Revocation of ministerial direction no 109

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References

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/09/01265

File Number: FA24/09/01265

Dear Mohammad (Right to Know)

Acknowledgement of Freedom of Information Access request

This letter acknowledges that on 23 September 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

You have requested access to the following:

Why was Ministerial direction no 109, revoked within one day of
implementation for the skilled visa priority processing. Will it be
implemented in future with some amendments or is it totally canceled.

Your request has been allocated FOI request number FA 24/09/01265. 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.

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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.

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operational email addresses

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(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
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Reducing the scope of your request can reduce the time and charges
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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 24/09/01265

File Number: FA24/09/01265

Dear Mohammad (Right to Know)

I refer to your email dated 23 September 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:

Why was Ministerial direction no 109, revoked within one day of
implementation for the skilled visa priority processing. Will it be
implemented in future with some amendments or is it totally cancelled.

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 andto enable it to
proceed.

Question in the Scope

The following will not be processed as part of this request, below are the
reasons.

Why was Ministerial direction no 109, revoked within one day of
implementation for the skilled visa priority processing. Will it be
implemented in future with some amendments or is it totally cancelled.

The FOI Act provides a 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.

If you would like to reword your scope to be in the form of seeking
documents or information, as opposed to questions.

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 [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

show quoted sections

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/09/01265

File Number: FA24/09/01265

Dear Mohammad (Right to Know)

Freedom of Information Request

I refer to your email dated 23 September 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:

Why was Ministerial direction no 109, revoked within one day of
implementation for the skilled visa priority processing. Will it be
implemented in future with some amendments or is it totally cancelled.

On 23 September 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 [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: Monday, 23 September 2024 2:18 PM
To: 'Mohammad' <[FOI #12074 email]>
Subject: FA 24/09/01265 - Practical Refusal Notice - Due 07 October 2024
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive, ACCESS=Personal-Privacy]

OFFICIAL: Sensitive
Personal-Privacy

In reply please quote:

FOI Request: FA 24/09/01265

File Number: FA24/09/01265

Dear Mohammad (Right to Know)

I refer to your email dated 23 September 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:

Why was Ministerial direction no 109, revoked within one day of
implementation for the skilled visa priority processing. Will it be
implemented in future with some amendments or is it totally cancelled.

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 [3]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 andto enable it to
proceed.

Question in the Scope

The following will not be processed as part of this request, below are the
reasons.

Why was Ministerial direction no 109, revoked within one day of
implementation for the skilled visa priority processing. Will it be
implemented in future with some amendments or is it totally cancelled.

The FOI Act provides a 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.

If you would like to reword your scope to be in the form of seeking
documents or information, as opposed to questions.

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
[4][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: [5][Department of Home Affairs request email]

Personal-Privacy
OFFICIAL: Sensitive

show quoted sections

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