Exit and entry approvals for travel from and to Australia
Dear Australian Border Force,
I would like the following information for the period April 2020 to December 2021.
1. The number of applications for permission to exit Australia on compassionate grounds which were rejected.
2. The number of applications to enter Australia on compassionate grounds which were rejected.
3. The dates of all entry and exit to and from Australia for two individuals - Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes.
4. The grounds for permission being granted on each occasion.
5. The conditions for quarantine that each individual had to observe on their return to Australia on each occasion.
Yours faithfully,
Bruce Quealy
135 Rostrata Avenue
Willetton 6155
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Thank you
Information updated 11 January 2022
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References
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OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy
In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 22/01/00755
File Number: OBJ2022/1615
Dear Mr Quealy,
I refer to your email dated 16 January 2022 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 would like the following information for the period April 2020 to December 2021.
1. The number of applications for permission to exit Australia on compassionate grounds which were rejected.
2. The number of applications to enter Australia on compassionate grounds which were rejected.
3. The dates of all entry and exit to and from Australia for two individuals - Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes.
4. The grounds for permission being granted on each occasion.
5. The conditions for quarantine that each individual had to observe on their return to Australia on each occasion.
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:
• We’ve previously had advice from the Travel Exemption section that travel exemption statistical data is only available from 1 August 2020. Please advise if you are happy to revise the scope of your request for point 1 and 2 to 1 August 2020 to 31 December 2021.
• Please clarify if point 4 and 5 relate to the two individuals - Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes.
• Please specific a timeframe and provide consent for point 3, 4 and 5 for the two individuals - Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes.
• In regards to point 5, quarantine condition requirements are set by state/governments. Please consider withdrawing this part of your request.
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 decision maker at [ABF request email]
Kind Regards,
Michael
Position number: 60028261
Authorised FOI Officer
FOI and Records Management Branch | Data Division
Strategy and National Resilience Group
Department Of Home Affairs
E: [ABF request email]
Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive
-----Original Message-----
From: B Quealy <[FOI #8321 email]>
Sent: Sunday, 16 January 2022 8:35 PM
To: FOI <[ABF request email]>
Subject: CM: Freedom of Information request - Exit and entry approvals for travel from and to Australia
Dear Australian Border Force,
I would like the following information for the period April 2020 to December 2021.
1. The number of applications for permission to exit Australia on compassionate grounds which were rejected.
2. The number of applications to enter Australia on compassionate grounds which were rejected.
3. The dates of all entry and exit to and from Australia for two individuals - Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes.
4. The grounds for permission being granted on each occasion.
5. The conditions for quarantine that each individual had to observe on their return to Australia on each occasion.
Yours faithfully,
Bruce Quealy
135 Rostrata Avenue
Willetton 6155
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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.