2903.0.55.002 - How Australia Takes a Census, 2006  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 08/08/2006  First Issue
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MEDIA RELEASE
August 8, 2006
Embargoed: 11:30 AM (AEST)
C34/2006
Tonight is Census Night

Tonight is Census night. Tonight is the night for filling out your Census form.

The Australian Statistician Dennis Trewin is urging Australian youth in particular to make sure they are included. "Young people may not realise that the mere fact of being counted in the Census can make a difference to their lives," Mr Trewin said.

"By making sure that you are counted on Census night, planners will know how many young people there are and where they are - and be able to plan services accordingly. This includes services such as public transport, education, sporting facilities and bike paths."

"Everyone in Australia on Census night needs to be included on a Census form. This includes all overseas visitors. The only exception is diplomats and their families."

The scope of the Census is vast and does not only include people in mainland Australia. People outside Australia who are not required to undertake migration formalities - such as those on oil and gas rigs off the Australian coast - are included in the count, as are people in the Australian territories of Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island. Australians in Antarctica are also counted.

No matter where you are in Australia on Census night, you need to be counted. You fill in a Census form or have yourself included on a form depending on where you are staying on Census night.

If you are away from your normal residence, there is a question on the Census form which asks about your usual place of residence.

If you are out all night, you can fill in your Census form the next day. But don't leave it too long! Collectors will be returning to pick up forms soon after Census night.

Of course Collectors don't need to return if you are using the eCensus option. The eCensus site will be open until 28 August, but people filling in their online forms after 8 August need to do so as if they were filling it out on the night of the Census.

The security of your personal information is protected by law. Census information is used to produce statistics, not in ways that can identify any individual. No other organisation, public or private, will have access to any personal information provided in the Census.