29 August 2022
M/- Lyn
BY EMAIL: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 22/08/0396
File Number: OBJ2022/21468
Dear M/- Lyn
I refer to your request dated 7 August 2022 in which you sought access to a document held
by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under the
Freedom of Information
Act 1982 (the FOI Act).
You have requested access to (as clarified on 25 August 2022):
1. How many Protection Visas (866) applications have been submitted from 1 July 2019
til 30 June 2022? How many lodgements made between 1 July 2019 -30 June 2022
have finalised? How many lodgements made between 1 July 2019 -30 June 2022
been granted? How many lodgements made between 1 July 2019 -30 June 2022
have been denied? What is the average time for interview dates for lodgements
made between 1 July 2019 -30 June 2022? What is the average processing Time for
lodgements made between 1 July 2019 -30 June 2022? For lodgements made
between 1 July 2019 -30 June 2022 please provide a breakdown of applications by
year and by nationality of applicant?
2. How many Protection Visas (866) applications were lodged between 1 February
2022 and 28 February of 2022? How many lodgements between 1 February 2022
and 28 February 2022 have been finalised? How many of the lodgements between
1 February 2022 and 28 February 2022 applicants have had an interview? What is
the average processing time for lodgements between 1 February 2022 and
28 February 2022?
This letter is to notify you that a preliminary assessment indicates that you are liable to pay
a charge for the processing of this request.
As provided under section 29 of the FOI Act and the
Freedom of Information (Charges)
Regulations 1982 (the Regulations), my preliminary assessment of the amount you are liable
to pay is
$75.00.
6 Chan Street B 1
el connen ACT 2617
PO Box 25 Belconnen ACT 2616 • Telephone: 02 6264 1111 • w ww.homeaffairs.gov.au
Preliminary assessment of charges
Under section 17 of the FOI Act, the Department has used its computer system to produce
one document that contains information relevant to the terms of you request.
I have assessed the work the Department would need to do to process your request, taking
into account time spent by the relevant area to conduct the search and retrieval of documents
and produce the document, and have calculated the following breakdown of charges.
Search and Retrieval – 5 hours @ $15 per hour
$ 75.00
Decision Making – 1 hour (first 5 hours free of charge)
$ 0.00
Total
$ 75.00
Deposit payable
$20.00
Details of the Charge
It has taken five hours to search for, retrieve and produce the document which falls within the
scope of your request. The document, consisting of two pages, wil require a decision to be
made on access, and it is estimated that this wil take one hour (noting that the first 5 hours
are free of charge).
As the charge exceeds $25.00, a deposit of $20 wil be sought if the charge is imposed. Please
note that by paying the deposit you are deemed to have accepted the charge and wil be liable
for the full amount once a decision has been made on the documents.
Timeframe for your response and next steps
The FOI Act provides you with 30 days to respond, in writing, to this notice, which is
Wednesday, 28 September 2022.
By this date you
must do one of the following:
•
agree to pay the charge;
•
contend that the charge has been wrongly assessed; or should be reduced or not
imposed; and explain your reasons; or
•
you may withdraw your request.
Once you have paid, please advise the FOI Section at xxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx immediately
to avoid delays in the processing of your request.
Please note that if you do not provide a written response within the
30 day timeframe your
request wil be taken to have been withdrawn (by you) under section 29(2) of the Act.
Contesting Charges
If you seek to contend the assessment of charges the Department may make a decision on
whether a charge should be reduced or not imposed and
must take into account:
•
whether payment of the charge, or part of it, would cause you financial hardship
•
whether giving access to the documents is in the general public interest or in the
interest of a substantial section of the public
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This is not an exhaustive list and the Department may consider any other relevant matters.
Please set out your reasons and evidence in support of your reasons as clearly as possible.
If you believe that payment of the charge would cause you financial hardship, please provide
sufficient details of your financial circumstances to enable the decision maker to make a well
informed decision.
Payment
To indicate your agreement to pay the charge you are required to pay the deposit or pay the
charge in full.
The Department has a number of payment options available, including an online payment
facility for credit/debit cards; automated telephone payment system and BPay. You may also
pay the charge by cheque or money order.
Please see the attached invoice for information and guidance regarding payment methods.
If the Department fails to make a decision on your request within the statutory time limit,
the payment wil be refunded.
Processing period suspended
The period for processing your request is suspended from the day that you are deemed to
have been ‘notified’ of the charge and resumes on:
•
the day you pay the charge in full or the required deposit; or
•
the day on which this agency makes a decision not to impose a charge.
Legislation
A copy of the FOI Act is available at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Series/C2004A02562.
If you are unable to access the legislation through this website, please contact our office for
a copy.
Contact
If you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please contact the FOI Section at
xxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
[
Signed electronically]
Guy
Position no. 60103474
FOI Officer | Freedom of Information Section
FOI and Records Management Branch
Data Division | Strategy and Law Enforcement Group
Department of Home Affairs
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