Privacy Policy
Housing Australia is committed to protecting the personal information it holds. Housing Australia is an ‘agency’ as defined under the Privacy Act 1988 (the Privacy Act). This means we are subject to the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) in the Privacy Act, which set out standards, rights and obligations for agencies in relation to handling, holding, accessing and correcting personal information.
Freedom of Information Policy
The broad objective of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) is to give the public the right to access documents held by the Australian Government. As a prescribed authority under the FOI Act, Housing Australia is required to comply with this Act.
The FOI Act gives members of the public the right to:
- Access copies of documents (except exempt documents) held by Housing Australia
- Ask Housing Australia to change or annotate information if it is incomplete, out of date, incorrect or misleading (where the information relates to the person making the request)
- Seek a review of a decision not to allow access to a document or not to amend their personal information.
Information Publication Scheme
The Information Publication Scheme shows what information Housing Australia will publish and how the information will be published. It also outlines how Housing Australia will otherwise comply with the Information Publication Scheme (IPS) requirements under section 8(1) of the FOI Act.
Fraud Control Policy
Housing Australia’s Fraud Control Policy applies to all Housing Australia staff. This policy sets out the fraud risks that Housing Australia faces and details Housing Australia’s approach to fraud prevention and detection, and other elements that make up Housing Australia’s control strategy.
Public Interest Disclosure Procedures
These procedures inform public officials within Housing Australia of Housing Australia’s approach to dealing with public interest disclosures relating to Housing Australia under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (PID Act). The PID Act promotes integrity within the Commonwealth public sector by encouraging and facilitating the making of public interest disclosures by public officials, ensuring that if they make public interest disclosures are supported and protected from adverse consequences relating to the disclosures and ensuring that the disclosures are properly investigated and dealt with.
Supplier Code of Conduct
Our Supplier Code of Conduct outlines the minimum standards we expect our suppliers to meet and aim to exceed. Our expectation is that our suppliers and their employees, related entities and supply chains operate in a legal, ethical and socially responsible way.
Privacy Impact Assessment register
The Privacy (Australian Government Agencies — Governance) APP Code 2017 (Privacy Code) requires us to undertake privacy impact assessments (PIAs) in certain instances and to maintain a register of those PIAs from 1 July 2018.
The Privacy Code also requires us to publish the register, or a version of the register, on our website.
The PIA Register below sets out the PIAs that Housing Australia has completed since 1 July 2018. The PIA Register was last updated in September 2023 and will be updated from time to time as new PIAs are completed.
| Title of PIA | Project description | Date completed |
|---|---|---|
First Home Loan Deposit Scheme | Housing Australia administers the Australian Government’s First Home Loan Deposit Scheme in accordance with its Investment Mandate (Scheme). Under the Scheme, Housing Australia issues a guarantee of up to 15% of the value of the property purchased by an eligible first home buyer in favour of the eligible lender which provided the first home buyer with an eligible home loan. | August 2020 |
Family Home Guarantee Scheme | Housing Australia administers the Australian Government’s Family Home Guarantee (Scheme) in accordance with its Investment Mandate. Under the Scheme, Housing Australia support eligible single parents with at least one dependent child in purchasing a family home, regardless of whether that single parent is a first home buyer or a previous home owner. Housing Australia issues a guarantee of up to a maximum amount of 18% of the value of the property (as assessed by the buyer's lender). | September 2021 |
Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee | Housing Australia administers the Australian Government’s Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee (RFHBG) in accordance with its Investment Mandate. Under the RFHBG, Housing Australia supports eligible regional first home buyers to buy a home in a regional area. Housing Australia issues a guarantee of up to a maximum amount of 15% of the value of the property (as assessed by the buyer's lender). | September 2022 |
| Home Loans Guarantee Claims Process | Housing Australia administers the Australian Government’s Home Guarantee Scheme (Scheme) in accordance with its Investment Mandate. Under the Scheme, Housing Australia has developed a claim process, procedure and system to facilitate claims that may arise under the Scheme. | April 2023 |
Gifts and benefits register
1 July 2023 to 30 September 2023
Housing Australia publicly discloses all gifts or benefits accepted by staff members (including our CEO) valued at over A$100.00 (excl. GST). We report this information on a quarterly basis.
During this quarter no gifts or benefits were received which were valued above the threshold.
| Date received | Date recorded | Gift item, benefit or service | Received by | Presented by | Occasion | Estimated value AUD$ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil |