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IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Your email has been received by the Department of Home Affairs Freedom of
Information (FOI) Section.

The FOI section only responds to valid FOI requests and other matters
relating to the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).  Visit the
FOI Information on our Website for more information on what [1]information
can be accessed under the FOI Act 1982.

What is a valid FOI request?

A valid FOI request may be for:

- documents you previously provided to the Department as part of a visa
application

- a copy of a decision record made by the Department

- statistical information held by the Department

- papers or briefings the Department prepared.

If your email is a valid FOI request, the Department will contact you
shortly to acknowledge your request.

A valid FOI request must:

o Be in writing and state the request is for consideration under the FOI
Act.
o Have enough information for us to be able to identify the documents
you are seeking.
o Provide a physical or electronic address where we can send our
decision.

Do not send duplicate emails as this may cause longer delays in processing
times.

What is an invalid FOI request?

Invalid FOI requests may include:

- Making a visa application

- Seeking evidence of your Australian Citizenship

- Seeking information about traveling to or departing Australia.

If your email is not specific an FOI request or FOI related matter, the
FOI section will not respond.

What happens next?

Once we receive and have registered your FOI request, we will send you an
acknowledgment letter by email. Read the acknowledgment letter carefully
for further instructions.

FOI requests are generally processed in the order they are received.

We will contact you as soon as the Department has assessed your request
under the FOI Act.

We’re responding to a large volume of requests

Due to the current high volume of requests, we will not provide progress
up-dates on current FOI requests.  This is to ensure we are able to
process as many requests as possible, including yours.

If processing your request is going to take us a lot of time and because
it is large or unspecific, it may be refused.  

Still have a question or request?

If you still have a question, which has not been answered above, and which
is about the work of the Department, use our general enquiries web page

[2]https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-sup...

You may be able to resolve your enquiry faster using these other resources

We only action and respond to FOI requests that are valid under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982. You may be able to resolve your enquiry
faster by using these resources:

General information about travelling to Australia:

The Department of Home Affairs, “Entering Australia” site
[3]https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/entering...

·       For visa and our requirements for entry to Australia
[4]https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/ge...

For a copy of your visa refusal or visa grant letter you should contact
the office where you lodged your visa application. 

·       To check your current visa details and conditions use the
Department’s Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) portal which can
be accessed [5]here

·       If you are experiencing technical difficulties in lodging your
visa application through ImmiAccount, submit your concerns through the
ImmiAccount Technical Support Form, which is accessible [6]here.

·       For evidence of your Australian Citizenship please refer [7]here.
The FOI Section does not process these requests.

·       For movement records or travel history complete the online
International Movement Records form [8]here. The FOI Section does not
process these requests.

·       To update your details, including your Passport details, you can
notify the Department [9]here. The FOI Section does not process these
requests.

We appreciate your feedback         

We appreciate your feedback to help improve our services.

If you would like to provide feedback to us please use our Compliments,
complaints and suggestions form.
[10]https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-and-...

Thank you

Information updated 11 January 2022

Important Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by
the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received
this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and
attachments immediately.  This email, including attachments, may contain
confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.
 

Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information
by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. 
The Department of Home Affairs and ABF respect your privacy and have
obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.  

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this
email.

References

Visible links
1. https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/access-an...
2. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-sup...
3. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/entering...
4. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/ge...
5. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/al...
6. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-sup...
7. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizens...
8. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/entering...
9. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/change-i...
10. https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-and-...

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 23/03/00576
File Number: FA23/03/00576

Dear Jon Andre Vergara,

I refer to your email dated 6 March 2023 in which you request access to documents held by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

I am writing to advise that your request is not valid for the purposes of section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act in its current form, and to provide you with an opportunity to revise your request so that it is a valid request. This is called a ‘request consultation process’. Please respond to this notice in one of the ways set out below.

Scope of Request
You have requested access to the following:

I want to know if Planit Testing is an accredited visa sponsor and if they have any pending issues/sanctions placed on them as a sponsor.

Power to refuse request
Section 24 of the FOI Act provides that if the Department is satisfied that a practical refusal reason exists in relation to a request, the Department must undertake a consultation process with you, and if, after that consultation process, the Department remains satisfied that the practical refusal reason still exists, the Department may refuse to give you access to the documents subject to the request.

Practical refusal
A practical refusal reason exists if either (or both) of the following applies:
(a) the work involved in the processing of the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of the Department from its other operations
(b) the request does not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, which requires you to provide such information concerning the document you are seeking access to, to enable the Department to be able to identify it.

