Reference:
FOI 23-24/053IR
Contact:
FOI Team
E-mail:
xxx@xxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Me
via Right To Know website
By email only: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Sir,
Freedom of Information Request – FOI 22-23/053IR
On 5 May 2023, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) received
your email, in which you sought access under the Commonwealth
Freedom of Information
Act 1982 (FOI Act) to the following:
Please provide all documents in ASIC's possession that relate to ASIC receiving, considering, refusing or
failing to consider, assessing, determining, accepting, rejecting, or otherwise dealing with, CDDA
applications made to ASIC.
For the avoidance of doubt, this does not include individual CDDA applications themselves.
On 16 May 2023, you agreed to amend the scope of your request by the following:
The most final report/outcome documents in the possession of ASIC for any Act of Grace payments
considered regarding ASIC since say 1 July 2021.
Would it be possible to revise my scope to the most final report/outcome documents in the possession of
ASIC for any Act of Grace payments considered regarding ASIC since say 1 July 2021?
On 19 May 2023, ASIC transferred your request, in full, to the Department of Finance
(Finance).
On 23 June 2023, following a teleconference discussion with the Department of Finance,
you revised the scope of your request at
Attachment A.
On 27 April 2023, Finance’s decision maker notified you of their access refusal decision
(the original decision). A copy of that decision is at
Attachment B.
On 27 July 2023, you sought an internal review of the original decision. A copy of your
request for review is at
Attachment C.
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with notice of my decision under the FOI Act.
One Canberra Avenue, Forrest ACT 2603 • Internet www.finance.gov.au
Authorised decision-maker
I am authorised by the Secretary of Finance to grant or refuse access to documents.
Publicly Available Information
During the meeting held on 23 June 2023 you explained that you are seeking information on
the characteristics of circumstances in which a claim for an Act of Grace payment related to
ASIC was deemed successful.
Information on applying for an Act of Grace payment, including the application form, is
available on the Finance website at the followi
ng link (accessible on the Finance website at
Home/ Individuals /Act Of Grace Payments, Waiver Of Debts To The Commonwealth,
Compensation For Detriment Caused By Defective Administration (CDDA)/ Application
process for act of grace or waiver of debt).
I note that the original decision provided you with publicly available information on Act of
Grace Payments.
In addition to these materials, you may also wish to access guidance material on Act of
Grace payments released by Finance on 9 February 2023 in response to the FOI request with
reference FOI22/119. This information is on the Finance website at the followi
ng link
(accessible on the Finance website at Home/About Us/ Freedom of Information/ Disclosure
Log/ Act of Grace guidance materials).
Decision
The original decision letter identified five (5) documents within scope of your request.
As these documents include a letter relating to four decisions where an Act of Grace
payment was authorised, I have not included any duplicate copies of that letter and therefore
there are two (2) documents within scope of your request.
I have decided to release the two (2) documents relating to these five decisions, with some
information redacted as the documents contain irrelevant information.
In making my decision, I have had regard to the following:
• the terms of your FOI request and your subsequent submissions;
• the content of the documents that fall within the scope of your request;
• the relevant provisions of the FOI Act; and
• the FOI Guidelines issued by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
(FOI Guidelines).
Exempt and/or irrelevant information removed from the documents
I have reviewed the documents identified as within scope and agree with the original
decision that they contain personal information.
Your application for an internal review stated:
I have excluded personal information from scope – it should be redacted under s 22.
The FOI Act has the same definition as the
Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) that:
personal information means information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who
is reasonably identifiable:
2
(a) whether the information or opinion is true or not; and
(b) whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not.
I have redacted irrelevant information from the documents and released the edited form of
the documents to you.
Public interest factors
I note that your application for internal review states that:
“there is currently a senate inquiry into ASIC enforcement. The public interest in disclosing the
anonymised information is very high. It directly and immediately assists all objectives of the Act, such as
participation in democracy, etc.”
As my decision does not exempt any information under Division 3 to Part IV of the FOI Act,
I have not given consideration to the public interest test at Section 11B of the FOI Act.
Documents within scope
I note that your request sought information in relation to a total of 10 decisions (comprising
5 ‘successful act of grace’ matters relating to ASIC where SR Group was involved, and 5
where SR Group was not involved), and a list or related document summarising decisions
relating to ASIC from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.
In coming to my decision, I have:
• consulted with the relevant business area within Finance who are responsible for Act
of Grace payments, I have been advised that there are no areas within Finance that
have any knowledge or records of any further documents within the scope of your
request;
• ensured that thorough searches were undertaken of relevant Finance systems where
any such documents may have been stored; and
• reviewed the searches conducted in relation to the original decision.
On 19 July 2023, Finance wrote to you advising that:
Documents identified
Finance does not hold a document that consolidates Act of Grace claims related to ASIC, therefore the
only documents found that were in scope of the terms "Final outcome/Decision" are reports that related to
individuals that have submitted claims and the decisions made for each claim.
…
As Finance does not hold a document that contains consolidated or summarised information of the
individual Act of Grace decisions, we are also unable to provide you with details related to the number of
successful or unsuccessful claims.
As a result of these consultations and searches, I am satisfied that all reasonable steps have
been taken to find any further documents that may fall within the scope of your request.
Review and appeal rights
You are entitled to request an external review by the Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner (OAIC) of my decision within 60 calendar days, being on or before
Friday
27 October 2023. The process for review and appeal rights is set out at
Attachment D.
3
Publication
Finance will publish the documents released to you on our
Disclosure Log. Finance’s policy
is to publish the documents the working day after they are released to you.
If you have any questions in regards to this request, please contact the FOI Team on the
above contact details.
Yours sincerely,
Rachel Antone
Assistant Secretary
Risk & Insurance Branch
Department of Finance
28 August 2023
4
Attachment A
From:
Me <xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx>
Sent:
Friday, 23 June 2023 11:51 AM
To:
McKay, Rachal
Subject:
RE: FOI 22-23/053 - Discussion regarding request [SEC=OFFICIAL]
Follow Up Flag:
Follow up
Flag Status:
Completed
Dear Rachal,
Thanks for your (and colleagues) time on the phone.
As discussed, can I please amend the scope of my request to be limited to:
1. The 5 most recent successful act of grace decisions regarding ASIC where SR Group were the/an agent of the
applicant
2. The 5 most recent decisions as in (1), except where SR Group was not involved
3. Within (1) and (2), only:
3A ASIC’s submissions
3B The considerations summary or equivalent in the final decision letter
3C The decision summary or equivalent in the final decision letter
3D Finance’s file or reference number or equivalent for that decision
4. For 1 July 2022 ‐ 30 June 2023 (even with the post‐dating), a table or similar that lists all ASIC‐related Act of Grace
payments, including:
4A Finance’s file number or equivalent
4B Whether the application was successful
4C The amount of the payment, if applicable
(4) can be by date of payment or date of decision or other, whatever is easier provided it’s consistent
The scope expressly excludes:
‐ Personal information, other than personal information of (a) SES of Commonwealth entities and (b) ministers
1
‐ Documents or parts of documents that are not included in the above (for example, the parts of a decision letter
that are not the considerations or decisions summary)
I note I expanded (4) slightly. Hopefully it’s not much additional if you’re looking anyway. If required, I would make
the argument it’s in the public interest, because (i) there is a surge in ASIC related applications, and (ii) such a table
will assist Finance in improving public administration by identifying or helping to identify causes of this surge
Yours sincerely,
Me
‐‐‐‐‐Original Message‐‐‐‐‐
OFFICIAL
Hello ‐ hope all is well on your end if any problems please give me your phone number and I will dial you in
Classification: OFFICIAL
Classified by: [email address] on: 23/06/2023 11:01:13 AM
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
foi+request‐10222‐xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message and any reply that you make will be
published on the internet. More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.righttoknow.org.au%2Fhelp%2Fofficers
&data=05%7C01%7CRachal.McKay%40finance.gov.au%7C78ded57c889f424e2b6908db738c5a2a%7C08954cee4782
4ff69ad51997dccef4b0%7C0%7C0%7C638230818874045076%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAw
MDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=1NnKpTKKnWosz9tnbgHvg
1dvpRD%2Ft%2FaNHv1teH52sOA%3D&reserved=0
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
2
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's
FOI page.
