The FOI review process

When a Victorian public sector agency or Minister provides you with a written decision on your freedom of information (FOI) request, you can apply to OVIC for an independent review of that decision.

You might want us to review a decision if you:

requested access to documents and information is redacted from the documents, or if you didn’t receive any documents because they were fully exempt;
made a request to amend incorrect or misleading information about yourself and the agency or Minster refused the amendment request.

This page explains how to apply for an FOI review in Victoria and how we handle reviews under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) (FOI Act).

For more information on what to expect when requesting a review, watch the video below.

Step 1 – You apply to us for a review

Learn about what to do before applying for a review, what we can review, and how to apply for a review using our review form.

What should I do before I apply for a review?

Before applying to us for a review, it can be useful to talk to the agency or Minister that made the decision on your FOI request.

Talking to the agency or Minister is often a quick and easy way of resolving questions or understanding why the agency decided a piece of information or a whole document was exempt and did not provide it to you.

It can help you receive a more detailed explanation or reasons, and provides you and the agency or Minister an opportunity to resolve issues before coming to us.

If you still disagree with the agency’s or Minister’s decision, then you can apply to us for a review.

What can OVIC review?

You can apply to us for a review when you have made an FOI request to a Victorian public sector agency or Minister, and they provide you with a written decision that you disagree with.

For example, the decision:

refuses to give you access to a document, or information in a document;
refuses to amend information about you in a document that you believe is inaccurate, incomplete, out of date, or misleading; or
defers giving you access to a document until a future date.

You can also apply for a review if an agency of Minister refuses to waive or reduce the FOI application fee.

If there is a problem with how an agency or Minister processed or handled your FOI request, for example you believe documents are missing, you can make a complaint to us.

What can’t OVIC review?

We can only review decisions made under the FOI Act.

We can’t look at issues outside of the FOI Act or review decisions unrelated to your FOI request.

For example, we can’t look into:

why a doctor or hospital treated you in a particular way;
the reasons a local council approved a planning or building permit; or
why you didn’t get a job that you applied for at a department.

Which agencies or Ministers decisions can we review?

We can only review FOI decisions made by a Victorian public sector agency or Minister. For example, a Victorian government department, Victorian local council, Victorian statutory authority, public hospital, or university.

We cannot review decisions made by a Commonwealth or federal agency, a government agency of another state or territory, or a private organisation or company.

If your FOI decision is from a Commonwealth agency like the Australian Tax Office, Centrelink, or Australian Border Force, you need to apply to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner for a review.

If your FOI decision is from a government agency in another state or territory you should contact:

New South Wales – Information and Privacy Commission
Queensland – Office of the Information Commissioner
Northern Territory – Information Commissioner
Western Australia – Office of the Information Commissioner
South Australia – Ombudsman SA
Tasmania – Ombudsman Tasmania
Australian Capital Territory – ACT Ombudsman

How do I apply for a review?

To apply to us for a review, you must:

apply to us in writing within 28 days of receiving the agency’s or Minister’s written decision;
identify the name of the relevant Victorian public sector agency or Minister that made the decision; and
identify the FOI decision you would like us to review.

You can apply for a review online by completing the online review form.

Or, you can download a review form and email it to enquiries@ovic.vic.gov.au.

You don’t have to use our forms, but it helps to make sure we have everything we need, more quickly.

If you would like us to review an agency’s or Minister’s FOI decision but more than 28 days have passed since you received it, please contact us to discuss your options.

Remember we can only review Victorian public sector agencies’ and Ministers’ FOI decisions. If you have more general concerns about an agency’s or Minister’s actions unrelated to the FOI process, it’s unlikely we’ll be able to help resolve these.

What information should I include with my review application?

Our review application form asks you questions that helps us to make sure the decision you want us to review is one that we can review.

The form also outlines information you should tell us to assist us in handling your review.

When applying to us for a review, please include:

a copy of the request you made to the agency;
a copy of the agency’s decision letter to you; and
any other relevant background information.

If someone is applying for a review on your behalf (for example, a solicitor), you must give them written authorisation to do so. This must be provided with your review application along with a certified copy of your photo identification.

Where access to information or documents has been refused

If your review relates to a decision to refuse access to information or documents, we suggest you tell us:

whether you are unhappy with the agency’s decision to refuse access to a particular document, or a certain type of information in a document;
why you are seeking access to the documents or information;
why you believe the documents are not exempt and should be released to you – for example, whether you disagree with the agency’s description of the documents, or with what the agency says the likely impact of releasing certain information will be;
whether you need personal information of other people, such as their names, phone numbers, email addresses, or other information from which they can be identified; or alternatively, whether you can provide us with those individuals’ written consent to release their information to you;
whether you are willing to receive an edited copy of the documents, if we determine that some information in the documents should be deleted because it is exempt or irrelevant to your request; and
anything else you would like us to consider as part of the review.

Where a request to amend personal information is refused

If your review relates to a request to amend your personal information, we suggest you tell us:

why you think the information is untrue or incorrect?
what specific information is missing?
how the information is out-of-date or how have the circumstances changed?
why the information would give a misleading impression and who would be misled and why?

For more information on how to request an amendment to your personal information, visit OVIC’s webpage here.

Step 2 – We assess your application

Learn what happens after you apply for a review, what we do if we accept, don’t accept, or dismiss your review, and our expectations.

What happens after I make my review application?

After we receive your review application, you can usually expect our assessment process to follow the below stages.

We assess your review application.

We make sure we can accept your review application and make sure you have provided all the information we need.

We might:

request further information from you;
ask the agency or Minister some initial questions;
call you to better understand any issues;
discuss any practical options to informally resolve your review.

We can either accept, not accept, dismiss, or ask you to withdraw your review application.

If we accept your review application, we will contact you in writing to let you know.

If we don’t accept your review application, we will ask you to withdraw it in writing. If this happens, we will explain why we can’t accept your review.

Sometimes we can quickly resolve a review at this early stage by talking to you and the agency or Minister. If we can resolve your review before formally accepting it, we’ll also ask you to withdraw it.

If we can’t accept your review application and you don’t withdraw it, we will send you a letter telling you that we have declined to accept, or dismissed, your application and explain why.

If we accept your review application, we must tell the agency or Minister that made the FOI decision that we accepted it.

How long will it take for us to complete the review?

We have 30 days to complete a review.

We will ask you to agree to an extension of 60 days for us to complete your review. We try to complete reviews as quickly as we can. However, it takes us around 90 to 120 days to complete a review.

This is due to:

the volume and complexity of the applications we receive;
the time we need to receive and review the documents; and
the time we need to talk to you and the agency or Minister about the review.

You don’t have to agree to an extension.

If you agree to an extension, we have until the new date to complete your review.

If we don’t complete the review on time (within 30 days or the new agreed date), you can apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) to review the decision.

If you don’t apply to VCAT, we will continue to work on your review until we complete it.

What do we expect from you when you apply for a review?

If we accept your review application, we ask that you:

treat us with respect and communicate with us politely;
respond to our enquiries within specified timeframes;
consider any resolution options with an open mind;
assist us in constructively resolving your review;
respect our functions and powers under the FOI Act.

What can you expect from us when you apply for a review?

When we handle your review, we will:

act independently and without bias;
treat you with respect and listen to your concerns;
do our best to resolve your review informally or make a decision as quickly as possible;
be open and honest about what we can and cannot do in dealing with your review;
provide you with an opportunity to provide further information.

Step 3 – We ask you and the agency or Minister for information

Learn how we request documents from the agency and provide both you and the agency with an opportunity to make a written submission.

What happens after my review application is accepted?

Once we have accepted your review, we will make preliminary enquiries with the agency or Minister who made the decision. Where possible, we try to resolve your review informally.

