Thank you for your email to the National Disability Insurance Agency
(NDIA) Freedom of Information (FOI) team. 
 
Please note: due to a high volume of requests, our ability to respond to
you in a timely manner may be affected. We will action your request as
soon as possible and will endeavour to process your matter within the
legislative deadlines. We may need to seek your agreement to an extension
of time. We appreciate your understanding if this is required. 
 
Participant Information 
Did you know the NDIA has other ways to access the documents and
information that we hold? 
 
 
Participants, Guardians and Nominees can obtain copies of some participant
information through our National Contact Centre (NCC). For more
information about what’s available through the NCC, please contact 1800
800 110. 
 
 
Please visit our [1]Access to Information webpage to find out more about
accessing information through: 

* The [2]Participant Information Access (PIA) scheme 
 
* The [3]Information Publication Scheme (IPS) 
 
* The [4]myplace portal for participants    
 
* The [5]myplace portal for providers 

Access to Data 
 
You can also request data and statistics. Please visit our [6]Data and
insights webpage page for further information. 
 
 
If you are able to obtain your information from a source listed above, you
can withdraw your FOI request by emailing [7][NDIA request email] 
 
Further Information 
 
Information about how to make an FOI request can be found on our website:
[8]Freedom of Information 
 
 
Should you have a query unrelated to FOI, please contact the Agency by
email at [9][email address] or via webchat at [10]ndis.gov.au.
Alternatively, you can also contact us by phoning 1800 800 110. 
 
 
Kind regards    
 
 
Freedom of Information Team  
Complaints Management & FOI Branch 
General Counsel Division  
National Disability Insurance Agency  
E [11][NDIA request email]   
   
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.  
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hide quoted sections

Dear David Wright,

 

Freedom of Information Request: Acknowledgement & Extension of Time
Request

 

Thank you for your request of 1 July 2025, made under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), for copies of documents held by the
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

 

Scope of your Request

 

You have requested access to:

 

"...The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) advised
me on 15 June 2025 that you had advised OAIC of the following:

"The NDIA is currently contending with a significant upward trajectory of
FOI matters. In this financial year, we expect to receive 2,300-2,400. An
approximate increase of 1,000 matters from the previous reporting year. We
have received a significant increase that impacts our ability to process
them in the prescribed timeframes. We are currently recruiting more staff,
upskilling current staff and creating processes which support timely
decision making with a focus on early resolutions." (OAIC Reference
CP25/01516, re NDIA FOI 24/25-0251)

Please provide:
1) The information upon which this prediction of 2,300-2,400 FOI requests
was based.
2) The actual number of FOI requests that the NDIA received in the
2024-2025 financial year.
2) The current number of staff employed in the NDIA FOI unit..."

  

Processing Timeframes

 

In accordance with section 15(5)(b) of the FOI Act, a 30-day statutory
period for processing your request commenced from 2 July 2025. This 30-day
period expires on 31 July 2025.

 

The 30-day period can be extended in a number of ways, including with your
agreement.

 

Extension of Time Request:

 

Unfortunately, it is currently taking us a little longer than 30 days to
process FOI requests due to a very high volume of incoming matters. I am
therefore seeking your agreement to a 30-day extension of time under
section 15AA of the FOI Act. If you agree to this extension, the new due
date for us to decide on your request will be 30 August 2025.

 

Please let us know if you agree by Wednesday 9 July 2025.

 

Explanation of Extension of Time Request:

 

The reason I am seeking an extension of time is to ensure I preserve your
review rights under the FOI Act.

 

FOI applicants are normally entitled to exercise a right of internal
review if they are unsatisfied with the outcome of an FOI decision.
However, this right of review lapses if a FOI decision is not made within
the statutory timeframe. This is because if an agency doesn’t issue their
decision within the statutory timeframe, they are deemed to have refused
the request for documents. If this situation happens, it will limit your
options for formal review to only contacting the OAIC.

 

You are not obligated to agree to this request, you would still retain
your review rights with our regulatory body OAIC (Office of the Australian
Information Commission).

 

Irrelevant Information

 

Section 22 of the FOI Act allows an Agency to redact information from
documents if that information would reasonably be regarded as irrelevant
to a request for access.

 

Given the nature of your request, it does not seem that NDIA staff
members’ surnames and contact details would be relevant to you. Can you
please send me a reply email confirming that such details are irrelevant
to your request for access?