Reasons for practical refusal
The Department has considered the scope of this request and its capacity to conduct searches of relevance based on the current scope. It is my preliminary view that your request, in its current form, is not specific enough to enable the Department to identify documents in scope of your request.

In order to process your request in a timely manner, FOI and the relevant business area require your assistance to clarify the scope of your request.

Please clarify the following points of the scope of your request:
The Freedom of Information Act 1982 provides the right to obtain access to 'a document of an agency'. As such, it is not possible for the Department to provide responses to questions under the FOI Act.
Please identify the document/s you require access to, along with a date range. For example, January 2022 - December 2022.

Request Consultation Process
You now have an opportunity to revise your request to enable it to proceed.
Your request is currently not a valid request for the purposes of section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act. As part of this practical refusal consultation, you have 14 days to do one of the following:
• make a revised request;
• indicate that you do not wish to revise your request;
• withdraw your request.
If you do not do one of the three things listed above during the consultation period (14 days) or you do not consult the contact person listed below during this period, the Department will deem your request to be withdrawn.

Contact
Should you wish to revise your request or have any questions in relation to this process, please do not hesitate to contact the FOI section at [Department of Home Affairs request email]

Kind regards,

FOI Officer - Geoff
Freedom of Information
Department of Home Affairs

E: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

-----Original Message-----
From: Jon Andre Vergara <[FOI #10028 email]>
Sent: 6 March 2023 6:07 PM
To: FOI <[Department of Home Affairs request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Accreditation on Planit Testing

Dear Department of Home Affairs,

I want to know if Planit Testing is an accredited visa sponsor and if they have any pending issues/sanctions placed on them as a sponsor.

Yours faithfully,

Jon Andre Vergara

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

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #10028 email]

Is [Department of Home Affairs request email] the wrong address for Freedom of Information requests to Department of Home Affairs? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/change_re...

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:
https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

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 Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and attachments immediately. This email, including attachments, may contain confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.

Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. The Department of Home Affairs and ABF respect your privacy and have obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this email.

hide quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 23/03/00576
File Number: FA23/03/00576

Dear Jon Andre Vergara,

Please also clarify which specific visa subclass you are after.

Kind regards

FOI Officer - Jade
Freedom of Information
Department of Home Affairs
E: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

-----Original Message-----
From: Jon Andre Vergara <[FOI #10028 email]>
Sent: Sunday, 19 March 2023 10:54 AM
To: FOI <[Department of Home Affairs request email]>
Subject: Re: FA 23/03/00576 – FOI Request – Practical Refusal Notice [SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

Dear FOI,

I'd like to revise my request.

Can I get a list of accredited sponsors from June 2022 - March 2023?

Yours sincerely,

Jon Andre Vergara

-----Original Message-----

OFFICIAL: Sensitive

Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 23/03/00576

File Number: FA23/03/00576

Dear Jon Andre Vergara,

I refer to your email dated 6 March 2023 in which you request access to documents held by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

I am writing to advise that your request is not valid for the purposes of section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act in its current form, and to provide you with an opportunity to revise your request so that it is a valid request. This is called a ‘request consultation process’. Please respond to this notice in one of the ways set out below.

Scope of Request

You have requested access to the following:

I want to know if Planit Testing is an accredited visa sponsor and if they have any pending issues/sanctions placed on them as a sponsor.

Power to refuse request

Section 24 of the FOI Act provides that if the Department is satisfied that a practical refusal reason exists in relation to a request, the Department must undertake a consultation process with you, and if, after that consultation process, the Department remains satisfied that the practical refusal reason still exists, the Department may refuse to give you access to the documents subject to the request.

Practical refusal

A practical refusal reason exists if either (or both) of the following applies:

(a) the work involved in the processing of the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of the Department from its other operations

(b) the request does not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, which requires you to provide such information concerning the document you are seeking access to, to enable the Department to be able to identify it.

Reasons for practical refusal

The Department has considered the scope of this request and its capacity to conduct searches of relevance based on the current scope. It is my preliminary view that your request, in its current form, is not specific enough to enable the Department to identify documents in scope of your request.

In order to process your request in a timely manner, FOI and the relevant business area require your assistance to clarify the scope of your request.

Please clarify the following points of the scope of your request:

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 provides the right to obtain access to 'a document of an agency'. As such, it is not possible for the Department to provide responses to questions under the FOI Act.

