Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 1982 - SECT 12

             (1)  A person is not entitled to obtain access under this Part to:

                     (a)  a document, or a copy of a document, which is, under the Archives Act 1983 , within the open access period within the meaning of that Act unless the document contains personal information (including personal information about a deceased person); or

                     (b)  a document that is open to public access, as part of a public register or otherwise, in accordance with another enactment, where that access is subject to a fee or other charge; or

                    (ba)  a document that is open to public access, as part of a land title register, in accordance with a law of a State or Territory where that access is subject to a fee or other charge; or

                     (c)  a document that is available for purchase by the public in accordance with arrangements made by an agency.

             (2)  A person is not entitled to obtain access under this Part to a document or a part of a document that became a document of an agency or an official document of a Minister more than 5 years before the date of commencement of this part unless:

                     (a)  the document or that part of the document contains information that is:

                              (i)  personal information about that person; or

                             (ii)  information relating to that person's business, commercial or financial affairs; or

                     (b)  the document or that part of the document is a document or a part of a document access to which is reasonably necessary to enable a proper understanding of a document of an agency or an official document of a Minister to which that person has lawfully had access.

             (3)  Regulations may be made for the modification of subsection (2) so as to enable a person to obtain access under this Part to documents to which, but for the making of those regulations, he or she would not be entitled to access under this part by reason of that subsection.

             (4)  References in subsection (3) to subsection (2) shall be construed as including references to subsection (2) as previously modified in pursuance of regulations made under subsection (3).