Who is the foreign affairs minister? Federal and every state

Australia has nine parliaments: the federal parliament and one for each state and territory. Each government decides its own ministry, so the foreign affairs portfolio has a different name, and sometimes a different minister, in each one. 1 of the nine currently has a minister whose title covers foreign affairs. This page lists them, their shadows, and the other ministers who share the work, with addresses from each parliament's official records.

Foreign Affairs ministers at a glance

This is a federal responsibility, so state and territory governments don't have a foreign affairs minister.

Federal addresses are for Parliament House, where portfolio mail should go. State and territory addresses are the minister's electorate office, which passes portfolio mail on.

Names, roles and addresses on this page come from each parliament's official member lists. Data checked 20 October 2026.

Federal or state: who's responsible for foreign affairs?

Foreign affairs is a federal responsibility, led by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. For help with a consular issue overseas, contact DFAT's consular service first; write to the minister about policy.

If you're not sure which level handles your issue, write to your own local member as well. Their office can pass your letter to the right minister.

Foreign Affairs ministers by parliament

Federal foreign affairs minister

The Minister for Foreign Affairs (Leader of the Government in the Senate) in the federal government is Penny Wong (ALP, Senator for South Australia). Write to them at PO Box 6100, Senate, Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600.

In opposition, Ted O'Brien (LNP) is Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Shadow foreign affairs ministers and spokespeople

A shadow minister leads the opposition's policy on foreign affairs and questions the government in parliament. Write to them when you want an issue raised publicly, or want to know what the alternative government would do. Crossbench spokespeople, such as the Greens in some parliaments, are listed too.

See every opposition frontbench on the list of shadow ministers.

Also relevant

Assistant ministers, parliamentary secretaries and ministers for closely related areas. If your issue is about one of these areas, they may be the better person to write to, or you can copy them in.

How to address a letter to a minister

Address the envelope to the minister by name and title, then their office address. Inside, open with Dear Minister. Only write "The Hon" if the minister holds that title; some state ministers do not. The address blocks on each politician page already use the right form. For more detail, see how to address a letter to an MP.

• Keep to one issue, and say exactly which program, service or decision you mean.
• Say what you want the minister to do, in one sentence.
• Include your full postal address so the office can reply.
• A short personal story carries more weight than statistics the department already has.

Write to a foreign affairs minister now

Pick a minister from the table above and press Write. Better Letters prints your signed letter and posts it for you, or you can download the PDF free and post it yourself. A printed, signed letter is harder to set aside than an email.