Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to use Freedom of Information (FOI) for all government documents?
No. The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) does not prevent access to documents being provided in other ways, as long as the law allows it. Every day, government and other public bodies respond to requests for general information from the public without requiring an FOI application. It is worth contacting the agency concerned to find out if you can access the information you want without making an FOI application.

Who may make an FOI request?
The FOI Act gives ‘every person’ a legally enforceable right to obtain access to a document other than an exempt document. ‘Every person’ in this context includes persons resident in Australia or abroad, whether or not they are Australians citizens, companies, prisoners, or children.

What are my rights?
The FOI Act gives you the right to:

• access copies of documents (except exempt documents) held by the SSAT, as well as other Australian Government departments and some statutory authorities;
• ask for information concerning you to be changed (if it is incomplete, out of date, incorrect or misleading); and
• seek a review of a decision not to allow you access to a document or not to amend your personal record. This review can be done internally or by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).

What if I'm an employee or former employees of the agency?
If you are an employee or former employee of the SSAT, there are established procedures in place to allow access to your own personnel records.

If you are dissatisfied with the result of using these procedures or you are not notified within 30 days of the outcome of the request for your records, you may then make a request under the FOI Act.

How do I make an FOI request?
For your request to be valid under the FOI Act, it must:

• be in writing (but it does not have to be in a particular form);
• be accompanied by the $30 application fee;
• specify an address in Australia for the service of documents;
• be sent or delivered to the SSAT at the address as listed in the current telephone directory; and
• contain sufficient information to enable the SSAT to identify the relevant documents.

An application cannot be processed until the SSAT has received the required $30 application fee. You may, however, seek remission of the application fee for any reason, such as financial hardship or public interest. See Can I apply for an exemption/remission of charges? below.

Cheques and money orders should be made payable to the Collector of Public Monies and sent to the above address.

The FOI Act requires an agency to take reasonable steps to assist an applicant in making a valid FOI request.

What is a 'document'?
The term 'document' is very broadly defined to include any record of information and includes:

• each hard copy of a document;
• electronic documents – including emails, each electronic version of a document and databases;
• DVDs and video tape or film recordings;
• sound recordings;
• photographs;
• maps and diagrams;
• transcripts of sound recordings or shorthand notes; and
• mobile telephone SMS (text) messages.

Access to documents under the FOI Act may be granted in the following forms:

• inspection of a document;
• provision of a copy of a document;
• provision of a means to view a film, videotape or sound recording;
• provision of a transcript of a sound recording or of shorthand notes;
• provision of a computer printout; and
• magnetic data.

If you would like access to documents in a particular form, you should specify the form of access in your application.

Are there other documents I can see?
The FOI Act applies to documents held by the SSAT no matter how old, that relate to your personal affairs and documents created after 1 December 1977 that relate to anything else (they can be older if you need them to understand another document you already have).

What must the SSAT do when it gets my request?
The FOI Act imposes certain time limits in respect of requests. The SSAT will:

• provide you with written acknowledgment that your request has been received within 14 days;
• deal with your application as quickly as possible;
• contact you to discuss any difficulties in dealing with your application;
• provide you with an estimate of the charges if there are any that are applicable. See How much does it cost to make an FOI request? below;
• advise you of the decision about giving you access within 30 days. (If the SSAT has to seek advice from another party, the SSAT may extend the time it takes to advise you of an access decision by another 30 days. This would normally only occur where the document you have requested contains information about the third party.)

How much does it cost to make an FOI request?
Currently, there is an application fee of $30.00 payable for FOI requests, and an additional application fee of $40.00 should the person be unhappy with the original decision and seek an internal review from the SSAT. Processing charges may also apply. Where it is estimated that the processing charges exceed $25.00, a deposit may be payable. These charges cover such things as decision-making time, search and retrieval, photocopying, postage and the like. The amounts of the fees and charges are set out in the Schedules to the Freedom of Information (Fees and Charges) Regulations.

Can I apply for an exemption/remission of charges?
In some circumstances (eg. financial hardship) the SSAT may remit the fees and charges, or part thereof, and reimburse the person accordingly. In others, depending upon the nature of the document/information sought, the person may be exempt from paying the fees and charges altogether by virtue of the operation of the Regulations. For example: fees and charges are not applicable to certain documents that contain information relating to a claim for, or a decision made in relation to, the payment of a pension, allowance or benefit payable under the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth) or the Student Assistance Act 1973 (Cth) to the applicant.

