The Right to Information is the Queensland Government's approach to giving the community greater access to information.  The Queensland Government has made a commitment to provide access to information held by the Government, unless on balance it is contrary to the public interest to provide that information.  The Right to Information aims to make more information available, provide equal access to information across all sectors of the community, and provide appropriate protection for individuals' privacy.

The Right to Information Act 2009 and Information Privacy Act 2009 give you the legal right to apply for access to documents held by the Department of Communities and to amend documents relating to your own personal information.

Applicants can apply to see any departmental document and you do not have to give a reason for wanting this information.

If you are refused access to a document or given partial access, we must give you written reasons for the decision. We must also tell you of your rights of appeal.

Documents already publicly available such as birth certificates (including those for a fee) under other legislation are not available through Right to Information. These include documents held by Queensland State Archives and the State Library.  You may also be able to access non-personal held by the department via the departmental publication scheme, disclosure log and through administrative release. 

Further information, including information on how to make an RTI request is available at the Department of Communities main website.