Child and Youth Migration Records

The National Archives of Australia holds many records which provide information of interest to former child migrants. The records include immigration case files (usually known as migrant selection documents), ships passenger lists and naturalisation files.

Access Conditions

Conditional Access

Records

More specifically the Child and Youth Migration Records include:

• immigration case files (usually known as migrant selection documents). These files commence in 1947 and contain a form (LEM3) completed in London or Malta, medical certificate, and occasionally a school report. Some files contain a birth certificate or extract although these were sometimes handed to State child welfare departments. There is a file for most individuals.
• ships passenger lists and ships nominal rolls. These files may also contain some particulars about the voyage, correspondence from and about passengers, news clippings and other items
• naturalisation files.

Archives records relating to individual child and youth migrants are essentially those concerned with their entry into Australia rather than the day-to-day care once they had arrived. Archives also holds a number of policy and administrative files which contain lists of names and other details of individual child or youth migrants. In some instances these may provide important material for genealogical research.

Finding Aids

The Archives’ Research Guide – ‘Good British Stock: Child and Youth Migration to Australia’ – provides details of the relevant records – see Chapter 3.