Examples of requests

Situation

Act

Someone rings and asks for their entire file.

Privacy Act 2020.

A mother wants information about her daughter who is a Ministry of Social Development client. The mother is not an agent.

And

A landlord wants information about their tenant who is a Ministry client because they have skipped rent.

Official Information Act 1982.

The information may be withheld under the Official information Act 1982 on the grounds that withholding the information is necessary to protect the privacy of natural persons.

Note the information the mother and the landlord want access to in these situations is not about them and, so, they do not have any right to access it under the Privacy Act 2020.

The Police come in and ask for someone's address that they are investigating for an offense.

Privacy Act 2020.

Under the Privacy Act 2020, you may disclose the address to the New Zealand Police so long as you are satisfied that disclosure is necessary for them to conduct their investigation.

Another Act that may apply is the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989. You must disclose information relating to the safety or wellbeing of a child to a Police constable upon request if the information is required to determine whether a child is in need of care or protection.

The Police can also compel the Ministry of Social Development to provide them with information by way of a production order obtained from the Court or by way of some other statutory authority.

See Request for personal information from another government agency for more information.

A client wants to find out the name of the person who made an allegation of fraud against them.

Although it might look like an Official Information Act 1982 request, the person is actually asking for information that is held in their own file, so it should be handled as a Privacy Act 2020 request.

Depending on the circumstances, this information may be withheld under one of several applicable grounds of the Privacy Act 2020.