Yellow – add information listed in field
Green – Choose whether/which to include
Blue – instructions. Delete in letter.
Double click on this para and delete

"<dd month yyyy>"
147 Lambton Quay, Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Fax +64 4 382 3589
"<Requester's ful  name>"
Email [email address]
"<requester affiliation or organisation>"
Website www.dia.govt.nz
"<Physical OR email address>"
1982
ACT
Dear "<Mr/Ms last name>"
"<OIARef no>" Official Information Act 1982 request for information about
"<general topic of request>"
Regarding your official information request, which we discussed on <dd month yyyy> . Our
understanding of your request is:
<quote request>

INFORMATION
We’ve begun processing your request, and wil  provide a response as soon as possible, and
within 20 working days.  The 20th working day is <dd month yyyy> .

If we have not correctly captured your request and you’d like us to amend it, please let us
know, by responding with the corrected form of your request
Please note that, in accordance with section 15(1AA) of the Official Information Act, your
OFFICIAL
amended or clarified request wil  be treated as a new request, replacing the original, and the
response date wil  change accordingly.

THE
Yours sincerely

UNDER
<insert author’s name>
<insert author’s job title>
<insert business group or unit>

RELEASED

Yellow – add information listed in field
Green – Choose whether/which to include
Blue – instructions. Delete in letter.
Double click on this para and delete

"<dd month yyyy>"
147 Lambton Quay, Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Fax +64 4 382 3589
"<Requester's ful  name>"
Email [email address]
"<requester affiliation or organisation>"
Website www.dia.govt.nz
"<Physical OR email address>"
1982
ACT
Dear "<Mr/Ms last name>"
"<OIARef no>" Official Information Act 1982 request for information about
"<general topic of request>"
Regarding your official information request, dated <dd month yyyy> , for the fol owing
information:

<quote request>

INFORMATION
<explain the lack of clarity and list questions>
OR
DisplayText cannot span more than one line!

If you would like to discuss your request with us by telephone, please contact
<name of contact person, contact details> , or cal  the Department of Internal Affairs’
OFFICIAL
freephone number 0800 25 78 87 and ask to be transferred.

If we do not receive a response from yo
THE  u by <20th working day> , we wil proceed with your
request as it currently stands. Please note that in some circumstances this may lead to a
request being refused.

[Use if clarifying within seven working days from date request received – otherwise delete]
UNDER
Please note that, in accordance with section 15(1AA) of the Official Information Act, your
amended or clarified request will be treated as a new request, replacing the original, and the
response date wil  change accordingly.

Yours sincerely
RELEASED

<insert author’s name>
<insert author’s job title>
<insert business group or unit>

Yellow – add information listed in field
Green – Choose whether/which to include
Blue – instructions. Delete in letter.
Double click on this para and delete

"<dd month yyyy>"
147 Lambton Quay, Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Fax +64 4 382 3589
"<Requester's ful  name>"
Email [email address]
"<requester affiliation or organisation>"
Website www.dia.govt.nz
"<Physical OR email address>"
1982
ACT
Dear "<Mr/Ms last name>"
"<OIARef no>" Official Information Act 1982 request for information about
"<general topic of request>"
Regarding your official information request dated <dd month yyyy> , for the fol owing
information:

<quote request>

INFORMATION
<Part of the / The>  information you have requested,
<specific detail of requested information> , is not held by the Department of Internal Affairs.
We believe this information is more closely connected with the functions of
<other government agency> .
For this reason, we have transferred <part of>  your reque
OFFICIAL  st to <other government agency>
for response.
You will hear further from <other gover
THE  nment agency>  concerning <that part of> your
request. The <other government agency>  can be contacted on <basic contact details> .

Yours sincerely UNDER

<insert author’s name>
<insert author’s job title>
<insert business group or unit>

RELEASED

"<dd month yyyy>"
147 Lambton Quay, Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Fax +64 4 382 3589
"<Requester's ful  name>"
Email [email address]
"<requester affiliation or organisation>"
Website www.dia.govt.nz
"<Physical OR email address>"
1982
ACT
Dear "<Mr/Ms last name>"

Dear <insert recipient’s name>
Notification of Official Information Act 1982 request in progress
The Department of Internal Affairs has received a request for information made under the
Official Information Act 1982. <if made publically, details and link goes here>
INFORMATION

The information that is being requested includes information about
<you/your organisation/etc>

The information in scope is <brief description of the info in scope about the third party>

OFFICIAL
The Department wil  be reviewing the information for release and will follow the Official
Information Act if there is any information that needs to be withheld.

