Formal Name |
Commonwealth of Australia |
Capital |
Canberra |
Main Cities |
Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide |
Official Language |
No official language, English is the de facto national language |
Currency |
Australian Dollar (AUD). 1 Dollar = 100 cents |
Dialling Code |
+61 |
Emergency numbers |
000 / 112 from a mobile phone |
Time Zone |
Three time zones: Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST) - UTC/GMT +10, Australian Central Standard Time (ACST)- UTC/GMT + 9, Australian Western Standard Time (AWST) - UTC/GMT +8 |
Daylight Savings Time |
Observed in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria. Begins at 02:00 on the first Sunday in October and ends at 02:00 on the first Sunday in April |
Units of Measure |
Metric system |
Electricity |
240/250 volts AC with a frequency of 50 hertz |
Government |
Federal parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm |
Population |
21,766,711 (July 2011 est.) |
Expat Population |
25.6% of permanent residents born overseas (2010 est.) |
Climate |
Tropical in the north, temperate in the south and east |
Land Surface |
7,682,300 sq km |
 |
Australian flag |