Identical twins from Queensland give birth 22 minutes apart at Sunshine Coast University Hospital

Identified twins who were due to give birth 10 days apart have welcomed their babies within minutes of each other.

Just days after celebrating their 33rd birthday, sisters Nicole and Renee Baillie gave birth within 22 minutes of each other at Queensland's Sunshine Coast University Hospital on Wednesday, saying “it was meant to be”.

Another striking coincidence: there is only an 8-ounce difference between Nicole's baby Zavian Dacy and Renee's baby Ruby Toole.

Renee was getting ready to go to the hospital to be with her sister after she gave birth.

But her own daughter Ruby had other ideas and decided to arrive early.

“I got up, sat on the couch and my water broke,” Renee said 7 News.

“We were all laughing, just in disbelief.”

“When I got here, in this room after we had (the baby), I wasn't sure how far along Nicole was.

“I didn't want her (Nicole) to know I had already had my baby in case it would scare her.”

Nicole had the idea that her sister, while she was in labor in the delivery room, opened the same two doors in the hospital foyer.

“I was just about to take a bath and I heard someone had a baby in the hallway,” Nicole recalls.

Renee gave birth at 5:45 am, followed by Nicole at 6:07 am.

The twin sisters (pictured) also became pregnant nine months earlier around the same time

The twins who have the same friends, share the same interests and live just 15 minutes apart now share the same birthday as their newborn.

“We magically got pregnant at the same time, which was crazy, it was just meant to be,” Nicole added.

“We've been on maternity leave for the past two or three weeks, just nesting and waiting, thinking I'd go at least a week early because our due date was ten days apart, but now she was actually ahead of me by 22. minutes.”

The sisters have been documenting their pregnancy journey on Instagram as they uploaded photos of their growing bumps in recent weeks.