NDIS correspondence: Request Consultation - FOI 25/26-1193 | FOI release material

Our reference: FOI 25/26-1193

GPO Box 700 Canberra ACT 2601 1800 800 110 ndis.gov.au

20 August 2026

Lucy Avis

By email: foi+request-13977-7744c74e@righttoknow.org.au

Dear Lucy Avis

Freedom of Information request - Request consultation process

Thank you for your correspondence of 5 November 2025 in which you requested access

under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) to documents held by the National

Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a decision on your request.

Scope of your request

You have requested access to the following documents held by the NDIA:

“Please provide the current average wait time range (shortest and longest) for processing of S48 change of circumstances requests and S100 internal review of decisions. Please also provide this information for the same time in 2024, 2023 and 2022.“

Request Consultation

On 19 December 2025, we emailed you to confirm if you would agree to a revised scope that

made the request processable for our Analytics, Data and Actuarial Division.

To date, we have not received a response from you to this communication.

On 6 August 2026, we sent you an email initiating a consultation process under section

24AB of the FOI Act. I advised I intended to refuse access to your request on the grounds

that the work involved in the processing of this request would substantially and unreasonably

divert the resources of the NDIA from its other operations.

To now we have not had a response from you.

Decision on access to documents

I have decided to refuse your request on the grounds that you did not respond to our

request consultation process and thereby the practical refusal reason remains.

I made this decision as a delegated decision maker under section 23(1) of the FOI Act.

Reasons for decision

A detailed statement of reasons for my decision can be found at Attachment A.

Rights of review

Your rights to seek a review of my decision, or lodge a complaint, are set out at **Attachment

B**

Should you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me

by email at foi@ndis.gov.au.

Yours sincerely

Saoirse (SFG115)

Senior Freedom of Information Officer

Information Access and Privacy

Reviews and Information Release Division

Attachment A

Statement of Reasons

FOI 25/26-1193

Practical refusal reason

Relevant law

A practical refusal reason exists in relation to a request for documents if the work involved in

processing the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of the

agency from its other operations¹

In determining whether processing the request would substantially and unreasonably divert

the agency’s resources, I am required to have regard to the resources that would have to be

used for the following:

identifying, locating or collating the documents within the Agency
deciding whether to grant, refuse or defer access to a document including resources used for examining the document and consulting with any person or body in relation to the request
making a copy or an edited copy of the document
notifying the decision on the request

Accordingly, I am satisfied that a practical refusal reason still exists and that the work

involved in processing the request would substantially and unreasonably divert the

resources of the agency from its other operations.

Further options for requesting documents

You are welcome to submit further freedom of information requests in the future. In doing so,

you may wish to contact the FOI Team directly on foi@ndis.gov.au or advise a convenient

time for us to contact you, to engage assistance in developing a scope that does not attract

a practical refusal reason under the FOI Act.

¹ 24AA(1)(a) of the FOI Act.

Attachment B

Freedom of Information request – Your review rights

As your request is deemed to have been refused under section 15AC of the FOI Act

because of processing delays, you are unable to apply for an internal review of the decision.

However, if you have concern with any aspect of this decision, please contact the NDIA FOI

team by email at foi@ndis.gov.au , or by post to:

Freedom of Information Section
Information Access and Privacy Branch
Reviews and Information Release Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
GPO Box 700
CANBERRA ACT 2601

Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner

The FOI Act also gives you the right to apply for the Office of the Australian Information

Commissioner (OAIC) to seek a review of this decision.

If you wish to have the decision reviewed by the OAIC, you may apply for the review in

writing, or by using the online merits review application form which is available on the OAIC’s

website: OAIC Review Application Form.

An application to the OAIC must be made within 60 calendar days from the date of the

deemed refusal decision, as set out in our letter to you (Notice of Decision). You may also

apply to the OAIC for an extension of this timeframe, from the date of the deemed refusal

decision until the date of your application for review.

Applications for review can be lodged with the OAIC in the following ways:

Online: OAIC Review Application Form
Post: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner GPO Box 5218 SYDNEY NSW 2001
Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au
Phone: 1300 363 992 (local call charge)
Website: www.oaic.gov.au

Complaints to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner or the

Commonwealth Ombudsman

You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the OAIC about the actions

taken by the NDIA in relation to your request. The Ombudsman will consult with the OAIC

before investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.

Your complaint to the OAIC can be directed to the contact details provided above.

Your complaint to the Ombudsman can be directed to:

Phone: 1300 362 072 (local call charge)
Email: ombudsman@ombudsman.gov.au