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Message from FOI Commissioner Alice Linacre

Freedom of Information Commissioner Alice Linacre
Freedom of Information Commissioner, Alice Linacre

Hello and welcome to our latest ICON alert.

Today's newsletter follows last week's webinar in which our OAIC staff updated the FOI practitioner community on important topics including the requirements to submit FOI statistics following the end of the financial year in July, IC review matters, EOT applications, vexatious applicant declarations and more.

Your consistent attendance at these development opportunities is a strong indicator of the public service's commitment to information access and transparency, and we look forward to more of these events later in the year.

You will find articles below reiterating some of the most important takeaways and also addressing common questions received throughout the webinar.

I am pleased to share that in recent weeks and months, we've had encouraging and constructive collaboration with fellow agencies across the APS. This includes talking to teams at the Department of Employment & Workplace Relations and the Department of Education and discussing how important FOI is, how they can support the excellent work of their FOI teams (both agencies have great FOI timeliness statistics) and to discuss how technology is impacting FOI and how to think about first principles when navigating that challenge. Please reach out if I can assist with any engagement or education by coming along to speak or listen.

It is also timely to acknowledge the publication of the OAIC's Australian Attitudes to Privacy Survey, which is conducted every 3 years. I highly recommend using this report to inform your work serving the Australian public, especially as AI becomes an increasing consideration in many discussions.

Finally, please keep an eye out in the coming week as we prepare to share a special edition ICON alert filled with information and tips to help you with your quarter 4 and annual returns.

FOI Regulatory Practice Update webinar wrap-up

Thank you to those who attended our second FOI Regulatory Update Webinar of 2026, held on 16 June 2026. Speakers from our Regulatory Intelligence and Strategy Branch, and Freedom of Information Case Management Branch presented sessions on:

  • FOI stats, covering the nuts and bolts of quarterly and annual FOI statistical returns
  • IC reviews, including review of searches matters and recent decisions
  • Extension of Time applications
  • Vexatious applicant declarations

We have already received some feedback, and we’d love to hear more via our short and anonymous feedback form.

We also appreciated your engagement during the webinar and we’re listening to your feedback about spending more time with you on questions in future webinars.

For the meanwhile, we have set out each sessions’ key takeaways in the following items, and put together some information in response to questions from the Q&A.

Reminder: FOI statistics due in July

Thank you to those who attended our second FOI Regulatory Update Webinar of 2026, held on 16 June 2026. Speakers from our Regulatory Intelligence and Strategy Branch, and Freedom of Information Case Management Branch presented sessions on:

  • FOI stats, covering the nuts and bolts of quarterly and annual FOI statistical returns
  • IC reviews, including review of searches matters and recent decisions
  • Extension of Time applications
  • Vexatious applicant declarations

We have already received some feedback, and we’d love to hear more via our short and anonymous feedback form.

We also appreciated your engagement during the webinar and we’re listening to your feedback about spending more time with you on questions in future webinars.

For the meanwhile, we have set out each sessions’ key takeaways in the following items, and put together some information in response to questions from the Q&A.

Reminder: FOI statistics due in July

Agencies and ministers are required to enter FOI statistics on the Information Commissioner’s secure web portal at https://foistats.oaic.gov.au/ (the FOIstats database):

  • quarter 4 returns are due by 21 July 2026
  • annual returns are due by 31 July 2026.

Your questions at the webinar focused on issues that you’re having with accessing the FOIstats database. The OAIC is looking into upgrading the database, but for the purposes of submitting your agency’s quarter 4 return, and annual return, please consider:

  • the tips in our October ICON alert – edition 21 | OAIC about password resets and, ‘whitelisting’ your IP address if needed
  • using a different browser to open the database such as Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome
  • having a go at accessing the database now, so that you and your colleagues are familiar and ready to submit your quarterly and annual returns.

Now is a good time to familiarise yourself with your agency’s FOI statistics, including staff-hours recorded in ‘search minutes’ which you may rely on for your agency’s annual return (see for example the OAIC’s guidance on searches including search minute template).

Look out for a Special ICON alert that we will send in early July full of information and tips to help you submit your agency’s quarter 4 return, and annual return. In the meantime, please be encouraged to familiarise yourself with the FOIstats guide.

Discussion of recent IC review topics – s 17, staff names, login IDs

We discussed insights regarding reviews of adequacy of searches decisions and explained at the webinar that one of the trends in IC reviews of searches matters is the involvement of s 17 of the FOI Act (Requests involving use of computers etc.).

A key takeaway is if you consider that s 17(2) may apply, you must undertake a request consultation process (s 24AB). As paragraph [3.241] of the FOI Guidelines explains:.

… an agency is not required to produce a written document using a computer or other equipment ordinarily available if doing so would substantially and unreasonably divert the agency’s resources from its other operations. This means that the agency must engage in a request consultation process under s 24AB if it intends to refuse the request for a practical refusal reason.

Your questions at the webinar focused on how to work out whether production would “substantially and unreasonably” divert the resources of the agency from its other operations.

We would take a closer look at paragraph [3.200] of the FOI Guidelines, which sets out matters specified in s 24AA(2) that you must have regard to, and paragraph [3.201], which sets out other matters that may be relevant.

We also gave an overview of recent IC review decisions, several of which involved staff names, login IDs, and group mailbox email addresses:

  • ‘BAE’ and Department of Home Affairs (Freedom of information) [2026] AICmr 27 (6 May 2026)
  • ‘BAJ’ and Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Freedom of information) [2026] AICmr 30 (14 May 2026)
  • ‘BAK’ and National Disability Insurance Agency (Freedom of information) [2026] AICmr 31 (15 May 2026)

Extension of time (EOT) applications

We are endeavouring to give same-day responses to Extensions of Time (EOT) applications (ss 15AB, 15AC, 54D, 51DA) that request extensions of fewer than 30 days.

