Request access to information
You can formally request access to documents we hold under freedom of information.
We publish a range of information on our website and suggest you search our website or view our freedom of information disclosure log before making a formal request.
Freedom of information request
You can formally request access to documents we hold under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) with limited exceptions.
Charges may apply to process documents that do not contain your personal information.
How to make a freedom of information request
Requests for access made under the FOI Act must:
- be in writing
- state that the request is an application for the purposes of the FOI Act
- provide enough information about the requested documents to assist us to identify them
- provide an address for reply.
If you ask for documents about another person, we may need evidence that the person has authorised you to act on their behalf.
Under the FOI Act, you can also request that a document provided to you containing personal information be annotated or amended if it is incorrect, incomplete, out of date, or misleading.
Submit your request:
- by email to secretariat@comcare.gov.au
- write to the FOI Coordinator, Seacare Authority, GPO Box 9905, Canberra ACT 2601.
All decisions made under the FOI Act must be made by an authorised decision maker.
Fees and charges
There is no fee to make a freedom of information request.
There are no processing charges for requests to access documents containing only personal information about you.
However, processing charges may apply to requests for other information. See Table 1 for the most common charges.
| Activity | Charge |
|---|---|
| Search and retrieval - time we spend searching for or retrieving a document | $15 an hour |
| Decision making - time we spend deciding to grant or refuse a request. This includes examining documents, consulting with other parties, and making deletions |
First 5 hours: No charge Extra hours: $20 an hour |
| Transcript - preparing a transcript from a sound recording, shorthand or similar method | $4.40 each page of transcript |
| Photocopy | 10 cents a page |
| Inspection - supervision by a Seacare Authority officer of your inspection of documents. This includes hearing or viewing an audio or visual recording at our offices | $6.25 each half hour or part thereof |
| Delivery - posting or delivering a copy of a document at your request | Cost of postage or delivery |
Where we determine there is a charge, we will give you a written estimate and the basis of our calculation.
Where we estimate the charge is between $20 and $100, we may ask you to pay a deposit of up to $20. Where the estimated charge exceeds $100, we may ask you to pay a 25 per cent deposit of the notified charge before we process your request.
You can ask for the charge to be waived or reduced for reasons including financial hardship or on the grounds of public interest. You should explain your reasons and may need to provide evidence.
Freedom of information request disclosure log
See our freedom of information disclosure log for a list of entries containing information about requests made under the FOI Act.
Information Publication Scheme
As an Australian Government statutory body subject to the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), the Seacare Authority must publish a range of information as part of the Information Publication Scheme established under the Act.
This includes information on:
- our structure
- our duties
- appointments
- annual reports
- our consultation arrangements
- information we routinely release following freedom of information requests
- information we routinely provide to Parliament.
This measure has been put in place to give the community greater access to information held by government and to increase transparency.
Before requesting information, you can view the information publication scheme or search our website.
Request for documents relevant to your claim
You are entitled to obtain any documents held by your employer that relate to your claim at any time. To do so, you must make a written request to your employer for documents in their possession that relate to your claim.
Your employer must provide you with the requested documents, unless they have a reasonable reason not to.
More information
Under the FOI Act, Australian Government agencies must take reasonable steps to assist people to make a valid request under freedom of information.
If you require information to make an FOI request, email secretariat@comcare.gov.au or phone us on (02) 6275 0070.