Table 1
No Religion and year of Arrival from 2006 to 2021.2
| CENSUS (NO RELIGION) | 2006 | 2011 | 2016 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | 3,706,550 | 4,796,785 (29%) | 6,933,710 (45%) | 9,767,450 (41%) |
| Arrival 2021 | (12,339) | |||
| Arrival 2020 | 38,112 | |||
| Arrival 2019 | 90,266 | |||
| Arrival 2018 | 75,615 | |||
| Arrival 2017 | 74,357 | |||
| Arrival 2016 | (53,542) | 71,819 | ||
| Arrival 2015 | 88,332 | 65,909 (–25%; M: –26%; –24%) | ||
| Arrival 2014 | 78,327 | 62,179 (–21%; M: –22%; F: –19%) | ||
| Arrival 2013 | 71,516 | 65,459 (–8%: M: –10%; F: –7%)) | ||
| Arrival 2012 | 70,962 | 69,706 (–2%: M: –3%; –1%) | ||
| Arrival 2011 | (32,884) | 62,053 | 64,058 (3%; M: 2%; F: 4%) | |
| Arrival 2010 | 54,092 | 54,767 (1%; M: 1%; F: 2%) | 61,880 (13%; M: 12%; F: 14%) | |
| Arrival 2009 | 53,673 | 54,741 (2%: M: 2%; F: 2%) | 61,595 (13%; M: 12%; F: 13%) | |
| Arrival 2008 | 54,643 | 60,664 (11%; M: 12%; F: 10%) | 69,805 (15%; M: 15%; F: 15%) | |
| Arrival 2007 | 47,242 | 52,250 (11%: M: 11%; F: 10%) | 61,537 (18%; M: 17%; F: 18%) | |
| Arrival 2006 | (23,650) | 39,888 | 47,502 (19%; M: 20%; F: 19%) | 55,147 (16%; M: 15%; F: 17%) |
| Arrival 2005 | 37,337 | 34,118 (–9%; M: –8%; F: –9%) | 40,470 (18%: M: 20%; F: 17%) | 48,808 (21%; M: 20%; F: 22%) |
| Arrival 2004 | 32,238 | 29,309 (–9%: M: –8%: F: –10%) | 35,785 (22%: M: 22%; F: 22%) | 43,029 (20%; M: 20%; F: 21%) |
| Arrival 2003 | 27,797 | 26,676 (–4%: M: –3%; F: –5%) | 32,825 (23%; M: 24%; F: 22%) | 40,075 (22%; M: 21%; F: 23%) |
| Arrival 2002 | 23,793 | 22,429 (–6%: M: –5%; F: –7%) | 28,291 (26%; M: 26%; F: 26%) | 33,098 (17%; M: 16%; F: 18%) |
| Arrival 2001 | 22,988 | 24,155 (5%; M: 6%; F: 4%) | 30,689 (27%; M: 27%; F: 27%) | 36,115 (18%; M: 18%; F: 17%) |
[i] Source: ABS Censuses 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021.
Table 2
Migrants with ‘No Religion’ in Australia who completed the 2021 census.
| YEAR OF ARRIVAL IN AUSTRALIA (RANGES) | TOTAL N | NO-RELIGION | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrived 1905–1950 | 70,483 | 14,641 | 21 |
| Arrived 1951–1960 | 274,018 | 59,810 | 22 |
| Arrived 1961–1970 | 558,641 | 144,605 | 26 |
| Arrived 1971–1980 | 545,150 | 164,017 | 30 |
| Arrived 1981–1990 | 787,899 | 247,496 | 31 |
| Arrived 1991–2000 | 793,266 | 262,274 | 33 |
| Arrived 2001–2010 | 1,557,332 | 511,092 | 33 |
| Arrived 2011–2020 | 2,246,882 | 677,485 | 30 |
[i] Source: ABS 2022.
