Direction 99 operation

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References

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01846

File Number: FA24/05/01846

Dear Oliver Smith

I refer to your email dated 30 May 2024, in which you requested access to
documents held by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under
the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

You have requested access to the following:

Under the FOI Act, I seek all correspondence from the Home Affairs
department sent to the office of the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship
and Multicultural Affairs sent from 23 January 2023 in relation to the
operation of Ministerial Direction 99 and its impact on visa cancellation
decisions.

Intention to refuse request

I am writing to advise you that I intend to refuse your request on the
basis that a practical refusal reason exists. However, before I make a
final decision to do this, you have an opportunity to revise your request
to remove the practical refusal reason. This is called a ‘request
consultation process’. You have 14 days to respond to this notice in one
of the ways set out below.

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 under section 24AA of the FOI Act if
either (or both) of the following applies:

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

(1)(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.

I consider that the request does not satisfy the requirements of section
15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, and accordingly that practical refusal reasons
exist under section 24AA(1)(b) of the FOI Act.

Reasons for practical refusal

In order for your request to be valid for the purposes of the FOI Act, it
must provide such information concerning the documents that you are
seeking access to, as is reasonably necessary to enable the Department to
identify the documents.

Given the broad nature of the activities undertaken by the Department, I
do not consider that you have provided a reasonable description of the
documents to which you are seeking access.

As such, I am satisfied that your request is not valid and a practical
refusal reason exists in this request. You have not provided sufficient
information concerning the document you are seeking to access, to enable
the Department to be able to identify it.

Request Consultation Process

To enable the Department to consider your request for access under the FOI
Act, the Department will require sufficient information concerning the
specific existing documents to which you seek access, in order to enable
the Department to identify those documents.

You do not necessarily need to be able to identify the exact documents you
are seeking, but you need to provide the Department with sufficient
information to enable us to identify them. Given the very broad nature of
the functions that this Department has responsibility for, at a very
minimum, we will require advice as to which business areas might hold the
documents you are seeking to access. A copy of the Department’s
organisation chart is available on the Department’s website [1]here which
may assist you with this.

In addition, you may wish to consider providing a timeframe for your
request to assist the Department’s officers to reasonably be able to
identify the documents to which you seek access.

You now have an opportunity to revise your request to ensure it is a
valid request under section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act and to enable it to
proceed.

· Please specify exactly what ‘impacts on visa cancellation
decisions’ you are referring to, otherwise the request is too broad for us
to search or process.

Under section 24AB(6) of the FOI Act, you have 14 days to do one of the
following:

· withdraw your request;

· make a revised request;

· indicate that you do not wish to revise 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, your request will be taken to have been
withdrawn in accordance with section 24AB(7) of the FOI Act.

Contact

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

AJ - Position Number 2145

FOI Officer | Freedom of Information Section

Privacy, FOI & Records Management

| Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01846

File Number: FA24/05/01846

Dear Oliver Smith

Freedom of Information Request

I refer to your email dated 30 May 2024 in which you requested access to
documents held by Department of Home Affairs under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

You specifically requested access to:

Under the FOI Act, I seek all correspondence from the Home Affairs
department sent to the office of the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship
and Multicultural Affairs sent from 23 January 2023 in relation to the
operation of Ministerial Direction 99 and its impact on visa cancellation
decisions..

On 31 May 2024, Department notified you of its intention to refuse your
request due to the fact that 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.

In particular, Department notified you that, within 14 days of receipt of
that letter, you must advise Department that:

· you wish to make a revised request; or

· indicate that you do not wish to revise your request; or

· withdraw your request.

The 14 day period has now expired. As such, in accordance with section
24AB(7) of the FOI Act, Department considers that your request has been
withdrawn.

If you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate
to contact an FOI officer at [Department of Home Affairs request email].

Kind regards

Jade

Position number 60107422

FOI Officer Freedom of Information

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch | Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

E: [1][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

From: FOI
Sent: Friday, 31 May 2024 1:22 PM
To: Oliver Smith <[FOI #11468 email]>
Subject: CM: FA 24/05/01846 - Practical Refusal Notice - Due 14 June 2024
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01846

File Number: FA24/05/01846

Dear Oliver Smith

I refer to your email dated 30 May 2024, in which you requested access to
documents held by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under
the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

You have requested access to the following:

Under the FOI Act, I seek all correspondence from the Home Affairs
department sent to the office of the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship
and Multicultural Affairs sent from 23 January 2023 in relation to the
operation of Ministerial Direction 99 and its impact on visa cancellation
decisions.

Intention to refuse request

I am writing to advise you that I intend to refuse your request on the
basis that a practical refusal reason exists. However, before I make a
final decision to do this, you have an opportunity to revise your request
to remove the practical refusal reason. This is called a ‘request
consultation process’. You have 14 days to respond to this notice in one
of the ways set out below.

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 under section 24AA of the FOI Act if
either (or both) of the following applies:

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

(1)(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.

I consider that the request does not satisfy the requirements of section
15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, and accordingly that practical refusal reasons
exist under section 24AA(1)(b) of the FOI Act.

Reasons for practical refusal

In order for your request to be valid for the purposes of the FOI Act, it
must provide such information concerning the documents that you are
seeking access to, as is reasonably necessary to enable the Department to
identify the documents.

Given the broad nature of the activities undertaken by the Department, I
do not consider that you have provided a reasonable description of the
documents to which you are seeking access.

As such, I am satisfied that your request is not valid and a practical
refusal reason exists in this request. You have not provided sufficient
information concerning the document you are seeking to access, to enable
the Department to be able to identify it.

Request Consultation Process

To enable the Department to consider your request for access under the FOI
Act, the Department will require sufficient information concerning the
specific existing documents to which you seek access, in order to enable
the Department to identify those documents.

You do not necessarily need to be able to identify the exact documents you
are seeking, but you need to provide the Department with sufficient
information to enable us to identify them. Given the very broad nature of
the functions that this Department has responsibility for, at a very
minimum, we will require advice as to which business areas might hold the
documents you are seeking to access. A copy of the Department’s
organisation chart is available on the Department’s website [2]here which
may assist you with this.

In addition, you may wish to consider providing a timeframe for your
request to assist the Department’s officers to reasonably be able to
identify the documents to which you seek access.

You now have an opportunity to revise your request to ensure it is a
valid request under section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act and to enable it to
proceed.

· Please specify exactly what ‘impacts on visa cancellation
decisions’ you are referring to, otherwise the request is too broad for us
to search or process.

Under section 24AB(6) of the FOI Act, you have 14 days to do one of the
following:

· withdraw your request;

· make a revised request;

· indicate that you do not wish to revise 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, your request will be taken to have been
withdrawn in accordance with section 24AB(7) of the FOI Act.

Contact

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

AJ - Position Number 2145

FOI Officer | Freedom of Information Section

Privacy, FOI & Records Management

| Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

show quoted sections

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