Request for access to documents under Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act)

COVID-19 (Coronavirus) update – impact on Freedom of Information Requests

The department is actively processing FOI requests and is aiming to finalise all requests as quickly as possible. However, the department is experiencing a significant call on resources to manage Australia’s response. This is having an impact on the department’s ability to process requests.

During this time, we may require additional time to process your request and seek your agreement to an extension of time, or seek this agreement from the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. We encourage all applicants to use self-service or administrative access schemes (obtaining information outside of the FOI Act) on our website to access information where possible.

Please send an email to the FOI mailbox (foi@awe.gov.au) if you would like to contact the department regarding your FOI request.

​​The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) gives you a legal right to request access to documents held by the government.

Make sure you check documents released from past FOI requests.  Do this before you make a new request.

What you can request

You can request access to any document in the possession of:

  • us (the department)
  • certain agencies, such as portfolio Ministers. 

We can refuse access to some documents, or parts of documents that are exempt. Exempt documents may include those relating to national security, documents containing material obtained in confidence and Cabinet documents, or other matters set out in the FOI Act.

How to make a request

You can submit an FOI request to us by either emailing foi@awe.gov.au or completing our online request form.

All FOI requests must:

•    be in writing
•    state that the request is an application for the purposes of the FOI Act
•    provide information about the document(s) to assist us to process your request
•    provide an address for reply
•    clearly state which agency your request relates to.

If your request does not clearly identify the relevant agency, we will take it be a request for documents only in the possession of the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. If it is unclear, we will seek clarification from you.

Personal details

You are not required to give us your real name, or any name at all, or provide proof of your identity. We do need this to give you access to:

  • your own personal information or documents about your business affairs, or
  • information on behalf of another person with their consent.

FOI Request form

Fields marked with an asterisk (*) must be completed before you can submit your request.

Your details

Note: Please type in your email address correctly so you receive a copy of your request.
Post is my preferred method of receiving correspondence from the department.
(including area code and no gaps)

Your FOI request

I am requesting documents in the possession of:

Scope of request

Unclear or excessively large requests

We may refuse to process requests that are

  • unclear
  • would involve a substantial and unreasonable diversion of resources to process (eg too broad in scope or involve too many documents).

This is more likely to happen if your request is in general terms about a topic on which significant work has been undertaken.

This may be less likely to happen if you

  • are specific about the type of document or information you seek, and
  • provide a time frame of the document.

Details of documents

Please provide a detailed description of the document/s you are seeking in the fields below. (e.g. the decision brief about [x], emails, the letters between [x] and [y] about [z]).

Date range

Specify a date range if you seek documents over a period of time

Note: The end date can be no later than the date this application is received by the department.

Privacy Statement

By completing and submitting this form you consent to our collection of your personal or sensitive information (as defined in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)) and use and disclosure of it to administer your FOI request and related purposes. You are not required to provide your name or contact details beyond those required for us to send you notices and documents. However, this information may assist us to deal with your request more effectively. If you want to receive your personal information through FOI requests, we need to confirm that the information we release is to you or someone you have authorised to receive it.This website is hosted on a public ASD certified cloud service by GovCMS through a contract arrangement with the Department of Finance. Information submitted through this web form may be stored on GovCMS for a short period.

Your personal information is managed in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

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