Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) In this Part, unless the contrary intention appears:
"adverse security assessment" means a security assessment in respect of a person that contains:
(a) any opinion or advice, or any qualification of any opinion or advice, or any information, that is or could be prejudicial to the interests of the person; and
(b) a recommendation that prescribed administrative action be taken or not be taken in respect of the person, being a recommendation the implementation of which would be prejudicial to the interests of the person.
"agency head" means:
(a) the Director - General; or
(b) the Director - General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service; or
(ba) the Director - General of the Australian Signals Directorate; or
(c) the Director - General of National Intelligence; or
(d) the Director of that part of the Defence Department known as the Australian Geospatial - Intelligence Organisation; or
(e) the Director of that part of the Defence Department known as the Defence Intelligence Organisation.
"applicant" means a person who has applied to the Tribunal for a review of a security assessment.
"authority of a State" includes a State Minister, Department or Police Force.
"Commonwealth contractor" means a person performing work or rendering services, otherwise than as an employee, for the purposes of the Commonwealth or an authority of the Commonwealth, including a person performing such work or rendering such services as a sub - contractor or as an adviser or consultant.
"prescribed administrative action" , subject to subsections (1A) and (2), means:
(a) action that relates to or affects:
(i) access by a person to any information or place access to which is controlled or limited on security grounds; or
(ii) a person's ability to perform an activity in relation to, or involving, a thing (other than information or a place), if that ability is controlled or limited on security grounds;
including action affecting the occupancy of any office or position under the Commonwealth or an authority of the Commonwealth or under a State or an authority of a State, or in the service of a Commonwealth contractor, the occupant of which has or may have any such access or ability; or
(b) the exercise of any power, or the performance of any function, in relation to a person under the Migration Act 1958 or the regulations under that Act; or
(c) the exercise of any power, or the performance of any function, in relation to a person under the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 , the Australian Passports Act 2005 or the regulations under either of those Acts; or
(d) the exercise of a power under any of the following provisions of the Telecommunications Act 1997 :
(i) section 58A;
(ii) subsection 315A(1) or 315B(2);
(iii) clause 57A of Schedule 3A;
(iv) clause 72A of Schedule 3A; or
(e) the exercise of a power under subsection 32(2) of the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 ; or
(f) the exercise of a power under Part 5.2 (accreditation framework) of the Data Availability and Transparency Act 2022 ; or
(g) the exercise of any power, or the performance of any function, in relation to any of the following decisions under a law of the Commonwealth , a State or a Territory:
(i) a decision about whether to release a person from prison on parole or on licence;
(ii) a decision otherwise relating to the release of a person on parole or on licence (including a decision in relation to conditions or supervision);
(iii) a decision about whether to revoke a parole order or a licence mentioned in subparagraph (i); or
(h) the exercise of any power, or the performance of any function, in relation to any of the following decisions under a law of a State or Territory:
(i) a decision about whether to issue a firearms licence or a licence to work as a security guard to a person or otherwise relating to the issue of such a licence (including in relation to conditions);
(ii) a decision about whether to revoke a licence mentioned in subparagraph (i); or
(i) subject to subsection 36AA(1), another action prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this paragraph.
Note: A condition imposed by a control order is not prescribed administrative action (see subsection (2)). A decision made under the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 or the regulations under that Act is also not prescribed administrative action (see subsection (1A)).
"qualified security assessment" means a security assessment in respect of a person that:
(a) contains any opinion or advice, or any qualification of any opinion or advice, or any information, that is or could be prejudicial to the interests of the person; and
(b) does not contain a recommendation of the kind referred to in paragraph (b) of the definition of adverse security assessment ;
whether or not the matters contained in the assessment would, by themselves, justify prescribed administrative action being taken or not being taken in respect of the person to the prejudice of the interests of the person.
"security assessment" or assessment means a statement in writing furnished by the Organisation to a Commonwealth agency, State or authority of a State expressing any recommendation, opinion or advice on, or otherwise referring to, the question whether it would be consistent with the requirements of security for prescribed administrative action to be taken in respect of a person or the question whether the requirements of security make it necessary or desirable for prescribed administrative action to be taken in respect of a person, and includes any qualification or comment expressed in connection with any such recommendation, opinion or advice, being a qualification or comment that relates or that could relate to that question.
"staff member" of the Organisation or an intelligence or security agency means:
(a) the agency head of the Organisation or agency; or
(b) an employee or officer of the Organisation or agency; or
(c) a consultant or contractor to the Organisation or agency; or
(d) a person who is made available by an authority of the Commonwealth, authority of a State or other person to perform services for the Organisation or agency.
"Tribunal" means the Administrative Review Tribunal.
(1A) A decision made under the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 or the regulations under that Act is not prescribed administrative action.
(2) To avoid doubt, none of the following is prescribed administrative action:
(a) a condition imposed on a person by a control order made under Division 104 of the Criminal Code (control orders);
(b) a condition imposed on a person by an extended supervision order or interim supervision order under Division 105A of the Criminal Code (post - sentence orders);
(c) action covered by any of subsections 105A.7E(2) to (5) of the Criminal Code (actions relating to electronic monitoring);
(d) a condition imposed on a person by a community safety supervision order under Division 395 of the Criminal Code (community safety orders);
(e) action covered by any of subsections 395.17(2) to (5) of the Criminal Code (actions relating to electronic monitoring).