 

Action Required

 

Can I please request a response regarding our request for a 30-day
extension of time, by Wednesday 9 July 2025.

 

Next steps

 

I have completed some preliminary work on your request; however, your
matter will be allocated to an authorised FOI decision-maker for any
further action. The decision-maker may need to contact you to discuss a
range of matters, including refining the scope of your request.

 

We will contact you using the email address you have provided. Please
advise if you would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact.

 

In the meantime, if you have any questions or need help, please contact us
at [1][NDIA request email].

 

Kind regards,

 

Mackenzie

Triage Officer – Triage and Early Resolution

Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch

Reviews and Information Release Division

National Disability Insurance Agency

[2][NDIA request email]

[3]NDIA logo

[4]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic

The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.

 

-----Original Message-----
From: David Wright <[FOI #13354 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 1 July 2025 3:45 PM
To: foi <[NDIA request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Projection of NDIA FOI requests

 

[You don't often get email from
[5][FOI #13354 email]. Learn why this is
important at [6]https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific... ]

 

Dear National Disability Insurance Agency,

 

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) advised me on
15 June 2025 that you had advised OAIC of the following:

 

"The NDIA is currently contending with a significant upward trajectory of
FOI matters. In this financial year, we expect to receive 2,300-2,400. An
approximate increase of 1,000 matters from the previous reporting year. We
have received a significant increase that impacts our ability to process
them in the prescribed timeframes. We are currently recruiting more staff,
upskilling current staff and creating processes which support timely
decision making with a focus on early resolutions." (OAIC Reference
CP25/01516, re NDIA FOI 24/25-0251)

 

Please provide:

1) The information upon which this prediction of 2,300-2,400 FOI requests
was based.

2) The actual number of FOI requests that the NDIA received in the
2024-2025 financial year.

2) The current number of staff employed in the NDIA FOI unit.

 

Yours faithfully,

David Wright

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[7][FOI #13354 email]

 

Is [8][NDIA request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information
requests to National Disability Insurance Agency? If so, please contact us
using this form:

[9]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

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:

[10]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

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.

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

**********************************************************************
IMPORTANT: This e-mail is for the use of the intended recipient only and
may contain information that is confidential, commercially valuable and/or
subject to legal or parliamentary privilege. If you are not the intended
recipient you are notified that any review, re-transmission, disclosure,
dissemination or other use of, or taking of any action in reliance upon,
this information is prohibited and may result in severe penalties. If you
have received this e-mail in error please notify the sender immediately
and delete all electronic and hard copies of this transmission together
with any attachments. Please consider the environment before printing this
e-mail
**********************************************************************

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[NDIA request email]
2. mailto:[NDIA request email]
4. https://intranet.ndiastaff.ndia.gov.au/h...
5. mailto:[FOI #13354 email]
6. https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
7. mailto:[FOI #13354 email]
8. mailto:[NDIA request email]
9. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...
10. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

hide quoted sections

Dear David Wright

I am writing in response to your request for information held by the
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), originally received on 1 July
2025.

You have made this request under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI
Act).

The FOI Act is designed for the release of documents. It is not designed
to provide answers questions. The FOI Act requires that applicants provide
sufficient information about the documents they wish to access to enable
an officer of the agency to identify those documents. Based on the wording
of your request, I am not sure what documents you are expecting to access.

Therefore, I am treating your request as invalid, as it does not satisfy
section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act.

If you wish to proceed with this request, you must be more specific about
the specific kinds of documents you are seeking.

However, my advice is that you don’t need to proceed with a FOI request.
This is because the information you have requested is published by the
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) each year. If you
wait a few weeks, you will be able download a spreadsheet containing
statistics about the NDIA’s FOI team from data.gov.au.

Your question: “The information upon which this prediction of 2,300-2,400
FOI requests was based.”

My response: In 2024-25, we recorded all FOI requests we receive on an
Excel spreadsheet. Each matter is given a sequential reference number,
starting at 24-25-0001 on 1 July 2024. This means it’s very easy for any
staff member to observe at any point in time how many FOI requests we have
received so far. All we have to do is check the reference number of the
last registered matter and look at today’s date. Anyone can them do a
simple calculation to determine how many we are receiving on average each
week, and then calculate how many FOIs we are expecting to receive over 52
weeks.

Does this explanation suffice? If it does not meet your expectations,
could you please explain in specifics what document would you specifically
like to access?

