Australia has come under fire for its boat turnback and offshore detention policies at a UN Human Rights Council performance review in Geneva.

Given the chance on Monday to comment on Australia's human rights performance, country after country raised the issue of Canberra's controversial asylum seeker policies, many highlighting the detention of children as a key concern.

Other areas of concern were Australia's treatment of its indigenous peoples, same sex marriage equality and progress made towards Canberra signing an international convention against torture.

The German delegate expressed concern about Australian asylum seeker policy, urging the removal of children and their families from migrant detention centres and calling on Canberra to review offshore detention of migrants on Nauru and PNG's Manus Island.

Ireland's delegate also expressed concern at child detention and at Australian restrictions that recently deterred a UN rights official from visiting the detention centre on Nauru.

Guatemala's delegate criticised the "pushback of boats" by Australia without proper assessment of whether asylum seekers aboard required protection.

Other countries to raise concerns about Australia's asylum seeker policies were France, Greece, Sweden, Japan, Iceland, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, Honduras, Djibouti, Ghana, Kenya and Luxembourg.

Many delegates also urged Australia to do more to improve the fortunes of its indigenous peoples in line with international protocols.

Australian delegation head John Reid of the attorney-general's department told the council that Canberra's measures to deter migrants had "saved lives at sea".

He also noted that Australia had recently committed to take in 12,000 refugees from the conflict in Syria and Iraq.

Mr Reid said gaps between indigenous and non-indigenous people in Australia remained "unacceptably wide" but measures were being taken to improve matters.

The Australian delegation also reported that Australia was actively working towards ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture