Access to The Cabinet Office's information

The Cabinet Office tries to release as much government information as possible. The information is published on this website or in another appropriate way, and at the lowest reasonable cost. 

Under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 the GIPA Act, certain information is required by law to be available on this website, free of charge.  This is called "open access information" and includes:

• policy documents and tabled documents
• agency information guide
• disclosure log
• register of government contracts.

You should check the open access information at the links below to see if the information you are looking for is already available.

In addition to the “open access information”, the department releases lots of other information. Our agency information guide will give you some guidance about the other kinds of information the department holds and releases to the public.

You can contact us on (02) 9228 5871 to ask if the information you are after has been released by the department either on this website or in another form. Some publications may only be available on the payment of a fee, but we will let you know if that is the case.

If the information you are after has not been published and doesn't raise a public interest reason why it should be kept confidential, The Cabinet Office may release it without a formal application.

If you think this applies to the information you are after you can contact us to make an informal request. We may ask that you provide details of your request in writing.

Releasing information informally means that The Cabinet Office can give you information in response to your request, without requiring you to make a formal access application.

This means that:

• you may receive the information more quickly
• the agency can impose conditions on the release of information to you including how you can access the information
• you do not need to pay an application fee, or other costs such as processing charges
• there is not a timeframe imposed on the agency to make a decision
• you do not have the right to have the agency’s decision reviewed.

Generally, we try to release information we hold without the need for you to make a formal access application, unless there are good reasons to require one.

Under the GIPA Act, however, government agencies are not required to release information without an access application. The department reserves the right to require you to lodge an access application, particularly if there may be significant public interest considerations that need to be taken into account.

If the information you are seeking is not available on this website and is not otherwise routinely provided by the department on request, then you have a right to formally apply for access to specific information.

You can make a formal application by completing a government information access form.

Start application

The Act says that we can only accept applications that:

• Are submitted in writing using the government information access form.
• Clearly state you are requesting information under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW).
• Pay the $30 application fee. 
• Have a return postal or email address as the address for correspondence.
• Include as much specific information as necessary to enable us to identify the information you are asking for.

If your application does not include these 5 things, it will be invalid and will not be processed. If that happens, however, we will let you know and we will help you, if possible, by explaining how you can make a valid application.

Otherwise we will write acknowledging receipt of a valid access application within 5 working days, and will deal with your application within 20 working days (subject to any extension allowed for under the Act). If any extension of time is required to deal with your application, we will let you know in writing.

Application fees and processing charges

The application fee for making an access application is $30. Processing charges can also be imposed at the rate of $30 per hour. In some circumstances an advance deposit can be required. We will let you know in writing if that applies to your application.

Certain discounts may apply, including on financial hardship and public interest grounds – for more details see the Information and Privacy Commission's Resources for the public.