Table 3
‘No Religion’ by Country of Birth – Top 20 Countries for Each Census (2006–2021).
| 2006 | 2011 | 2016 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Australia (78%) | Australia (77%) | Australia (64%) | Australia (78%) |
| 2nd | England (5%) | England (5%) | England (7%) | England (4%) |
| 3rd | China (excludes SARs and Taiwan Province) (3%) | China (excludes SARs and Taiwan) (4%) | China (excludes SARs and Taiwan) (7%) | China (excludes SARs and Taiwan) (4%) |
| 4th | New Zealand (3%) | New Zealand (3%) | New Zealand (4%) | New Zealand (3%) |
| 5th | Hong Kong (SAR of China) (1%) | Scotland (1%) | Scotland (1%) | Vietnam (1%) |
| 6th | Scotland (1%) | Hong Kong (SAR of China) (1%) | Vietnam (1%) | Scotland (1%) |
| 7th | Netherlands (1%) | Vietnam (1%) | United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man, nfd (1%)* | Hong Kong (SAR of China) (1%) |
| 8th | Germany (1%) | Germany (1%) | Germany (1%) | United States of America (1%) |
| 9th | Viet Nam (<1%) | United States of America (1%) | Netherlands (1%) | South Africa (1%) |
| 10th | United States of America (<1%) | Netherlands (<1%) | Korea, Republic of (South) (1%) | Germany (<1%) |
| 11th | Japan (<1%) | South Africa (<1%) | Malaysia (1%) | Korea, Republic of (South) (<1%) |
| 12th | Malaysia (<1%) | Malaysia (<1%) | South Africa (1%) | Malaysia (<1%) |
| 13th | South Africa (<1%) | Japan (<1%) | Japan (1%) | Netherlands (<1%) |
| 14th | Korea, Republic of (South) (<1%) | Korea, Republic of (South) (<1%) | Hong Kong (SAR of China) (1%) | Japan (<1%) |
| 15th | Canada (<1%) | Canada (<1%) | United States of America (1%) | Taiwan (<1%) |
| 16th | Taiwan (<1%) | Taiwan (<1%) | Italy (<1%) | Canada (<1%) |
| 17th | Singapore (<1%) | Singapore (<1%) | Ireland (<1%) | Iran (<1%) |
| 18th | Wales (<1%) | Wales (<1%) | Taiwan (<1%) | India (<1%) |
| 19th | France (<1%) | France (<1%) | India (<1%) | France (<1%) |
| 20th | Ireland (<1%) | India (<1%) | Wales (<1%) | Ireland (<1%) |
[i] Source: ABS Censuses 2006, 2011, 2016, and 2021.
*For the ABS, nfd refers to ‘Not further defined’ and is used when enough information exists to code a response but not enough for a more detailed category in the classification.
Table 4
‘No Religion’ by Country of Birth – Top 20 Countries (2021).
| COUNTRY OF BIRTH | N | % OF NO RELIGION IN AUSTRALIA | % OF NO RELIGION WITHIN COUNTRY OF BIRTH | % OF UNAFFILIATED IN 2010 (PEW) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 7,685,559 | 78a | 45a | 24 |
| England | 436,251 | 4 | 47 | 28 (UK)b |
| China (excludes SARs and Taiwan) | 416,785 | 4 | 76 | 52 |
| New Zealand | 279,600 | 3 | 53 | 37 |
| Vietnam | 75,496 | 1 | 29 | 30 |
| Scotland | 56,278 | 1 | 47 | 28 (UK)b |
| Hong Kong (SAR of China) | 55,520 | 1 | 55 | 56 |
| United States of America | 50,875 | 1 | 50 | 16 |
| South Africa | 49,933 | 1 | 26 | 15 |
| Germany | 42,249 | <1 | 42 | 25 |
| Korea, Republic of (South) | 41,431 | <1 | 41 | 46 |
| Malaysia | 40,399 | <1 | 24 | 1 |
| Netherlands | 31,035 | <1 | 47 | 42 |
| Japan | 30,461 | <1 | 67 | 57 |
| Taiwan | 28,635 | <1 | 58 | 13 |
| Canada | 28,002 | <1 | 56 | 24 |
| Iran | 27,030 | <1 | 38 | <1 |
| India | 26,810 | <1 | 4 | <1 |
| France | 20,159 | <1 | 56 | 28 |
| Ireland | 19,403 | <1 | 24 | 6 |
[i] a. While there are 78% of Australians within the non- religion category in Australia, there are only 45% of Australians who ticked the non-religion category.
b. Whereas the ARC uses the categories of England and Scotland, PEW only uses that of the UK.