The FOI Officer will decide whether or not fees, charges and deposits are payable in each case depending upon the particular circumstances and advise the applicant accordingly. If you are dissatisfied with the FOI Officer’s fees/charges decision, you may also seek an internal review from the SSAT.

Do I have to pay a deposit?
A deposit may be required where an estimated charge exceeds $25. Where a deposit has been sought or a charge imposed, no further action need be taken by the SSAT until payment is received.

Why have I been refused access to a document?
While you are entitled to access a document, the SSAT may refuse to give you access to some documents under the FOI Act because they are exempt from disclosure documents. If it is possible to release a document with exempt sections deleted, the SSAT will do so. The more commonly used exemptions are listed below:

• documents affecting national security, defence or international relations;
• internal working documents;
• documents affecting enforcement of law and protection of public safety;
• documents prepared for the purpose of seeking or receiving legal advice by the agency or for litigation.

Why are there deletions in my document?
It is important to understand that the FOI Act provides for the granting of access to documents that contain deletions. If, for instance, documents contain any identifying information in relation to a person other than the applicant, this material may be deleted from the documentation.

The SSAT will not release documents if the document subsequently released would be meaningless, misleading or unintelligible.

Can I have documents containing personal information about me corrected?
The FOI Act gives you the right to request the SSAT to amend a document to which you have had lawful access and where you claim:

• that the document contains “personal information” about you;
• that is incomplete, incorrect, out of date or misleading; and
• has been used, is being used, or is available for use by the SSAT for an administrative purpose.

Where the application for amendment is refused, the SSAT will provide you with an opportunity to annotate the record. Annotation is done by allowing you to add a statement to the record outlining your objections. The SSAT will only refuse to annotate the record if it considers that the statement is irrelevant, defamatory or unnecessarily voluminous. The SSAT may also add a file note or comment of its own if it so chooses.

To change your personal information:

• your request must be in writing and, as far as possible give details of the document and the information you believe is incomplete, incorrect, out of date or misleading;
• give reasons why you are asking for the amendments; and
• provide an address in Australia for us to reply to.

Applications for amendment or annotation of personal records do not attract an application fee or any additional charges. However, a $40.00 application fee is required should the person choose to seek an internal review of the original amendment decision from the SSAT.

What will the SSAT do when it gets my request for amendment of personal records?
The SSAT must deal with your request as soon as practicable and tell you within 30 days what it has decided.

If it decides not to make the changes you asked for (or decides to make different ones), it must tell you why and advise you of your rights of appeal.

What FOI decisions can I appeal against?

• Decisions not letting you see what you want, when you want it, or in the form you want it;
• decisions relating to remission of an application fee;
• decisions imposing a charge to see what you want;
• decisions in respect of the amount of the charge imposed upon you;
• decisions refusing to change or annotate documents about you which you think are incomplete, incorrect, out of date or misleading;
• decisions letting others see documents which you say would unreasonably disclose:
  - your personal information;
  - your lawful business or professional affairs;
  - lawful business, commercial or financial affairs of your firm.
• decisions to give you access to documents about your physical or mental health through a qualified person and not directly to you.

What kinds of appeal rights do I have?
If you are dissatisfied with the decision, the FOI Act provides the following avenues of review:

Internal Review
You may seek an internal review by making an application to the SSAT within 30 days of being notified of this decision. An application fee of $40.00 is payable. You may request that the charge be reduced or not imposed. In deciding whether to reduce or not impose a charge, the decision-maker will consider your reasons and circumstances, including whether payment of the charge would cause you financial hardship.

Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT)
If you are not satisfied with the SSAT’s response you may make an application to the AAT. A review by the AAT is possible after an internal review. An application must be submitted to the AAT within 60 days of being notified of the outcome of the internal review. An appeal to the AAT may also be made if you have not been informed of the outcome of the internal review within 30 days. Fees may apply.

Commonwealth Ombudsman
If you are not satisfied with the SSAT’s response you may request the Commonwealth Ombudsman investigate action taken by the SSAT in relation to your application. The Ombudsman has the power to investigate the SSAT’s actions under the FOI Act, including decisions, delays, and refusal or failure to act. The Ombudsman can review FOI decisions to ensure they were made in a fair and proper way. The Ombudsman can't substitute a decision, but can recommend that the original decision be changed.

Before complaining to the Ombudsman, first try to resolve your problem by discussing it with the SSAT. Explain your point of view clearly and ask for the action or decision concerned to be reconsidered. The Ombudsman usually prefers applicants to seek an internal review before complaining about a decision.