Specimen guide · five fields
Checked 8 October 2026
A genetic test kit, from sample to report
A genetic test you order for yourself sits under several sets of official rules. The TGA lists genetic self-tests among the self-tests that will continue to be prohibited from supply in Australia, and since 8 October 2026 a federal Act has limited what life insurers may do with genetic test information.
This guide, published by Dotto, follows a sample through those rules.
General information, not medical advice. Call Triple Zero (000) in an emergency, or go to the emergency department of your nearest hospital. The official places to check are the TGA, the OAIC and healthdirect’s page on genetic testing.
Field 00 · Specimen label
Specimen label
Each field is filled in from an official page and dated.
- Supply
- Genetic self-tests are among the self-tests the TGA says will continue to be prohibited from supply (page last updated 29 June 2023).
- Life insurance
- From 8 October 2026 the protections reach results from tests ordered online, not by a doctor, says NSW Health’s Centre for Genetics Education (page last updated October 2026).
- Health insurance
- Health insurers cannot use your genetic results, or a family history of a genetic condition, to refuse you cover or raise your premium, the same page says. With a diagnosed genetic condition, or signs or symptoms, you may be unable to claim for related treatment for up to 12 months after taking out cover.
- Privacy
- Genetic information that is not health information is “sensitive information” in the OAIC’s privacy guidelines.
- Ancestry
- Ethnicity results may not be consistent, because different companies compare results with different databases, says the Centre for Genetics Education (page last updated March 2021).
- Court use
- The Family Court will consider DNA profiling results only from a laboratory approved for paternity testing, the same page says.
All fields checked 8 October 2026.
Field 00 · Change
The life insurance change of 8 October 2026
The federal Act titled “Treasury Laws Amendment (Genetic Testing Protections in Life Insurance and Other Measures) Act 2026” was assented to on 8 April 2026. Its Schedule 1, headed “Limiting the use of genetic information by life insurers”, commenced on 8 October 2026.
Genetic tests and life insurance has the detail.
Fields 01 to 05
The five guides
- 01Home genetic test kits and the TGA
Self-tests, the Specification and nutrigenetic tests.
- 02Genetic tests and life insurance
The 2026 Act, protected genetic information, older cover and other insurance.
- 03Your genetic data and privacy
The OAIC’s guidance, and companies based overseas.
- 04Ancestry and paternity tests
Ancestry methods and limits (2021), and the Family Court on paternity tests.
- 05What a genetic test result can and cannot tell you
Uses, limits and help reading a result.
Sources and dates