ABS updates religious classification to better reflect Australian community

Today the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) updated the Australian Standard Classification of Religious Groups (ASCRG). 

Changes in the 2024 version of the ASCRG include:

• The identification of new groups:
  • Sikhism Broad group.
  • Sunni, Shia and Other Islam Narrow groups within the Islam Broad group.
  • 11 Religious groups, including three within the Buddhism Broad group and six within the Islam Broad group.
• One Religious group (Albanian Orthodox) is now included in the Eastern Orthodox not elsewhere classified (nec) group.
• A revised coding structure across the entire classification. In the new structure, Broad groups have two-digit codes, Narrow groups have four-digit codes and Religious groups have six-digit codes.

This update comes from the ABS’s review of the ASCRG from 2022 to 2023. The ABS consulted widely with community groups, religious groups, and academics to update the ASCRG. These updates better reflect current Australian communities, helping us collect high quality data that improves data analysis and decision-making. 

Changes to how we ask the religion question in the Census of Population and Housing, set out in the Religious Affiliation Standard (RAS), are being considered in the 2026 Census Topic Consultation process.