Ministerial Direction on character related visa decision making - New Primary Consideration - a Freedom of Information request to Department of Home Affairs

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References

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01840

File Number: FA24/05/01840

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 documentation, notes, memos, correspondence
etc produced in the preparation for the document entitled "Ministerial
Direction on character related visa decision making - New Primary
Consideration" with PDMS Ref. Number: MS22-002716 which can be found at:
https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files....

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.

· Revise your scope to provide a date range. For example, from 1
January 2023 until specific end date.

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
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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 [Department of Home Affairs request email].

David
Position Number 60157647

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch

Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

E: [2][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

Hello Oliver Smith,

Thanks for your email.

We can’t accept the revised scope and it will be too large and the
Department may have trouble identifying the documents requested with the
way the scope is worded.

If you could please provide a revised scope with the following information
in mind:-

specify a timeframe
quantify the terms “serious criminals” and “extensive criminal history”
for us to process the request, e.g. “people with convictions for murder”,
“people who have served at least 12 months in prison”.

If you could please provide your response and revised scope by 14 June
2024.

Kind Regards

David
Team Leader – Authorised FOI Officer, Freedom of Information
Position Number 60157647

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: Oliver Smith <[FOI #11467 email]>
Sent: Monday, 3 June 2024 2:14 PM
To: FOI <[Department of Home Affairs request email]>
Subject: Re: FA 24/05/01840 - Practical Refusal Notice - Due 14 June 2024
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

Dear FOI,

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01840

File Number: FA24/05/01840

Thank you for email, in order to narrow the scope of the request as
advised. Can the documents requested be restricted to: the impact of
Ministerial Direction 99 on the revocation of non-citizen visa holders who
had committed serious criminals, with extensive criminal history or bad
cases of family violence.

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Smith

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

Hello Oliver Smith,

Thanks for your further email.

Would you consider revising your scope to the following:-
“Documentation regarding the impact of Ministerial Direction 99 on the
revocation of non-citizen visa holders who had been found guilty of the
following criminal offences: ‘murder’, ‘manslaughter with intent to
murder’ or ‘grievous bodily harm with intent to murder’.”

If you agree to amend your scope to the above, please provide your
response and revised scope by 14 June 2024.

Kind Regards

David
Team Leader – Authorised FOI Officer, Freedom of Information
Position Number 60157647

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: Oliver Smith <[FOI #11467 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 4 June 2024 8:25 AM
To: FOI <[Department of Home Affairs request email]>
Subject: RE: FA 24/05/01840 - Practical Refusal Notice - Due 14 June 2024
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

Dear FOI,

Thank you for your response and the offer to further refine the scope.
Please let me know if this is useful or needs more work. Any documents
created from 22 May 2022 up to 23 January 2023

To clarify serious crimes, please use the definition of "serious violence
offence" from S5A of the Crimes (high risk offenders act) 2006
[2]https://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw...

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Smith

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01840

File Number: FA24/05/01840

Dear Oliver Smith

I am writing in relation to your FOI request made on 30 May 2024, and the
subsequent consultation period following the issuance of the Practical
Refusal Notice on 31 May 2024.

You responded to the Practical Refusal Notice on 03 June 2024 and 04 June
2024. We sent a further email on 04 June 2024 asking for you to further
clarify the scope, with a response due date of 14 June 2024.

The Department has not received any reply or response to this email.

Would you consider revising your scope to the following:-
“Documentation regarding the impact of Ministerial Direction 99 on the
revocation of non-citizen visa holders who had been found guilty of the
following criminal offences: ‘murder’, ‘manslaughter with intent to
murder’ or ‘grievous bodily harm with intent to murder’.”

As a courtesy, we are now sending you this follow up email, inviting you
to respond by 20 June 2024.
If the Department does not receive a response by 20 June 2024, the
consultation period will cease and the FOI request will be deemed
withdrawn.

If you have any questions in relation to this process, please do not
hesitate to contact [1][Department of Home Affairs request email].

Kind Regards

David
Team Leader – Authorised FOI Officer, Freedom of Information
Position Number 60157647

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch

Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

E: [2][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

From: FOI
Sent: Tuesday, 4 June 2024 10:28 AM
To: 'Oliver Smith' <[FOI #11467 email]>
Subject: RE: FA 24/05/01840 - Practical Refusal Notice - Due 14 June 2024
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

Hello Oliver Smith,

Thanks for your further email.

Would you consider revising your scope to the following:-
“Documentation regarding the impact of Ministerial Direction 99 on the
revocation of non-citizen visa holders who had been found guilty of the
following criminal offences: ‘murder’, ‘manslaughter with intent to
murder’ or ‘grievous bodily harm with intent to murder’.”

If you agree to amend your scope to the above, please provide your
response and revised scope by 14 June 2024.

