Community resources
Across Australia, we all have a right to access government-held information.
Information is a powerful resource which is a key part of every government decision and activity. Freedom of information (FOI) means that we all have a right to access information held by Australian Government ministers and agencies.
Promoting and upholding information access rights is at the core of our work at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) recognises that the information government holds is a national resource and is managed for public purposes, and that public access to it should be prompt and at the lowest reasonable cost.
This International Access to Information Day explore our resources to learn more about your information access rights.
Key resources
How to access Australian government information
You can access information in a range of ways, depending on what information you want and which agency holds it. Our step-by-step tool can help direct you to the right agency or process.
See our tips
Top 5 tips for FOI applicants
The FOI Act gives you a right to access documents held by Australian Government agencies and ministers, unless an exemption applies. Read our tips to help you access documents.
See our tips
Requesting official documents held by a minister
Our website covers your rights to access a minister's documents, what is and is not an official document and your review rights if you disagree with an FOI decision.
Read more
Accessing agency information
You may find the information you want from an Australian Government agency or minister without needing to lodge an FOI request. This may include through disclosure logs or an Information Publication Scheme.
Learn more
Internal review
Under the FOI Act you can ask an agency to conduct an internal review of its FOI decision if you disagree with it.
Find out how
Information Commissioner review
You can ask the OAIC to review an FOI decision by an agency or minister if you’re not happy with the outcome or it hasn’t been made within the required timeframe.
Find out more
Correct your personal information under FOI
If you’ve been given access to your personal information and you think it is incomplete, incorrect, out of date or misleading, you have the right under the FOI Act to ask for the document to be amended or annotated.
Discover how
FAQs for applicants during the COVID-19 pandemic
See our FAQs about FOI and COVID-19 including information on what to expect when making an FOI request or applying for an Information Commissioner review of an FOI decision during the pandemic.
See our FAQsYou can find more resources on our website.