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
Be careful with this message
External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
3
Attachment B
Reference:
FOI 22-23/053
Contact:
FOI Team
E-mail:
xxx@xxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Me
via Right To Know website
By email only: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Sir,
Freedom of Information Request – FOI 22-23/053
On 5 May 2023, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) received
your email, in which you sought access under the Commonwealth
Freedom of Information
Act 1982 (FOI Act) to the following:
Please provide all documents in ASIC's possession that relate to ASIC receiving, considering, refusing or
failing to consider, assessing, determining, accepting, rejecting, or otherwise dealing with, CDDA
applications made to ASIC.
For the avoidance of doubt, this does not include individual CDDA applications themselves.
On 16 May 2023, you agreed to amend the scope of your request by the following:
The most final report/outcome documents in the possession of ASIC for any Act of Grace payments
considered regarding ASIC since say 1 July 2021.
Would it be possible to revise my scope to the most final report/outcome documents in the possession of
ASIC for any Act of Grace payments considered regarding ASIC since say 1 July 2021?
On 19 May 2023, ASIC transferred your request, in full, to the Department of Finance
(Finance).
On 23 June 2023, following a teleconference discussion with the Department of Finance,
you revised the scope of your request at
Attachment A.
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with notice of my decision under the FOI Act in
relation to your final amended scope as provided on 23 June 2023.
One Canberra Avenue, Forrest ACT 2603 • Internet www.finance.gov.au
Additional information relevant to your request
During the meeting held on 23 June 2023 you explained that you are seeking information on
the characteristics of circumstances in which a claim for an Act of Grace payment related to
ASIC was deemed successful. As such, the following general information may be of
assistance to you.
There is no situation which creates an automatic entitlement to an Act of Grace payment and
the decisions made by a delegate are unique to the set of circumstances of each claim.
Your amended scope requests documents where the delegate has accepted the claim for an
Act of Grace payment. Decision letters authorising a payment for an Act of Grace payment
do not contain a consideration or decision summary as described in your request.
Apart from factual and personal information, a decision letter authorising an Act of Grace
payment will typically contain standard wording as follows:
I am an authorised delegate for the purposes of section 65 of the Public Governance, Performance and
Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act).
I have decided, under subsection 65(1) of the PGPA Act to authorise an act of grace payment of
$[amount] in this instance. Finance will liaise with [Non-corporate Commonwealth Entity Name] to
give effect to this decision.
Further information is publicly available on the Department of Finance website at the
followi
ng link (accessible on the Finance website at Home/ Individuals /Act Of Grace
Payments, Waiver Of Debts To The Commonwealth, Compensation For Detriment Caused
By Defective Administration (CDDA)/ Act of Grace Payments).
The Commonwealth Resource Management Guide 401 “Requests for discretionary financial
assistance under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013”
provides guidance to Non-corporate Commonwealth Entities including in relation to Act of
Grace payments and the CDDA scheme. This document may be of assistance to your
understanding of the roles of Non-corporate Commonwealth Entities and general
considerations relevant to Act of Grace payments. It is publicly available on the Department
of Finance website at the followi
ng link (accessible on the Finance website at Home
/Publications /List Of Resource Management Guides (RMGs) A Z /Requests for
discretionary financial assistance under the Public Governance, Performance and
Accountability Act 2013 (RMG 401)).
Authorised decision-maker
I am authorised by the Secretary of Finance to grant or refuse access to documents.
Decision
I have identified five (5) documents as falling within scope of your request and I have
decided to refuse to release all the five (5) documents under section 47F of the FOI Act.
