(SA) End State Residency Requirements for Voluntary Assisted Dying

Author: Christopher Noonan | Publish date: 01/09/2024

Problem Identification: 

To be eligible to receive Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) in South Australia, one must have been ordinarily resident in the state for at least 12 months.

South Australia’s Voluntary Assisted Dying Act states that eligible patients must, ‘at the time of making a first request, have been ordinarily resident in South Australia for at least 12 months’.

This means that patients who have been ordinarily resident in South Australia for less than 12 months, and who are unable to return to their home-state, cannot receive VAD. It also places an additional administrative burden on patients in South Australia to prove their residency. 

Context: 

VAD allows terminally ill patients to have a medical professional assist them in ending their life. VAD was legalized in South Australia in 2021 by the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act (VADA). VAD is currently legal in all other states, and will likely be available in both territories soon. 

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