indonesia and Australia have been agreed upon bilaterally, but a 1997 treaty that would settle the last of their maritime and EEZ boundary has yet to be ratified by Indonesia's legislature; Indonesian groups challenge Australia's claim to Ashmore Reef; Australia closed parts of the Ashmore and Cartier reserve to Indonesian traditional fishing

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 13,122 (Iraq), 12,714 (Afghanistan), 12,537 (Iran), 5,578 (Pakistan) (2019)
Stateless persons: 132 (2018)

Illicit drugs: Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate; major consumer of cocaine and amphetamines