In making my decision, I have had regard to the following:
• the terms of your FOI request;
• searches for documents held by Finance;
• the relevant provisions of the FOI Act; and
• the FOI Guidelines issued by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
(FOI Guidelines).
2
Documents are conditionally exempt due to personal privacy
Section 47F of the FOI Act provides:
(1) A document is conditional y exempt if its disclosure under this Act would involve the
unreasonable disclosure of personal information about any person (including a deceased
person).
(2) In determining whether the disclosure of the document would involve the unreasonable disclosure
of personal information, an agency or Minister must have regard to the following matters:
(a) the extent to which the information is well known;
(b) whether the person to whom the information relates is known to be (or to have been)
associated with the matters dealt with in the document;
(c) the availability of the information from publicly accessible sources;
(d) any other matters that the agency or Minister considers relevant.
Section 47F is intended to protect the personal privacy of individuals. Personal information
is defined as information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who
is reasonably identifiable whether the information or opinion is true or not; and whether the
information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not.
The refusal to release the documents ensures there is no risk of personal information
becoming disclosed inadvertently. The documents contain the personal details of individuals
and the standard wording that is quoted in the section above. As such I consider that the
documents are exempt under section 47F.
Public interest test
Having formed the view that the five documents are exempt under section 47F of the
FOI Act, I am now required to consider the public interest test for the purposes of
determining whether access to the conditionally exempt documents would, on balance, be
contrary to the public interest.
Section 11A of the FOI Act provides:
5. The agency or Minister must give the person access to the document if it is conditionally exempt at
a particular time unless (in the circumstances) access to the document at that time would, on balance,
be contrary to the public interest.
Factors favouring disclosure
Section 11B of the FOI Act provides:
3. Factors favouring access to the document in the public interest include whether access to the
document would do any of the following:
a. promote the objects of this Act (including all the matters set out in sections 3 and 3A);
b. inform debate on a matter of public importance;
c. promote effective oversight of public expenditure;
d. allow a person to access his or her own personal information.
I consider that giving access to the documents would promote the objectives of the FOI Act
by providing access to documents held by an agency. I attribute minimal weight to this
factor as this objective applies to all documents, regardless of the effect of releasing the
documents.
I note that your email of 23 June 2023 stated:
… I expanded (4) slightly [your request for a ‘a table or similar that lists all ASIC-related Act of
Grace payments’] … If required, I would make the argument it’s in the public interest, because (i)
there is a surge in ASIC related applications, and (ii) such a table will assist Finance in improving
public administration by identifying or helping to identify causes of this surge
3
The FOI Act applies to existing documents in the possession of an agency and does not
obligate an agency to create a document.
Further, I do not consider that the release of the documents requested favours the public
interest in relation to a “surge in ASIC related applications” or assists in identifying causes
of such a surge.
Factors against disclosure
Paragraph 6.22 of the FOI Guidelines provides a non-exhaustive list of factors against
disclosure, of which, I consider the following could reasonably be expected to apply:
• prejudice the protection of an individual’s right to privacy;
• harm the interests of an individual or group of individuals; and
• prejudice an agency’s ability to obtain similar information in the future.
As outlined above, I consider that the documents identified contain personal details and
sensitive information related to an individual, and that the information outlined in the
documents is not well known nor available from publicly accessible sources. In addition, the
fact that an individual has applied for an Act of Grace payment is not well known or
publicly available.
I consider that the release of these documents, even in a redacted form, may cause concern,
distress or otherwise harm the interests of applicants who have made discretionary payment
applications. I consider that the release of any further information in relation to these
applications could reasonably be expected to impact the willingness of applicants to provide
similar information in the future.
Irrelevant considerations
I have not taken into account any of the irrelevant factors listed under Section 11B of the
FOI Act:
4. The following factors must not be taken into account in deciding whether access to the document
would, on balance, be contrary to the public interest;
a. access to the document could result in embarrassment to the Commonwealth
Government, or cause a loss of confidence in the Commonwealth Government;
b. access to the document could result in any person misinterpreting or
misunderstanding the document;
c. the author of the document was (or is) a high seniority in the agency to which the
request for access to the document was made;
d. access to the document could result in confusion or unnecessary debate.
