Country Facts

Melbourne How To

Essential basics and useful websites for planning a move to Australia...

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