The New South Wales government has made it harder for people to prove they have Aboriginal heritage to access funding and housing.
The move has raised questions over how the rest of the country determines Aboriginality.
Last month, the NSW Aboriginal Housing Office stopped accepting statutory declarations as proof of indigenous heritage.
Social housing applicants must now have their Aboriginality confirmed by land councils and indigenous organisations.
NSW Community Services Minister Brad Hazzard said his office is reviewing the Housing Office's decision.
"Under the proposal stat declarations will not be an option now I'm not necessarily sure that I agree with that and that's why I want to look at the whole system,” he said.
“We need to have a system that applies across all government agencies."
NSW shadow Aboriginal Affairs minister Linda Burney said a statutory declaration can sometimes be the only way a person can prove their Indigenous heritage.
"Particularly for Aboriginal people through by whatever means have lost connection with their community, lost connection with their family and can't produce ID, can't produce photographs,” she said.
But the move has revealed a national problem, with inconsistencies across state and territory governments about how Aboriginality is determined.
Most governments require confirmation from a local Aboriginal land council or a registered Aboriginal organisation to provide written confirmation of an applicant's Indigenous heritage.
But there are differences in requirements among government departments to prove Aboriginality.
Indigenous Advisory Council Chairman Warren Mundine said a national database recording all Indigenous people is the solution.
"It's like births and deaths registry,” he said.
“It’s about tracking your ancestors and from my experience in native title bodies around Australia, they've built up tremendous on who you are and what you are.”
But Ms Burney said while national consistency is needed, a database is not the solution.
"How dare there be a national register of one particular group within Australia?” she said.
“It would be as fraught as this debate around proving your Aboriginality."
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