How old do you have to be to become a member of parliament?

To be a senator or member of the House of Representatives you need to be 18 years of age or older.

There are also some other requirements before you can become a member of parliament. You need to:

  • be an Australian citizen and not a citizen of any other country
  • be able to vote in House of Representatives elections
  • not be serving a prison sentence of 12 months or more
  • not be an undischarged bankrupt or insolvent
  • not be employed by the Australian Government
  • not be a member of the Australian Defence Force or a member of a state or territory parliament.

While you can be elected at 18, most members and senators are in their 30s or older.

However, some members of Parliament have been elected at a younger age. Former Prime Ministers Malcolm Fraser and Paul Keating were both 25 when they were first elected.

The youngest ever member of the House of Representatives was Wyatt Roy, who was elected when he was 20. Jordon Steele-John was 23 when he became the youngest elected senator. 

A photo of 3 people voting at a row of purple and white voting booths, with their backs to the camera.

People voting in a federal election.

Australian Electoral Commission

People voting in a federal election.

A photo of 3 people voting at a row of purple and white voting booths, with their backs to the camera.

Australian Electoral Commission

Description

This photo shows large, purple and white cardboard voting booths in a row. Each booth is screened off from the neighbouring booths. Three people are standing at the booths with their backs to the camera. They are looking down and appear to be writing at the legde of their booths.

Permission should be sought from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) for third-party or commercial uses of this image. To contact the AEC email: media@aec.gov.au or phone: 13 23 26.