Balancing the public interest factors
The FOI Guidelines provide:
[6.25] The decision maker must determine whether access to a conditionally exempt document is, at the
time of the decision, contrary to the public interest, taking into account the factors for and against
disclosure.
[6.27] To conclude that, on balance, disclosure of a document would be contrary to the public interest is to
conclude that the benefit to the public resulting from disclosure is outweighed by the benefit to the public
of withholding the information.
I consider that there is public interest in providing access to documents held by Finance.
However, for the reasons listed above, I consider there is greater public interest in protecting
personal information and sensitive personal information of applicants, as it is reasonably
likely that the release of this information will prejudice those applicants’ right to privacy and
harm their interests, and will prejudice Finance’s ability to obtain similar information in the
future.
4
Approval of an Act of Grace claim is discretionary and the documents which are within
scope of your request do not contain consideration or decision summaries. Given that I have
provided to you in this letter, the wording that is typically included in decisions approving
an Act of Grace claim, I consider that the release of any further information from these
documents would contribute minimally towards factors favouring disclosure.
I consider that releasing five documents identified as within scope of your request would, on
balance, be contrary to the public interest.
Review and appeal rights
You are entitled to request an internal review or an external review by the Office of the
Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) of my decision. The process for review and
appeal rights is set out at
Attachment B.
If you have any questions regarding this request, please contact the FOI Team on the above
contact details.
Yours sincerely,
Jessica Wilson
A/g Assistant Secretary
Procurement & Discretionary Payments Branch
Commercial Group
24 July 2023
5
Attachment C
From:
Me <xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx>
Sent:
Thursday, 27 July 2023 10:03 AM
To:
FOI Requests
Subject:
Internal review of Freedom of Information request - ASIC CDDA scheme
Dear FOI Requests,
Please see my request for internal review at this link
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.righttoknow.org.au%2Frequest%2Fasic
_cdda_scheme%23outgoing-
20898&data=05%7C01%7CFOIA%40finance.gov.au%7Cad3ecf5099e14637f10808db8e34dc31%7C08954cee47824ff
69ad51997dccef4b0%7C0%7C0%7C638260129911260478%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMD
AiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=My0gf4B1qT4nrs9DUwa6ztJW
k9obre%2Ff1mmpfOCYlB0%3D&reserved=0
(It went to ASIC by accident)
Yours sincerely,
Me
-----Original Message-----
OFFICIAL
Dear Me
Please see attached a decision letter in relation to your FOI request (our
1
reference FOI 22-23/053).
Kind regards
FOI Officer | Legal and Assurance Branch
Business Enabling Services
Department of Finance
A: One Canberra Avenue, Forrest ACT 2603
Classification: OFFICIAL
Classified by: [email address] on: 25/07/2023 8:12:08 AM
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
This request has been made by an individual using Right to Know. This message and any reply that you make will be
published on the internet. More information on how Right to Know works can be found at:
https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.righttoknow.org.au%2Fhelp%2Fofficers
&data=05%7C01%7CFOIA%40finance.gov.au%7Cad3ecf5099e14637f10808db8e34dc31%7C08954cee47824ff69ad5
1997dccef4b0%7C0%7C0%7C638260129911260478%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQ
IjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=gq%2Bbpil8ME1v76hE30TOye6m4b4
w7W2N3cGY0uOYaco%3D&reserved=0
2
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an FOI officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's
FOI page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Be careful with this message
External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.
3
ATTACHMENT D
Freedom of Information – Your Review Rights
If you disagree with a decision made by the Department of Finance (Finance) or the
Minister for Finance (Minister) under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act)
you can have the decision reviewed. You may want to seek review if you sought certain
documents and were not given full access, if you have been informed that there will be a
charge for processing your request, if you have made a contention against the release of
the documents that has not been agreed to by Finance or the Minister, or if your
application to have your personal information amended was not accepted. There are two
ways you can seek a review of our decision: an internal review (IR) by Finance or the
Minister, or an external review (ER) by the Australian Information Commissioner (IC).