Your question: “The actual number of FOI requests that the NDIA received
in the 2024-2025 financial year.”

The total number of FOI requests the NDIA received in 2024-25 is recorded
in several publicly available documents. Every financial year, the NDIA
reports the total number of FOI requests we receive to our external
regulator, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).
OAIC then publishes this information in an Excel spreadsheet on
data.gov.au. OAIC publishes the FOI statistics for all Commonwealth
Agencies and Minister’s Offices in this way. You can access past datasets
via this link:
[1]https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/freedom.... The
statistics are usually updated in November each year.

The NDIA also publishes the total number of FOI requests we receive each
year in our Annual Report. The Annual Report is usually tabled in October.
It will be published on our website at this link:
[2]https://www.ndis.gov.au/publications/ann...

Does this information satisfy you? If it doesn’t could you please let me
know what specific document you wish to access? If you wish to see the
official data we submitted to OAIC, my suggestion is to lodge an FOI
request with them. This is because we submit our official data into an
online webform on the OAIC website.

Your question: “The current number of staff employed in the NDIA FOI
unit.”

My response: There is no dedicated FOI unit at the NDIA. Instead, there is
an Information Access team that processes requests made under the Freedom
of Information Act 1982, as well as requests received via our
administrative release scheme, Participant Information Access (PIA). We
don’t possess a document that outlines which staff are dedicated to wholly
FOI duties and which staff are dedicated to mixed duties or exclusively
PIA duties. Could you please clarify whether you are seeking access to the
total number of staff employed in the entire Information Access section
including PIA staff? What specific document are you seeking access to?

In addition, every year the NDIA reports on the total number of staff it
employs to work on FOI duties to our external regulator, the Office of the
Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). OAIC then publishes this
information in an Excel spreadsheet on data.gov.au. OAIC publishes the FOI
statistics for all Commonwealth Agencies and Minister’s Offices in this
way. You can access past datasets via this link:
[3]https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/freedom.... The
statistics are usually updated in November each year.

The published data will demonstrate how many total “staff hours” the NDIA
spent on FOI functions across the entire 2024-25 financial year. Will this
document meet your needs? If so, it will become publically available in
November 2025.

Could you please let me know if the advice I have given here has clarified
this matter for you. If it hasn’t, please respond by outlining the
specific documents you wish to access. Otherwise, we cannot proceed with
your FOI request.

I hope this has helped!

Kind regards

Laura

Assistant Director

Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch

Reviews and Information Release Division

National Disability Insurance Agency

E [4][NDIA request email]  

[5]NDIA logo

[6]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic

The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.

[7]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic

 

From: foi <[NDIA request email]>
Sent: Friday, 4 July 2025 10:19 AM
To: 'David Wright' <[FOI #13354 email]>
Cc: foi <[NDIA request email]>
Subject: FOI 25/26-0017 – Your Request for Information – Acknowledgement &
Extension of Time Request

 

Dear David Wright,

 

Freedom of Information Request: Acknowledgement & Extension of Time
Request

 

Thank you for your request of 1 July 2025, made under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), for copies of documents held by the
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

 

Scope of your Request

 

You have requested access to:

 

"...The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) advised
me on 15 June 2025 that you had advised OAIC of the following:

"The NDIA is currently contending with a significant upward trajectory of
FOI matters. In this financial year, we expect to receive 2,300-2,400. An
approximate increase of 1,000 matters from the previous reporting year. We
have received a significant increase that impacts our ability to process
them in the prescribed timeframes. We are currently recruiting more staff,
upskilling current staff and creating processes which support timely
decision making with a focus on early resolutions." (OAIC Reference
CP25/01516, re NDIA FOI 24/25-0251)

Please provide:
1) The information upon which this prediction of 2,300-2,400 FOI requests
was based.
2) The actual number of FOI requests that the NDIA received in the
2024-2025 financial year.
2) The current number of staff employed in the NDIA FOI unit..."

  

Processing Timeframes

 

In accordance with section 15(5)(b) of the FOI Act, a 30-day statutory
period for processing your request commenced from 2 July 2025. This 30-day
period expires on 31 July 2025.

 

The 30-day period can be extended in a number of ways, including with your
agreement.

 

Extension of Time Request:

 

Unfortunately, it is currently taking us a little longer than 30 days to
process FOI requests due to a very high volume of incoming matters. I am
therefore seeking your agreement to a 30-day extension of time under
section 15AA of the FOI Act. If you agree to this extension, the new due
date for us to decide on your request will be 30 August 2025.

