Do I have to provide information in a certain form?

Where an individual requests their personal information, it can be made available to them in a number of ways (see section 56(external link) of the Privacy Act for further information).

For instance, you might set up a time for them to view the information (such as documents or a recording), you might provide them with a copy of the information (such as photocopied notes or an audio recording), or you might provide a summary or transcript.

Generally speaking, if the person requests that their information is provided in a specific format (for instance a copy of an audio recording), this is how you should provide it.

However, you can refuse to provide it in the form requested, if providing it in that format would:

• Impair efficient administration (for example, if the individual asks for multiple recordings to be transcribed, this might take a long time or cost a great deal of money);

• Be contrary to any legal duty you have in respect of the document (for example, there may be a court order which prevents you from providing copies of certain documents); or

• Prejudice any interest protected by the withholding grounds contained in the Privacy Act (for instance, in order to protect the privacy of other individuals in a video recording of the individual, you may only want to show them a copy of the recording, rather than giving them a copy which they could use or further disclose). 

If you want to provide information in a form other than the one requested, you should explain which of the above grounds you are relying on. You should also let the individual know what alternative format you propose to make the information available to them in, and that they can make a complaint to us if they're not satisfied with you providing the information in a different format.

(Updated November 2020)