THE
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact <Name> on <phone number>  or
at <email address> .

Kind regards  UNDER

<insert author’s name>
<insert author’s job title>
<insert business
RELEASED  group or unit>

"<dd month yyyy>"
147 Lambton Quay, Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Fax +64 4 382 3589
"<Requester's ful  name>"
Email [email address]
"<affiliation or organisation>"
Website www.dia.govt.nz
"<Physical OR email address>"
1982
ACT
Dear "<Mr/Ms last name>"
Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) information request "<OIARef no>"
Thank you again for your official information request dated <dd month yyyy> .
You requested:

<quote request>
The Department is extending the time available to respond to your request under se
INFORMATION ction
15A(1)(a) as your request is for a large quantity of information, or requires a search through
a large quantity of information, such that meeting the original timeframe would
unreasonably interfere with the normal operation of the Department.
OR
OFFICIAL
The Department is extending the time available to respond to your request under section
15A(1)(b) as consultations necessary to make a decision on your request are such that a
proper response cannot reasonably be mad
THE  e within the original time limit.
Add context information here if needed
If you have questions or would like some guidance on what you should put in your letter, the
OIA team can advise you further. You can reach them at [email address] – they can help
with advice and review, and pr
UNDER ovide best practice examples of previous DIA responses.
The Department’s response wil  now be provided by <dd month yyyy> . I wil  endeavour to
provide a response to your request sooner if possible.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision.
Information about how to make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz
or freephone 0800 802 602.
RELEASED
If you would like to discuss any aspect of your request with us, including this decision, please
contact <details of contact person> .
Yours sincerely

<name>
<job title>
<team, business group or branch>

1982
ACT
INFORMATION
OFFICIAL
THE
UNDER
RELEASED

Page 2 of 2

"<dd month yyyy>"
147 Lambton Quay, Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
Fax +64 4 382 3589
"<Requester's ful  name>"
Email [email address]
"<requester affiliation or organisation>"
Website www.dia.govt.nz
"<Physical and/or email address>"
1982
ACT
Dear "<Requester name>"
Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) information request "<OIARef no>"
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 received by the
Department of Internal Affairs (Department) on <dd month yyyy>

You requested

<quote request>
INFORMATION
Enter your decision and any relevant information being released. Remember, if we are
withholding information, we must provide the grounds for doing so as part of this decision.
Consider whether to include context information – this can be particularly helpful if doing so
helps the requestor to make more sense of the information you have provided, or if there is
information that might assist the requestor when their co
OFFICIAL  re request has been declined.
If you have questions or would like some guidance on what you should put in your letter, the
OIA team can advise you further. You c
THE  an reach them at [email address] – they can help
with advice and review, and provide best practice examples of previous DIA responses.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision.
Information about how to make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz
or freephone 0800 802 602.
UNDER
Yours sincerely
RELEASED

<insert author’s name>
<insert author’s job title>
<insert business group or unit>

Appendix of Released Documents
Doc  Page  Description
#
#
1
1 - 6   e.g. Briefing to Minister on OIA Template Document

1982

ACT

Use the above table if you are supplying more than five documents. Delete this line before
printing.

INFORMATION
OFFICIAL
THE
UNDER
RELEASED

Page 2 of 2

Departmental Official Information Act request
<attach information to be released; if deletions, attach a full copy with deletions highlighted>
Requested by  <name and organisation; state if regular requester>
The request
<take from the status report>
Date due
This is due with the requester on <e.g. 12 January 2014>
DIA contact
<name, job title, phone number>
1982
Information falling within the request
This information <has/has not> been released before.
ACT
<if it has, state who it was released to and when>
Proposed response
The proposed response and the information proposed to be released are attached.
<amend this section as required; delete text and/or table that is not used >
use either:
The Department intends to release all of the above information falling within the request
except for <exception>. We propose to withhold this information under section <sect
INFORMATION  ion> of
the Official Information Act. This section provides that <provision>.
or:
The Department intends to release al  of the above information except for the information
listed in the table below:
Proposed information to
Section of OIA Act
OFFICIAL
withhold
Number  Provision