We will ask the agency or Minister for any information and documents we need. This might include:

Documents – If the agency or Minister has refused access to a document or a part of a document, we will ask them for a complete (unredacted) copy of the document.
Correspondence – We will ask the agency or Minister for any documents or information relevant to your review. This might include the original FOI request you made, any correspondence between you and them, and any correspondence they had with third parties.
Submissions – We will invite the agency or Minister to make a submission that explains their decision. If we disagree with particular elements of the decision, or they haven’t provided enough information about their decision, we will ask them to provide more information.

We may need to contact the agency or Minister several times to get more information about the exemptions they applied to the documents or why they did not amend a document with your information in it.

We will also provide you with an opportunity to provide written submissions or information that supports your view that the agency’s or Minister’s decision is incorrect.

What is a written submission?

We will give you the opportunity to send us a written submission to support your review application. A written submission is your opportunity to provide more information about your FOI request and explain in more detail why you disagree with the agency’s or Minister’s decision.

Your submission might also help us to informally resolve your review. Step 4 explains how we try to informally resolve reviews.

If your review cannot be resolved informally, we will consider your submission when we make our review decision. We may refer to your submission in the final review decision. Let us know if any parts of your submission are confidential and should not be disclosed outside of OVIC.

What should I include in my submission if access to information or documents was refused?

If your review relates to a decision to refuse access to information or documents, if you haven’t already told us in your review application your written submission might tell us:

whether you are unhappy with the agency’s or Minister’s decision to refuse access to a particular document, or a certain type of information in a document;
why you are seeking access to the documents or information;
why you believe the documents are not exempt and should be released to you – for example, whether you disagree with the agency’s or Minister’s description of the documents, or with what the agency or Minister says the likely impact of releasing certain information will be;
whether you need personal information of other people, such as their names, phone numbers, email addresses, or other information from which they can be identified; or alternatively, whether you can provide us with those individuals’ written consent to release their information to you;
whether you are willing to receive an edited copy of the documents, if we determine that some information in the documents should be deleted because it is exempt or irrelevant to your request; and
anything else you would like us to consider as part of the review.

What should I include in my submission if my request to amend information was refused?

If your review relates to a request to amend information about you that you believe is inaccurate, incomplete, out of date, or misleading, if you haven’t already told us in your review application your submission should tell us, where relevant:

why you think the information is untrue or incorrect;
what specific information is missing;
how the information is out-of-date or how have the circumstances changed;
why the information would give a misleading impression and who would be misled and why.

If you can, you should provide evidence to support your view that your personal information is inaccurate, incomplete, out of date, or misleading.

Step 4 – We try to informally resolve the review

Learn how we try to informally resolve your review and what an initial or preliminary view is. If your review can’t be resolved informally, we will make a formal review decision.

How do we finalise reviews?

We aim to resolve reviews with as little formality and technicality as possible.

When we work on your review, we will:

try to informally resolve the review through our informal resolution processes;
provide an initial or preliminary view to you or the agency or Minister; or
make a formal review decision.

What is informal resolution?

We usually try and informally resolve reviews first.

We will work with you and the agency or Minister to try to resolve the review in the most efficient and practical way. This is generally quicker and less formal.

We are a neutral third party. This means we do not take sides or advocate for either you or the agency or Minister. Please keep an open mind and be flexible when we provide advice and options to resolve your review.

Examples of informally resolving a review include:

the agency or Minister agreeing to provide you specific documents or pieces of information;
receiving a more detailed explanation of why the decision was made;
you agreeing to exclude certain information from the review (such as personal information relating to third parties); or
some other agreement or action between you and the agency or Minister.

If an agreement is reached, it will be put in writing so that you and the agency or Minister are clear on the outcome.

What is an initial and a preliminary view?

Providing an initial and/or a preliminary view is part of our informal resolution processes.

We may form a view on the likely outcome of your review after we consider:

the documents being reviewed;
the agency’s or Minister’s decision;
other supporting information that you and the agency or Minister provide to us; and
relevant case law.

‘Initial view’ is where a case manager, manager and/or Assistant Commissioner provides their view on the likely outcome of the review.

