Australians who are celebrating a special birthday or wedding anniversary can receive personal congratulations from the Prime Minister, Governor-General or The King.
Who is eligible for a congratulatory message?
- The Prime Minister will send a message of congratulations to people turning 90 years of age or more.
- The King and Governor-General will send a message on a 100th birthday.
- On request, the Prime Minister and the Governor-General will write again every year and The King will write again every five years following the 100th Birthday.
- The Prime Minister and Governor-General send messages to couples celebrating 50 years of marriage and subsequent wedding anniversaries.
- The King will send messages to couples celebrating 60 years of marriage and will write every five years after that on request.
You can arrange a congratulatory message through my office by:
- Emailing [email protected]
- Calling on 03 9416 8690
- Visiting the electorate office at 159 High Street, Preston, Victoria 3072.
You will need to provide formal documentation, such as a marriage or birth certificate, to verify the date of the occasion.
If these documents are not available you can provide a statutory declaration. Statutory declaration forms are available at any post office or from my electorate office.
Supporting documentation in the form of a statutory declaration can be posted or hand delivered to my electorate office. Supporting documentation in original form, such as birth certificates or marriage certificates, must be hand delivered to the electorate office, where a copy of the documentation will be made.
If you are applying for a message on behalf of a relative or friend who lives outside the electorate of Cooper, their local federal member will be notified so they can send a message too. My office will also notify the relevant state member. Where appropriate, your request to the Prime Minister will be passed on to the Governor-General and The King so you only have to make one application.
When should I arrange the message?
You can lodge a request for congratulatory messages up to two months before the celebration.
You can also request a belated message up to one month after the birthday or wedding anniversary has passed. For eligible occasions, requests received within six months after the occasion will be passed to Government House in Canberra for their consideration for a belated message from The King.
Where will the message be delivered?
Congratulatory messages can be posted directly to the recipient’s home address or alternatively to care-of address (such as a friend or relative) for surprises.