Please identify the document/s you require access to, along with a date range. For example, January 2022 - December 2022.

Request Consultation Process

You now have an opportunity to revise your request to enable it to proceed.

Your request is currently not a valid request for the purposes of section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act. As part of this practical refusal consultation, you have 14 days to do one of the following:

• make a revised request;

• indicate that you do not wish to revise your request;

• withdraw your request.

If you do not do one of the three things listed above during the consultation period (14 days) or you do not consult the contact person listed below during this period, the Department will deem your request to be withdrawn.

Contact

Should you wish to revise your request or have any questions in relation to this process, please do not hesitate to contact the FOI section at [Department of Home Affairs request email]

Kind regards,

FOI Officer - Geoff

Freedom of Information

Department of Home Affairs

E: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy

OFFICIAL: Sensitive

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

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

[FOI #10028 email]

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:

https://www.righttoknow.org.au/help/offi...

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 Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and attachments immediately. This email, including attachments, may contain confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.

Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. The Department of Home Affairs and ABF respect your privacy and have obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this email.

hide quoted sections

OFFICIAL

In reply please quote:

FOI Request:       FA 23/03/00576 

File Number:       FA23/03/00576 

Dear Jon Andre Vergara

I refer to your request dated 6 March 2023 for access to documents held
by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

Scope of request

You have requested access to the following documents:

I want to know if Planit Testing is an accredited visa sponsor and if they
have any pending issues/sanctions placed on them as a sponsor.

On 9 March 2023 the Department issued you a notice under section 24AB of
the FOI Act. In response you amended the scope of your request to be:

I want to know if Planit Testing is an accredited visa sponsor and if they
have any pending issues/sanctions placed on them as a sponsor (accredited
sponsors from June 2022 - March 2023).  This is for TSS visa subclass.

The Department must not decide to give access to the business affairs
information unless the third party about whom that information relates has
been given a reasonable opportunity to make submissions in support of the
exemption contention.

The Department intends to consult third parties under section 27 of the
FOI Act prior to making a decision on your access request.

Consistent with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s
Guidelines concerning consultation processes, the disclosure of your
identity to a third party may assist in reducing any concerns the third
party may have regarding the disclosure of the information to you.
However, I am unable to disclose your identity to any third party without
your consent.

For the purpose of undertaking this consultation process, could you please
advise whether you consent to your name being disclosed to Planit Testing?

If you choose not to disclose your identity to Planit Testing, the
Department is able to proceed with consultation, but this may result in
Planit Testing seeking an exemption for the information you have sought to
access.

If you no longer require the information, or do not wish to proceed with
the request, you may withdraw at any time.

It would assist the Department to meet its obligations under the FOI Act
if you could provide a reply before or by COB Friday 9 June 2023.

If you wish to discuss the matter with me directly, please do not hesitate
to contact me at [1][Department of Home Affairs request email]. 

Yours sincerely,

Phil

Position No. 60157242

Authorised FOI Officer - Freedom of Information

FOI and Records Management Branch | Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs  | [2]www.homeaffairs.gov.au

Email [3][Department of Home Affairs request email]

[4]signature

OFFICIAL

Important Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by
the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received
this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and
attachments immediately.  This email, including attachments, may contain
confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.
 

Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information
by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. 
The Department of Home Affairs and ABF respect your privacy and have
obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.  

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this
email.

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[Department of Home Affairs request email]
2. http://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/
3. mailto:[Department of Home Affairs request email]

OFFICIAL

FOI Request:       FA 23/03/00576

File Number:        FA23/03/00576 

Dear Jon Andre Vergara

I refer to your FOI request received on 6 March 2023.

The Department has made a decision on this request. Please find attached a
decision record and any documents released under the FOI Act. 

This request has been closed in our system.

Yours sincerely,

[Electronically signed]

Phil

Position No. 60157242

Authorised FOI Officer - Freedom of Information

FOI and Records Management Branch | Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs  | [1]www.homeaffairs.gov.au

Email [2][Department of Home Affairs request email]

[3]signature

OFFICIAL

Important Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by
the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received
this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and
attachments immediately.  This email, including attachments, may contain
confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.
 

Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information
by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. 
The Department of Home Affairs and ABF respect your privacy and have
obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.  

Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this
email.

References

Visible links
1. http://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/
2. mailto:[Department of Home Affairs request email]