OFFICIAL

Good morning Reasonable Prospects,

 

Please note, we have recently updated our Freedom of Information webform
which is our preferred method for FOI request submissions. It would be
greatly appreciated when submitting requests in the future if you could
please lodge them through the FOI [1]webform.

 

I refer to your request dated 13 February 2026, seeking access to
documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the Act) as follows:

 

Details
Start date: 1 July 2024
End Date: 30 June 2025

Request

I request documents 1. Within the period 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025
inclusive, and 2. Relating to a sexual offence investigation where
(a) A substantive investigation was conducted (as against, say, a report
of sexual offences from CYF that was not accepted for investigation), and
(b) The investigation was finalised without charges or a summons or
similar, and 3. The document is a substantive summary of the investigation
(such as a case note entry), or 4. The document substantively sets out the
reason(s) that the investigation was finalised without charges or similar
(such as a case status finalised case note entry, or an email from an
investigator to their supervisor explaining their decision to finalise
without charges or similar)

 

 

Timeframe – Seeking your agreement to an extension of time

 

Upon consideration of your request, the AFP is of the view that your
request will take longer than 30 days to process.  The delay is
regrettable, however, due to an excessive number of requests that have
come through our office it will not be possible to advise you of a
decision by 16 March 2026.

 

Accordingly, pursuant to section 15AA of the Act, I seek your agreement to
extend the period by 30 days to notify you of a decision by 15 April 2026.

 

I would be grateful if you would advise this office in writing of your
agreement to the proposed extension of time by close of business 20
February 2026.

   

Consents – Please provide a YES/NO response to each dot point below

 

Please advise this office whether you consent to exclude the following
information:

 

• All identifying information of AFP members and Commonwealth employees
below SES level (names, ID numbers, signatures, images) (AFP members
and Commonwealth employees);
• AFP and Commonwealth agency contact details other than the official
public channels (direct telephone numbers and email addresses);
• Job titles of AFP members and Commonwealth employees below SES;
• Draft documents;
• Personal information of any individual other than you from the
documents you are seeking;

• Information provided by third parties to the AFP from the documents
you are seeking;
• All information about any third parties from the documents you are
seeking;
• Duplicate documents; and
• Documents you have already provided to us, or that we have already
sent to you.

 

Please advise this office of the following: YES/NO

 

• Do the documents you seek relate to current court proceedings? and
• Are the documents you are seeking older than 20 years old?:

 

Disclosure of your identity: YES/NO

 

The AFP may be required to consult with third parties in accordance with
sections 26A, 27 and 27A of the Act. Please advise us if you consent to
being identified as a third party where consultation with a third party is
necessary? If we do not receive your consent, we will not disclose your
identity to third parties.

 

 

Third Party Information:

 

Upon a review of your request, I can see that you are seeking to
obtain information that also relates to a third party. Please be advised
that under FOI you are unable to acquire information that relates to third
parties/other individuals without the consent of those concerned . In
accordance with the provisions of the Act where third party information is
concerned the AFP would be required to consult with those individuals
(where appropriate) to seek to obtain their consent on the release of
their personal information. Where consultation cannot occur or it is not
appropriate to do so, the information will be subject to exemption in
accordance with section 47F of the Act (personal privacy exemption) and
therefore redacted prior to release.

    

Information Publication Scheme (Delete if personal information request)

 

Please be advised that effective 1 May 2011 and in accordance with section
8(2) of the Act, an agency is required to publish information on the AFP
website following the notification of a decision in respect of a freedom
of information request. Details of the decision will be published in a
Disclosure Log which can be found at
[2]https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/informat....

 

The requirement to publish information released under FOI reinforces the
objectives of the FOI Act to promote a pro-disclosure culture across
government, and to increase recognition that information held by
government is a national resource. Exceptions to the requirement to
publish information would apply to personal information and information
concerning the business affairs of a person if it was considered
‘unreasonable’ to do so. 

 

If however, after noting the above, you wish to raise any concerns about
the publication of information concerning your request prior to the
notification of a decision, please advise the AFP in writing before 16
March 2026.

 

If you have any queries in relation to this matter, please do not hesitate
to contact our team at [3][AFP request email].

 

Yours sincerely,

 

 

FOI SUPPORT OFFICER
Writing to you from the land of the Gadigal peoples of the Eora Nation
AFP RESERVE- ATTACHED TO FOI
CHIEF COUNSEL
[4]Australian Federal Police
The Australian Federal Police acknowledges the Traditional Owners and
Custodians of Country
throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, sea and
community. We pay
our respects to First Nations people, culture and Elders past, present and
emerging.

 

 

References

Visible links
1. https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/governan...
2. https://www.afp.gov.au/about-us/informat...
3. mailto:[AFP request email]
4. http://www.afp.gov.au/