Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) was introduced to extend the right of every person to information held by Government and its agencies. An applicant does not have to provide a reason for requiring access. The FOI Act extends the right in 2 ways:

Government agencies must publish information about their operations and powers affecting members of the public as well as their manuals and other documents used in making decisions and recommendations affecting the public (Section 9 Statement).
Government agencies must provide access to documents in their possession unless the document is within an exception or exemption specified in the legislation.

Understandably, access to all documents in the possession of the Government is not possible as confidentiality must be maintained where it is necessary for the protection of essential public interests and the private and business affairs of persons and organisations in respect of whom information is collected.

The Guide provides more information about how CSA deals with requests made under FOI. FOI section of The Guide.

Please use this form if you would like to:

Make a Freedom of Information request to access documents held by the Child Support Agency (CSA) that concern you, or a person you are representing; or
Make a Freedom of Information request to access documents held by the Department of Human Services (DHS).

Freedom of Information (FOI) inquiries relating to CSA may be directed to:

FOI Team
Child Support Agency – Department of Human Services
GPO Box 9815
Sydney NSW 2001
Ph: 1300 559 365
Fax: 1300 721 055