Our reference: FOI 25/26-0959 [LEXD 10752]
GPO Box 700
Canberra ACT 2601
1800 800 110
19 December 2025
ndis.gov.au
Stuart
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx Dear Stuart
Freedom of Information request — Notice of Decision
Thank you for your correspondence of 12 October 2025
(your correspondence), seeking
access under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) to documents held by the
National Disability Insurance Agency
(NDIA).
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a decision on your request.
Scope of your request
You have requested access to the following documents:
“1. At 30 September 2025, the total number of plan change cases that were awaiting
a plan reassessment decision, and; a). The number of plan change cases that had
been awaiting a decision for 21 days or less b). The number of plan change cases
that had been awaiting a decision for 22 to 111 days c). The number of plan change
cases that had been awaiting a decision for 112 days or more”
On 25 November 2025 you confirmed via email to the following revised scope:
“At 30 September 2025, the total number of plan change requests that were open,
and; a). The number of plan change cases that were open for 21 days or less b).
The number of plan change cases that were open for 22 to 111 days c). The
number of plan change cases that were open for 112 days or more”
Processing Timeframes
The FOI Act provides 30 calendar days for the processing of an FOI request after it is
received. As your valid FOI request was received on 12 October 2025, the original due date
for your request was 11 November 2025.
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On 11 November 2025, the FOI Team wrote to you requesting your agreement to a 30-day
extension of time under section 15AA of the FOI Act. On 11 November 2025 you responded
to our request stating you did not agree to an extension of time; therefore, the original due
date still stands.
As we were unable to provide you with a decision on your request by the legislated due date,
your application is regarded as a deemed refusal under section 15AC of the FOI Act.
Despite this, I have continued to process your application. I apologise for the delay and
confirm that you retain your right to seek external review of this decision. Details are set out
in
Attachment A to this letter.
Searches conducted
Searches were conducted by the following business areas for documents relevant to the
scope of your FOI request:
• Data and Analytics Branch
As a result of this search, no documents were located relevant to the scope of your request,
however the Data and Analytics Branch advised they were able to create a document
containing the information relevant to your request.
Section 17 of the FOI provides that where:
1. an application appears from the request that the desire of the applicant is for
information that is not available in discrete form in written documents of the agency;
and
2. it does not appear from the request that the applicant wishes to be provided with a
computer tape or computer disk on which the information is recorded; and
3. the agency is able to produce a written document containing the information in
discrete form by the use of a computer or other equipment that is available to the
agency
The agency shall deal with the request as if it were a request for access to a written
document so produced and containing that information and, for that purpose, this Act applies
as if the agency had such a document in its possession, so long as the work required to
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comply with this section does not substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of the
agency from its other operations.
As the Data and Analytics Branch have been able to produce a document containing the
information you have requested, I have taken this to be a document of the agency for the
purposes of this request.
As such, one (1) document was located as being within the scope of your request.
Decision
I am the authorised officer pursuant to section 23(1) of the FOI Act to make a decision on
this FOI request.
I have decided to:
• Grant access in full to 1 document
Request for clarification on terms used in data
In your email of 11 November 2025, you asked:
Could they also please explain at what point in the process a plan change request
becomes “open” in their response this time? It’s not clear to me what the practical
difference is between an “open plan change request” and just a “plan change request
that is awaiting a decision”, so it would be helpful to understand that context better.
I have not taken this to be part of the scope of your FOI request and have therefore not
conducted searches for documents that may contain this information. However, I have
consulted with the area to provide further clarification on the differences between an open
plan change request and a plan change request that is awaiting a decision. The response I
received from the Data and Analytics Branch who themselves consulted with the National
Contact Centre Branch was that:
• Open Plan Change Request refers to a plan change case that has been newly
created. The case may be referred to as an “open plan change request” at any stage
of the process until the case is closed.
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• Plan Change Case Awaiting a Decision refers to a specific stage of a plan change
case where all required supporting information and consent have been received, and
the request is waiting for the final decision.
I hope this provides further context to the information that has been provided.
Rights of review
Your rights to seek a review of my decision, or lodge a complaint, are set out at
Attachment A.
Should you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me
by email
at xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Patrick (PHO293) Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch
Reviews and Information Release Division
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Attachment A
Your review rights
As this matter was a deemed refusal, internal review of this decision is not an option.
However, if you have concern with any aspect of this decision, please contact the NDIA FOI
team by emai
l xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx or by post:
Freedom of Information Section
Information Access and Privacy Branch
Reviews and Information Release Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
GPO Box 700
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
The FOI Act gives you the right to apply to the Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner (OAIC) to seek a review of this decision.
If you wish to have the decision reviewed by the OAIC, you may apply for the review, in
writing, or by using the online merits review form available on the OAIC’s website at
www.oaic.gov.au, within 60 days of receipt of this letter.
Applications for review can be lodged with the OAIC in the following ways:
Onli
ne: www.oaic.gov.au Post: GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
Phone: 1300 363 992 (local call charge)
Complaints to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner or the
Commonwealth Ombudsman
You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the OAIC about actions
taken by the NDIA in relation to your request. The Ombudsman will consult with the OAIC
before investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.
Your complaint to the OAIC can be directed to the contact details identified above. Your
complaint to the Ombudsman can be directed to:
Phone: 1300 362 072 (local call charge)
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx Your complaint should be in writing and should set out the grounds on which it is considered
that the actions taken in relation to the request should be investigated.
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