Freedom of information requests

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) gives the public a right to access information held by DVA, including information about you, or about our policies and decisions.

The FOI Act gives you the right to:

• access documents (other than exempt documents) held by us
• ask for your personal information as held by us to be amended if the information is incomplete, out of date, incorrect or misleading; and
• seek a review if you disagree with a decision made by us about your FOI request.

Before you make an FOI request

In the first instance we encourage you to consider making an administrative access request as an alternative. In most instances administrative release is a less complex, more efficient and a potentially faster way to access your personal and some corporate (non-personal) information.

To access information through administrative pathways:

• Check your MyService account
• Ask a DVA delegate
  If you’re looking for information about a current claim, you can get in touch with your assigned delegate.
• Check our website for corporate information published under the Information Publication Scheme (IPS)
  We are required to publish a number of documents and reports under the Information Publication Scheme, which is a part of the FOI act. 
  A lot of our operational information is publicly available in CLIK.
• Check our disclosure log
  DVA is required to publish information that has been released in response to each FOI access request. 
  Access DVA's disclosure log.
• Personal information request
  Personal information requests are one of the easiest (and fastest) ways to enable you to get the outcome you need.

What to expect from us

Acknowledgement of a FOI request will be sent within 14 days and we will send a letter explaining the decision within 30 days, unless otherwise notified. 

We may extend the 30-day period to complete a request when:

• the requestor agrees to the extension of time
• the request captures a large amount of information
• the department is required to consult third parties.

If the information you are looking to access can be disclosed without needing to undertake the FOI process, we may discuss this option with you. 

Information might be redacted, or denied in full, where it is exempt from release under the FOI Act.

FOI request outcomes are disclosed on the FOI disclosure log page.

How to make an FOI request

You can submit a FOI request via email or post, using our Information Access Application form. Our contact details are provided below.

Fees

We may impose charges in accordance with the FOI Act and its Regulations in relation to requests involving information other than your personal information.

There is no application fee, but processing fees can be charged as follows:

• search and retrieval — $15 per hour
• decision making — no charge for the first five hours, $20 per hour thereafter; and
• photocopying — 10c per page.

If we seek to impose charges for an FOI application, we will write to you detailing a quote for the estimated charge amount and seeking a deposit ($20 for an estimated charge between $25 and $100, or 25% for charges greater than $100).

Further details about how the charges were calculated, how to make payments or what to do if you are unhappy with the charge amount would be outlined to you in writing. This includes providing you with an opportunity to contend the estimated charge.

What if you disagree with our decision?

If you are unhappy with our decision, you may:

• Seek internal review by us – you can do so by email
• Seek review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC), who may investigate our actions.
• The Commonwealth Ombudsman can also investigate complaints about our actions.

A third party who disagrees with our decision to give you documents that contain information about them can also ask for our decision to be reviewed. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Additional information on the FOI process, exemptions etc. can be found in our FAQs. 

Contact us

If sending in an FOI request by the below methods, please make sure you are sending in a completed Information Access form.

Email us:

Information.Access@dva.gov.au

Phone us:

1800 VETERAN (1800 838 372) and when prompted, say why you’re calling

Write to us:

Information Access Unit 
Department of Veterans' Affairs 
GPO Box 9998 
Brisbane QLD 4001