‘Preliminary view’ is where the case manager discusses the review with the Public Access Deputy Commissioner or the Information Commissioner, and the Commissioner provides their view on the likely outcome of the review.

If we give you an initial or preliminary view

If we think it is likely that we will agree with the agency’s or Minister’s decision and refuse to provide access to a document or to amend a record, we will let you know.

We will give you an initial or preliminary view with a summary of our reasons for it. Where possible, we will provide links to our previous review decisions which are similar to your review.

We will invite you to consider and respond to our view.

After considering our view, you might decide you don’t want to pursue the review any further. If this is the case, you may withdraw your review.

If we give the agency or Minister an initial or preliminary view

If we provide an initial or preliminary view to an agency or Minister that says we don’t think a document is likely to be exempt, we may ask the agency or Minister for more information to explain why the document should not be released.

After receiving an initial or preliminary view, the agency or Minister may decide to reconsider its original decision and make a fresh decision. If that happens, the agency or Minister will let you know.

They will have 28 days to notify you of a fresh decision. They may ask us for a brief extension of time if they need more time to complete their fresh decision. We will let you know if the time has been extended.

You still have review rights at OVIC if you are not happy with the agency’s or Minister’s fresh decision once you receive it.

What happens after?

If the review has not been withdrawn or dismissed, we will proceed to make a formal review decision.

An agency or Minister may refuse to grant you access to documents or information in full or in part, or they may refuse to amend personal information held about you. OVIC keeps the review process as informal as possible and the agency or Minister must cooperate in the review process.

Step 5 – We make a formal review decision

Learn what happens when we make a formal review decision, how long it takes, and what you can expect.

What is a formal review decision?

If we can’t resolve your review informally, we will make a formal review decision.

The review decision might:

vary the decision and direct the agency or Minister to disclose more information to you; or
be the same decision as the agency’s or Minister’s decision, which means you won’t receive any more information.

We will give the review decision to you and to the agency or Minister. The decision explains our reasons for making it.

If we decide to release information relating to third parties, we will notify them of our decision too. Third parties may decide to apply to VCAT to review the decision to release their information.

If you or the agency or Minister are not happy with our review decision, you can apply to VCAT to review it. See Step 6 for more information on VCAT reviews.

If we decide to vary the agency’s or Minister’s decision and direct them to disclose more information to you, they will provide the information to you unless someone has applied to VCAT to review the decision.

We publish a sample of de-identified review decisions on the OVIC and the Australasian Legal Information Institute websites. To protect your privacy, we de-identify your name and other personal information before publishing the decision. We also remove OVIC and agency or Ministerial reference numbers. You can find more information about our published review decisions here.

Step 6 – When you can apply to VCAT for a review

Learn about when you can apply to VCAT for a review if you don’t agree with our decision.

What can I do if I don’t agree with your decision?

If you are unhappy with our review decision, you can apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for a review.

You must apply to VCAT for a review within 60 days of receiving our review decision.

There may be fees for a VCAT review.

Are there any other times I can apply to VCAT for a review?

If an agency or Minister has not given you their decision on your request within 30 days (or any extension of time you agreed to), this is called a ‘deemed refusal’. This means that the agency or Minister is taken to have refused access to documents in full.

If this happens, you can apply to VCAT for a review. There is no time limit for applying to VCAT on a deemed refusal.

You can also apply to VCAT if we have not completed your review within 30 days (or any extension you agreed to). This is also called a ‘deemed refusal’.

If you apply to VCAT for a review, the people involved in the VCAT review will be you and the agency or Minister who made the original decision. We are not a party to the review.

If you apply to VCAT for a review, you should withdraw your review with us. If we do not hear from you, we will dismiss your review.

Can anyone else apply to VCAT for a review?

An agency or Minister can apply to VCAT for a review if they do not agree with our decision.

A document might include information relating to third parties, such as their personal information or commercial information if they are a business. A document might also include information that someone else communicated to the agency or Minister in confidence.

If we decide to release this kind of information, we generally have to let those third parties know of our decision and their right to ask VCAT to review the decision to release their information.