THE
Consultation
<when applicable, indicate which matters Comms or Legal have been consulted on>
<state any other agencies consulted, including any issues raised>
UNDER
Risks and mitigation
<assess risk in releasing the information, explaining any sensitivities or concerns>
<describe any mitigation steps to minimise or manage the risk >
Signed out to Minister’s Office
Minister’s Office response
<responsible manager's name>, <position>
<Minister's name>, <Minister's portfolio>
RELEASED

Date
/
/
Date
/
/

Coversheet page 1 of 2

Coversheet Appendix A: Documents for OIA request
1982
<complete this table if there are many documents fal ing within the request; otherwise delete this appendix>
ACT
#  Name of document
Document
Summary of contents
Release
date
or
withhold
1.
<yyyy/mm/dd>
<R/W>
2.

3.

INFORMATION
OFFICIAL
THE
UNDER

Coversheet page 2 of 2
RELEASED

Ministerial Official Information Act request
<attach information to be released; if deletions, attach a full copy with deletions highlighted>
Requested by  <name and organisation; state if regular requester>
The request
<take from the status report>
Date due
This is due with the requester on <e.g. 12 January 2014>
DIA contact
<name, job title, phone number>
1982
Information falling within the request
This information <has/has not> been released before.
ACT
<if it has, state who it was released to and when>
Proposed response
The proposed response and the information proposed to be released are attached.
<amend this section as required; delete text and/or table that is not used >
use either:
The Department intends to release all of the above information falling within the request
except for <exception>. We propose to withhold this information under section <sect
INFORMATION  ion> of
the Official Information Act. This section provides that <provision>.
or:
The Department intends to release al  of the above information except for the information
listed in the table below:
Proposed information to
Section of OIA Act
OFFICIAL
withhold
Number  Provision

THE
Consultation
<when applicable, indicate which matters Comms or Legal have been consulted on>
<state any other agencies consulted, including any issues raised>
UNDER
Risks and mitigation
<assess risk in releasing the information, explaining any sensitivities or concerns>
<describe any mitigation steps to minimise or manage the risk >
Signed out to Minister’s Office
Minister’s Office response
<responsible manager's name>, <position>
<Minister's name>, <Minister's portfolio>
RELEASED

Date
/
/
Date
/
/

Coversheet page 1 of 2

Sign out sheet – OIA Requests
Title
<insert title>
Location in Cohesion  "<location link>"
In library  "<describe location>"
Other location
<insert DMS file number>  <insert DMS file reference>
Author
<insert first and last name>, <job title and unit>

Consulted parties
1982
Finance
<Y or n/a>  Governance, Risk and Assurance
<Y or n/a>
Human Resources
<Y or n/a>  Legal Services
<Y or n/a>
ACT
Property/Operations
<Y or n/a>  Communications
<Y or n/a>
Policy
<Y or n/a>  Chief Security Office
<Y or n/a>
<insert details of other business units/groups consulted; or delete row if not applicable>
<insert details of other agencies consulted; or delete row if not applicable>
<insert details of any external stakeholders consulted; or delete row if not applicable>

Any comments:
INFORMATION

Sign-offs
Name
Signature
Date completed*
Required  Peer reviewer

<dd month yyyy>
Manager

<dd month yyyy>
OFFICIAL
If required  Director/GM

<dd month yyyy>
Deputy CE

<dd month yyyy>
THE
Chief Executive

<dd month yyyy>
*The dates should be the final date on which each particular step is completed, not multiple dates
where a document has gone backwards and forwards between two parties
Process checklist
UNDER
 Checked that response is consistent with any past releases on the same topic
  Spelling and grammar proofed and formatting (inc. tables) is compliant with style guide
  Response letter is ready for signature with al  draft watermarking removed
Release documentation scanned to PDF format on OIA watermark paper, with each redaction
  correctly annotated on the page.
  Coversheet
RELEASED includes al risks and mitigations, and has been signed by  the responsible Manager
OIA pack includes signed coversheet, copy of request, final OIA response letter, copy of release
  documentation, copy of mark-up documentation. (include clean copy of documentation if
redaction was done manual y)

IN CONFIDENCE
Page 1 of 1

Document Outline