As we explained in the webinar, you can help us respond to your EOT application on the same day by following these tips:

  • use our EOT Web Form for all EOT applications (you can also notify us of s 15AA agreements with that Web Form)
  • provide the right processing timeframe so far by using our Freedom of Information processing period calculator
  • provide your best telephone number in the form so that we can quickly call you to clarify any aspect of the application
  • provide any reference numbers for previous EOT applications, whether the OAIC granted or refused them, in relation to the same FOI request
  • give reasons for requesting the EOT, explaining how many documents are covered by the request, the work that you have already undertaken, and other relevant points discussed in our resources set out below.

As we also explained, the OAIC will generally consult with the applicant if you request an extension of more than 30 days. We would only provide your whole EOT Web Form to the applicant by exception, and after checking with you first.

We do need to provide the applicant with your reasons for requesting the EOT, so please tell us in the Web Form if any reasons are sensitive and should not be shared with the applicant, and provide them directly to us at foidr@oaic.gov.au.

For more information on EOTs, and on processing times more broadly, see our resources:

Vexatious applicant declarations

The Information Commissioner may declare a person to be a vexatious applicant, either on the Commissioner’s own initiative or on the application of an agency or minister (s 89K).

As we explained at the webinar, the OAIC has received several applications for vexatious applicant declarations in recent months, and we are working to finalise these matters. We also gave agencies tips to assist the OAIC to efficiently manage these matters, including to:

  • provide the person with a copy of their application and attachments at the same time as making its application to the OAIC (consistent with paragraph [12.38] of the Guidelines), and similarly
  • provide the person with submissions at the same time as providing those submissions to the OAIC.

You asked about whether there is any fixed number of access actions that would make an applicant vexatious. We can point you toward paragraph [12.17] of the FOI Guidelines, which explains that there is no fixed number of access actions required to establish a pattern of repeated requests. See the FOI Guidelines for more information and references.

You also asked questions about more guidance on the steps and timeframes involved in the OAIC’s handling of vexatious applicant declarations, and what agencies can do before applying for a vexatious applicant declaration. We are working on an update to the FOI Guidelines, Part 12: Vexatious applicant declarations | OAIC, and will keep you updated in upcoming ICONs.

In the meantime, the FOI Guidelines contain some matters that agencies should address before applying for a vexatious applicant declaration, such as consulting with the person about their ‘access actions’, and addressing deficiencies in agency FOI administration (see paragraph [12.13] of the FOI Guidelines). You may also wish to view our resources:

Australians more concerned about privacy as trust in AI languishes, survey finds

Introducing the latest Australian Community Attitudes to Privacy Survey (ACAPS) Australian Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind said the report's findings are clear: “Australians demand transparency, both in understanding their privacy rights, how their information is used, and in embracing their right to access that information."

Conducted every 3 years, ACAPS provides a comprehensive view of Australians’ privacy attitudes and experiences, including how recent events have impacted them.

The survey notes, privacy is a growing concern for Australians, with 87% of respondents indicating they are more concerned about privacy than they were 5 years ago.

Key findings from the study included that trust in the Australian Government (68%) and health providers (74%) remained high, whilst trust in AI (4%) and social media (3%) is extremely low.

To read the full report, visit oaic.gov.au/acaps

IC reviews

Case management IC reviews


The OAIC will shortly notify agencies and ministers of IC reviews received in 2023 that will be proceeding to case management between July and December 2026. The purpose of these notices is to assist agencies and ministers to prepare to respond to requests for information in a timely way.

Requests for information may be issued through a specific direction or power under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act). The Direction as to certain procedures to be followed by agencies and ministers in IC reviews sets time standards governed by the objects of the FOI Act.

Further information about the use of directions and information gathering powers is available at Information Commissioner Reviews: Quick guide to use of directions and information gathering powers | OAIC.

Recent IC review decisions


Information Commissioner decisions made under s 55K of the FOI Act are published on AUSTLII. Recent decisions include:

‘BAV’ and Professional Services Review (Freedom of information) [2026] AICmr 49 (23 June 2026)

Key points: This decision discusses whether the PSR took ‘all reasonable steps’ to locate documents within the scope of the applicant’s request (s 24A) and whether documents responsive to the request exist or can be found. It highlights the importance of accurately identifying the scope of the request based on the wording of the FOI request and any subsequent clarification of scope by the applicant.

‘BAS’ and Comcare (Freedom of information) [2026] AICmr 45 (18 June 2026)

Key points: This decision discusses the application of s 24A of the FOI Act to documents related to a compensation claim made by the applicant. While it is primarily of interest to the parties in relation to the specific documents sought, it highlights that, in this context, it may be reasonable to expect that additional documents relevant to the applicant’s request exist outside a formal claim file. It emphasises the importance of ensuring that searches extend beyond the formal file, where appropriate, in order to identify all relevant documents.

‘BAR’ and Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Freedom of information) [2026] AICmr 44 (18 June 2026)

Key points: This decision discusses the application of the practical refusal provisions (ss 24, 24AA, and 24AB of the FOI Act) where AUSTRAC has decided to refuse the request on the basis that the applicant’s access request would substantially and unreasonably divert its resources (s 24AA(1)(a)(i)). It finds that AUSTRAC has established that a practical refusal reason exists for the purposes of s 24AA(1)(a)(i) of the FOI Act because the work involved in processing the request would involve a substantial and unreasonable diversion of AUSTRAC’s resources, and that AUSTRAC was authorised under s 24(1)(b) of the FOI Act to refuse access to the documents in accordance with the access request.

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