How to get government information.
These are the most common Australian Government departments people want information from:
- Centrelink, Medicare or Child Support
- Home Affairs (immigration, citizenship, Federal Police, importing and exporting)
- Veterans’ Affairs
- Administrative Appeals Tribunal
- Australian Taxation Office
- AUSTRAC
- Department of Defence
- Department of Health
- Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC)
- Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
- Attorney-General’s Department
If you want information from another agency, search the internet to find their website, or call the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner on 1300 363 992 for help.
First check the agency's website to see if the information you want is already published.
Agencies must publish information on their websites such as their organisation structure, functions, powers, annual reports, arrangements for the public to comment on policies, operational information and other details. This is called the Information Publication Scheme.
If the information is not on the website, call or email the agency and ask if they can give you the information informally (also called administrative access or administrative arrangements). Agencies are encouraged to give members of the public access to information.