Explanatory notes

The GRIM books span different years for different causes of death, depending on the data available. GRIM books for some causes of death start at 1907 and they are the only national electronic tabulations of deaths data by cause registered before 1964. Mortality data from 1964 onwards are sourced from the AIHW National Mortality Database and include data up to 2022.

Mortality data

  1. Cause of Death Unit Record File data are provided to the AIHW by the Registries of Births, Deaths and Marriages and the National Coronial Information System (managed by the Victorian Department of Justice) and include cause of death coded by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). The data are maintained by the AIHW in the National Mortality Database.
  2. Causes of death are coded by the ABS to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD).
  3. Deaths registered in 2019 and earlier are based on the final version of cause of death data; deaths registered in 2020 are based on the revised version; deaths registered in 2021 and 2022 are based on preliminary versions. Revised and preliminary versions are subject to further revision by the ABS.
  4. Data is presented by year of registration of death. Previously, data was presented by the reference year in which the death was received and processed by the ABS. As a result, data in this release may not equal previously published data from 2007 onwards. For more details, refer to Data collection: Presentation of mortality data in Causes of death, Australia, methodology, 2022.
  5. For more information on the AIHW National Mortality Database see Deaths data at AIHW.
  6. The data quality statements underpinning the AIHW National Mortality Database can be found in the following ABS publications:

Population data

Australian estimated resident populations are sourced from the ABS reports National, state and territory population, Australian demographic statistics (ABS cat. no. 3101.0) and Australian historical population statistics (ABS cat. no. 3104.0.65.001).

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