Sunday marked the start of National Missing Persons Week, an annual campaign to raise awareness of the issues and impacts surrounding missing persons.

During the police have drawn attention to a problem that affects almost 6500 Queenslanders annually.

Missing Persons Unit Detective Senior Sergeant Lisa Massingham said one of the most widely believed myth was the need to wait 24 hours before reporting somebody missing.

Among other myths are that going missing is a crime, or that adults can't be reported missing.

Queensland's missing person retrieval rate is about 99.7 per cent, but Detective Senior Sergeant Massingham encouraged anyone who believed a love one had gone missing to contact police as soon as possible.

The aim of this year’s campaign is to encourage people to follow their instincts when it comes to a friend or family member that has gone missing.

In Australia, a missing person is defined as anyone whose whereabouts are unknown and there are immediate concerns for their safety and welfare. 

For more information on people who are missing or to report a missing person or a sighting go to Missing Persons website