Kind Regards

David
Team Leader – Authorised FOI Officer, Freedom of Information
Position Number 60157647

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch

Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

E: [3][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

From: Oliver Smith <[4][FOI #11467 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 4 June 2024 8:25 AM
To: FOI <[5][Department of Home Affairs request email]>
Subject: RE: FA 24/05/01840 - Practical Refusal Notice - Due 14 June 2024
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

Dear FOI,

Thank you for your response and the offer to further refine the scope.
Please let me know if this is useful or needs more work. Any documents
created from 22 May 2022 up to 23 January 2023

To clarify serious crimes, please use the definition of "serious violence
offence" from S5A of the Crimes (high risk offenders act) 2006
[6]https://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw...

Yours sincerely,

Oliver Smith

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01840

File Number: FA24/05/01840

Dear Oliver Smith

Acknowledgement of Freedom of Information Access request

This letter acknowledges that on 30 May 2024 the Department of Home
Affairs (the Department) received your request to access documents held
by the Department under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI
Act). This letter also provides important information about your request.

Scope of request

On 30 May 2024 you requested access to the following:

Under the FOI Act, I seek all documentation, notes, memos, correspondence
etc produced in the preparation for the document entitled "Ministerial
Direction on character related visa decision making - New Primary
Consideration" with PDMS Ref. Number: MS22-002716 which can be found at:
https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files...

On 18 June 2024 you amended the scope of your request to:

Documentation regarding the impact of Ministerial Direction 99
on the revocation of non-citizen visa holders who had been found guilty of
the following criminal offences: ‘murder’, ‘manslaughter with intent to
murder’ or
‘grievous bodily harm with intent to murder’.

Your request has been allocated FOI request number FA 24/05/01840. Please
include your FOI request number in all correspondence with the Freedom of
Information Section.

Timeframe

The timeframe for processing a request is 30 days from the day we receive
your request, as set out in the FOI Act.

Your review rights in relation to your request are available on [1]Freedom
of information reviews | OAIC.

Fees and Charges

Charges do not apply to requests from individuals seeking access to
documents about themselves. However, a charge may apply to all other
requests for access to documents.

Charges are based on the amount of time the Department spends on your
request. Charges can range from $10 to over $1,000 depending on the
complexity and scope of your request. The Office of the Australian
Information Commissioner reported that across the public service, the
average charge notified was $335.50 in 2020-21.

If a charge applies, you will be issued with a Notice of Charge that
explains the charge and your options.

Detailed information about FOI charges that may apply to your FOI request
is available on [2]the Department’s website.

We do not provide personal details of staff or non-public facing
operational email addresses

The Department’s practice is to exclude the personal details of Government
employees, including contractors, not in the Senior Executive Service
(SES), as well as the direct contact details of SES staff, contained in
documents that fall within scope of an FOI request. If you require
personal details of non-SES officers, or direct contact details of SES
staff, please inform us so the decision maker may consider your request.
Otherwise we will take it that you agree to that information being
excluded from the scope of your request as irrelevant under section
22(1)(a)(ii) of the FOI Act. However names of staff that have previously
been released in departmental correspondence may be disclosed.

We do not provide duplicated documents

If the FOI decision-maker deems a document to be a duplicate, they will
not assess those pages as part of your FOI request. This means that if a
there is a decision to release the document to you, you will receive only
one copy, even if multiple copies of that document exist.

Publication of document

Released documents you request may be published to our website.

Where documents are released to you in response to your request, the
Department may be required to publish these documents on its website
within 10 working days in accordance with section 11C of the FOI Act.
Publication will not be required where the documents contain personal or
business affairs information.

How to reduce or withdraw your request

Reducing the scope of your request can reduce the time and charges
associated with processing your FOI request.

To reduce or withdraw your request, contact the FOI section at
[3][Department of Home Affairs request email] and include your FOI request number.

Contacting the FOI Section

Should you wish to discuss your request you may contact the FOI Section at
[Department of Home Affairs request email].

Kind Regards

David
Team Leader – Authorised FOI Officer, Freedom of Information
Position Number 60157647

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch

Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

E: [4][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/05/01840

File Number: FA24/05/01840

Dear Oliver Smith,

I refer to your request received on 30 May 2024 for access to documents
under the FOI Act.

The current due date for your request is 17 July 2024. The Department
seeks your agreement under section 15AA of the FOI Act to extend the
timeframe for the processing of your request by 30 days. This would extend
the due date for your request to 16 August 2024.

The reason we are seeking an extension of time is due to demand for
Departmental documents is high and we continue to experience increasing
volumes of incoming requests particularly in recent months. Each request
received by the Department is managed in the context of this large volume
which can impact the timeliness of our decisions and as such we seek
agreement from applicants on extensions of time where possible. We are
endeavouring to ensure, as an applicant, you understand the likely
timeframe for your request to be finalised. We continue to try to process
requests as quickly as possible regardless of if an extension is provided.

If you could please provide a response to this request by close of
business, 04 July 2024

Kind Regards,

David
Team Leader – Authorised FOI Officer, Freedom of Information
Position Number 60157647

Privacy, FOI and Records Management Branch

Legal Group

Department of Home Affairs

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

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

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, the ABF and the National Emergency
Management Agency 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]

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