 

Please let us know if you agree by Wednesday 9 July 2025.

 

Explanation of Extension of Time Request:

 

The reason I am seeking an extension of time is to ensure I preserve your
review rights under the FOI Act.

 

FOI applicants are normally entitled to exercise a right of internal
review if they are unsatisfied with the outcome of an FOI decision.
However, this right of review lapses if a FOI decision is not made within
the statutory timeframe. This is because if an agency doesn’t issue their
decision within the statutory timeframe, they are deemed to have refused
the request for documents. If this situation happens, it will limit your
options for formal review to only contacting the OAIC.

 

You are not obligated to agree to this request, you would still retain
your review rights with our regulatory body OAIC (Office of the Australian
Information Commission).

 

Irrelevant Information

 

Section 22 of the FOI Act allows an Agency to redact information from
documents if that information would reasonably be regarded as irrelevant
to a request for access.

 

Given the nature of your request, it does not seem that NDIA staff
members’ surnames and contact details would be relevant to you. Can you
please send me a reply email confirming that such details are irrelevant
to your request for access?

 

Action Required

 

Can I please request a response regarding our request for a 30-day
extension of time, by Wednesday 9 July 2025.

 

Next steps

 

I have completed some preliminary work on your request; however, your
matter will be allocated to an authorised FOI decision-maker for any
further action. The decision-maker may need to contact you to discuss a
range of matters, including refining the scope of your request.

 

We will contact you using the email address you have provided. Please
advise if you would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact.

 

In the meantime, if you have any questions or need help, please contact us
at [8][NDIA request email].

 

Kind regards,

 

Mackenzie

Triage Officer – Triage and Early Resolution

Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch

Reviews and Information Release Division

National Disability Insurance Agency

[9][NDIA request email]

[10]NDIA logo

[11]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic

The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.

 

-----Original Message-----
From: David Wright <[12][FOI #13354 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 1 July 2025 3:45 PM
To: foi <[13][NDIA request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Projection of NDIA FOI requests

 

[You don't often get email from
[14][FOI #13354 email]. Learn why this is
important at [15]https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific... ]

 

Dear National Disability Insurance Agency,

 

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) advised me on
15 June 2025 that you had advised OAIC of the following:

 

"The NDIA is currently contending with a significant upward trajectory of
FOI matters. In this financial year, we expect to receive 2,300-2,400. An
approximate increase of 1,000 matters from the previous reporting year. We
have received a significant increase that impacts our ability to process
them in the prescribed timeframes. We are currently recruiting more staff,
upskilling current staff and creating processes which support timely
decision making with a focus on early resolutions." (OAIC Reference
CP25/01516, re NDIA FOI 24/25-0251)

 

Please provide:

1) The information upon which this prediction of 2,300-2,400 FOI requests
was based.

2) The actual number of FOI requests that the NDIA received in the
2024-2025 financial year.

2) The current number of staff employed in the NDIA FOI unit.

 

Yours faithfully,

David Wright

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[16][FOI #13354 email]

 

Is [17][NDIA request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information
requests to National Disability Insurance Agency? If so, please contact us
using this form:

[18]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

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:

[19]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

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.

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

**********************************************************************
IMPORTANT: This e-mail is for the use of the intended recipient only and
may contain information that is confidential, commercially valuable and/or
subject to legal or parliamentary privilege. If you are not the intended
recipient you are notified that any review, re-transmission, disclosure,
dissemination or other use of, or taking of any action in reliance upon,
this information is prohibited and may result in severe penalties. If you
have received this e-mail in error please notify the sender immediately
and delete all electronic and hard copies of this transmission together
with any attachments. Please consider the environment before printing this
e-mail
**********************************************************************

References

Visible links
1. https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/freedom...
2. https://www.ndis.gov.au/publications/ann...
3. https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/freedom...
4. mailto:[NDIA request email]
8. mailto:[NDIA request email]
9. mailto:[NDIA request email]
11. https://intranet.ndiastaff.ndia.gov.au/h...
12. mailto:[FOI #13354 email]
13. mailto:[NDIA request email]
14. mailto:[FOI #13354 email]
15. https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
16. mailto:[FOI #13354 email]
17. mailto:[NDIA request email]
18. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...
19. https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

hide quoted sections