Internal Review (IR)
Third parties
If, Finance or the Minister (we/our), makes a
If you are a third party objecting to a decision
Freedom of Information (FOI) decision that
to grant someone else access to your
you disagree with, you can seek a review of
information, you must apply to the IC within
the original decision. The review will carried
30 calendar days of being notified of our
out by a different decision maker, usually
decision to release your information.
someone at a more senior level.
Further assistance is located
here.
You must apply for an IR within 30 calendar
Do I have to go through the internal
days of being notified of the decision or
review process?
charge, unless we agree to extend your time.
No. You may apply directly to the OAIC for
You should contact us if you wish to seek an
an ER by the IC.
extension.
We are required to make an IR decision
If I apply for an internal review, do I
within 30 calendar days of receiving your
lose the opportunity to apply for an
application. If we do not make an IR decision
external review?
within this timeframe, then the original
No. You have the same ER rights of our IR
decision stands.
decision as you do with our original decision.
This means you can apply for an ER of the
Review by the Australian
original decision or of the IR decision.
Information Commissioner (IC)
Do I have to pay for an internal review
The Office of the Australian Information
or external review?
Commissioner (OAIC) is an independent
office who can undertake an ER of our
No. Both the IR and ER are free.
decision under the FOI Act. The IC can
review access refusal decisions, access grant
decisions, refusals to extend the period for
applying for an IR, and IR decisions.
If you are objecting to a decision to refuse
access to a document, impose a charge, or a
refusal to amend personal information, you
must apply in writing to the IC within 60
calendar days of receiving our decision.
5
How do I apply?
Can I appeal the Information
Commissioner’s external review
Internal review
decision?
To apply for an IR of the decision of either
Yes. You can appeal the Information
Finance or the Minister, you must send your
Commissioner’s ER decision to the
review in writing. We both use the same
Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).
contact details, and you must send your
review request in writing.
There is a fee for lodging an AAT application
(as at 17 February 2023 it is $1,011).
In your written correspondence, please
include the following:
Further information is accessible
here.
• a statement that you are seeking a review
The AAT’s number is 1800 228 333.
of our decision;
• attach a copy of the decision you are
Complaints
seeking a review of; and
• state the reasons why you consider the
Making a complaint to the Office of the
original decision maker made the wrong
Australian Information Commissioner
decision.
You may make a written complaint to the
Email: xxx@xxxxxxx.xxx.xx
OAIC about actions taken by us in relation to
your application.
Post: The FOI Coordinator
Legal and Assurance Branch
Further information on lodging a complaint is
Department of Finance
accessible
here.
One Canberra Avenue
FORREST ACT 2603
Investigation by the Commonwealth
Ombudsman
External review (Information
The Ombudsman can also investigate
Commissioner Review)
complaints about action taken by agencies
For an ER, you must apply to the OAIC in
under the FOI Act. However, if the issue
writing. The OAIC ask that you commence a
complained about either could be, or has been,
review by completing their online form
here.
investigated by the IC, the Ombudsman will
consult with the IC to avoid the same matter
Your application must include a copy of the
being investigated twice. If the Ombudsman
notice of our decision that you are objecting
decides not to investigate the complaint, then
to, and your contact details. You should also
they are to transfer all relevant documents and
set out why you are objecting to the decision.
information to the IC.
Email: xxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
The IC can also transfer a complaint to the
Ombudsman where appropriate. This could
Post: Office of the Australian Information
occur where the FOI complaint is only one
Commissioner
part of a wider grievance about an agency’s
GPO Box 5218
actions. You will be notified in writing if your
Sydney NSW 2001
complaint is transferred.
The IC’s enquiries phone line is
Complaints to the Ombudsman should be
1300 363 992.
made online
here.
The Ombudsman’s number is 1300 362 072.
6
Document Outline
