FOI statistics returns

Agency FOI statistics reporting obligations

Key points

• The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (FOI Act) requires all agencies subject to the FOI Act to provide information to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) for inclusion in the OAIC's Annual Report.
• Agencies subject to the FOI Act must provide their quarterly and annual statistical returns, in relation to freedom of information matters, within the statutory timeframes set out in the Freedom of Information (Prescribed Authorities, Principal Offices and Annual Report) Regulations 2017.
• Separate returns need to be completed for each minister, assistant minister (or parliamentary secretary), department and other government agency. If no FOI requests have been received during the reporting period, a Nil return must be submitted.

Who must complete a return?

For information about agencies subject to the FOI Act, and which must complete a return, or have a return completed for them by the portfolio department, please see Part 2 of the FOI Guidelines — Scope of application of the FOI Act.

You can contact the OAIC's Enquiries Line on 1300 363 992 (Monday to Thursday, 10 am to 4 pm (AEST/AEDT)) or submit an online Enquiry form to find out whether your organisation is already submitting returns.

Reporting deadlines

Reporting deadlines for providing statistical information to the OAIC are established by regulation 8 of the Freedom of Information (Prescribed Authorities, Principal Offices and Annual Report) Regulations 2017. The deadlines for submitting returns are:

For quarterly statistical returns about FOI requests and outcomes:

• 1 July to 30 September: 21 October
• 1 October to 31 December: 21 January
• 1 January to 31 March: 21 April
• 1 April to 30 June: 21 July

For annual returns, about staff resources and other costs and comparisons with previous years:

• For each year ending 30 June: 31 July

The submission request raised for each period states the date the return is due. The OAIC sets that date when the requests are raised, in line with these deadlines.

It is important that agencies comply with these deadlines because the Australian Information Commissioner Act 2010 requires the Australian Information Commissioner to prepare the OAIC's Annual Report as soon as practicable after 30 June each year. Summary information from the returns is included in the OAIC's Annual Report and the full data set from agency returns, including agency comments, is published separately on data.gov.au.

How to complete returns

Returns are completed and submitted in the OAIC Services Portal by your agency's nominated FOI Officers. Each reporting period, the OAIC raises a submission request for your agency in the portal and emails your FOI Officers a link to it. The return is completed from that request.

Each FOI Officer signs in with their own email address . Your agency's Agency Administrator can add and remove your agency's FOI Officers without contacting the OAIC.

The FOIStats Guide is no longer available on the website. You will need to sign into the portal to access the instructions.

Signing in to the portal

Sign up to the OAIC Services Portal.

You sign in with your own official work email address. There is no shared agency logon and no user ID: the email address the OAIC (or your Agency Administrator) recorded for you is your identity in the portal.

The first time you sign in:

1. Open the portal and enter your email address. Select Continue.
2. Check your email for a 6-digit-code.
3. Copy the code in your email and enter into the box that reads 6-digit-code as above, then select Continue.
4. Enter your full name, create a password, and select Continue.
5. You are now registered and need to Login to the Portal. In the next window, add your email address and select Next.
6. Select Continue with single sign-on.
7. You are signed in to the OAIC Services Portal.

You will be asked for a verification code, sent to your email address, the first time you sign in from a new device or browser.

Returning users enter their email address and password. If you have forgotten your password, use the Reset password link on the sign-in page; a reset email is sent to your address.

Contacting the OAIC

• For anything about a specific return, leave a comment on its submission request. It reaches the OAIC FOI Stats staff and keeps the question with the return.
• For FOI Officer access, use the Request FOI Officer Agency Access request form in the portal
• For anything else, including if you cannot sign in to the portal at all, call the OAIC's Enquiries Line on 1300 363 992 (Monday to Thursday, 10 am to 4 pm (AEST/AEDT)) or submit an online Enquiry form .

Please note: additional request types will be available in the portal in coming weeks, including:

• To correct a submitted return, raise an Amend Returns request.
• For access — yours, another FOI Officer's, or a Third Party's — raise a Request FOI Officer Agency Access or Change Third Party Access request.
• For changes to your agency — its name, portfolio, contact details, who reports on its behalf, or its abolition — raise the matching FOI Agencies request .