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Office closures during the Christmas period

Our offices will be closed on the 27, 28 & 29 of December 2021, and again
on 3 January 2022.

If you are sending an email to us during this time please note that we
will not be able to respond to your enquiry until we re-open.

While we will endeavour to action all correspondence as soon as possible,
you may experience delays due to our office closure and the large volume
of emails received during this period.

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 24 December 2021

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

In reply please quote:

FOI Request:       FA 21/12/01141

File Number:       OBJ2021/36952 

Dear Tharun Thatikonda

Acknowledgement of Freedom of Information Access request

I refer to your correspondence received on 26 December 2021 seeking 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:

1) How many people claimed points for minimum of 3 years experience in the
following occupations and submitted their expression of interest under
subclass 190, I request to release those details individually for each and
every state/territory.
a) Software engineer
b) Developer programmer
c) Computer Network and System Engineer.

Your request was received by the Department on 26 December 2021 and has
been allocated FOI request number FA 21/12/01141. Please include your FOI
request number in all correspondence with the Freedom of Information
Section.

Timeframe for receiving your decision

The statutory timeframe for processing a request is 30 days from the date
upon which your application was received by the Department.

Your review rights in relation to your request are available on the
website of the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner [1]here.

Exclusion of staff details

The Department’s policy is to exclude the personal details of staff 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.

Duplicate 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

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.

Contacting the FOI Section

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

Kind regards

Tina – Position Number 60008296

Freedom of Information (FOI) Section

FOI and Records Management Branch

Data Division

Strategy and National Resilience Group

E: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

Department of Home Affairs | [3]www.homeaffairs.gov.au

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. https://www.oaic.gov.au/freedom-of-infor...
2. mailto:[Department of Home Affairs request email]
3. http://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/

OFFICIAL

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 21/12/01141
File Number: OBJ2021/36952

Dear Tharun Thatikonda,

The FOI request (FA 21/12/01141) was received on 26 December 2021. Since then, it was registered and search and retrieval of any relevant documents within scope has commenced.

Amending the scope of this existing FOI request would impact the Department’s ability to meet its 30 day statutory requirement.

Therefore, the Department refuses your request to amend the scope of this FOI request.

You are welcome to submit a new and separate FOI request with the scope amendment, or to withdraw the current FOI request, and lodge a new FOI request with the consolidated/revised scope.

Kind regards,

Karen
Position: 60114871
Freedom of Information
Freedom of Information & Records Management Branch | Data Division
Strategy & Law Enforcement Group
Department of Home Affairs
E: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

OFFICIAL

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL

In reply please quote:
FOI Request: FA 21/12/01141

Dear Tharun Thatikonda,

Offer to Withdraw Freedom of Information Access Request

I refer to your correspondence of 26 December 2021 seeking access to documents held by the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act).

Your request has been allocated the FOI reference number referred to above. Please include your FOI reference number in all correspondence with the Freedom of Information Section.

As you may be aware, earlier this year the Department launched a dashboard on its SkillSelect website to provide visa Expression of Interest (EOI) statistics. The Department has undertaken a review of the SkillSelect Dashboard to ensure that there is no reasonable chance of an individual being re-identified from the EOI statistics.

The dashboard is now available again and can be accessed via the Department’s SkillSelect web page and comprises a comprehensive library of historic and current statistics in relation to Expressions of Interest (EOIs). The dashboard is a one-stop shop for SkillSelect EOI statistics and is freely available on demand, without any need to formally request the statistics and wait for such a request to be processed. Bypassing the FOI process will significantly reduce delays in obtaining the same information as has previously been provided in response to FOI requests.

As this information is now publically available, you may wish to withdraw you FOI request. If you do not advise the Department that you wish to continue with this FOI request within 5 days of this email, your request will be taken to have been withdrawn.

Privacy

The Department’s handling of personal information is regulated by the Privacy Act 1988 (the Privacy Act). Guidance published by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner is that information will be de-identified, and therefore not subject to the protections in the Privacy Act, where the risk of an individual being re-identified is very low. De-identification is not a fixed state. Rather, re-identification risks and their controls require ongoing monitoring and review.

The Department’s view is that the current controls are appropriate to reduce the risk that an individual can be re-identified from the statistics accessible from the SkillSelect Dashboard to very low.

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,

FOI Officer - Geoff
Freedom of Information
Department of Home Affairs

E: [Department of Home Affairs request email]

OFFICIAL

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request:       FA21-12-01141

File Number:       OBJ2021/36952

Dear Tharun,

I refer to your FOI request received on 26 December 2021. You have
requested access to:

1) How many people claimed points for minimum of 3 years experience in the
following occupations and submitted their expression of interest under
subclass 190, I request to release those details individually for each and
every state/territory.

a) Software engineer

b) Developer programmer

c) Computer Network and System Engineer.

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.

Joanne

FOI Decision Maker | FOI Section

FOI and Records Management Branch | Data Division

Strategy and National Resilience Group

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 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]