The Australian Government, through the department, administers the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, the Coral Sea Islands, the Jervis Bay Territory and Norfolk Island. The department also manages the government's interests in the Australian Capital Territory, the Northern Territory.
Should you wish to contact the department regarding the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, the Coral Sea Islands, the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory, please refer to the department's general enquiries process.
The Australian Government is committed to engaging with the communities of Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Jervis Bay Territory and Norfolk Island in a meaningful, responsive and accountable manner. Effective community engagement has benefits for both the government and the community alike through access to new ideas, sharing of skills, experiences and knowledge.
The department consults with the communities on a range of issues regarding the administration of these territories. In general, the department informs and/or consults with the communities in the development of significant policy and/or legislative change, major capital works and key changes to service delivery arrangements. The department uses a number of engagement methods, including:
- conducting face to face meetings with community members, representatives and/or businesses;
- holding teleconferences;
- providing community bulletins on key issues, events and activities;
- seeking participation in issue-specific consultations and research; and
- conducting surveys of community views.
Feedback can also be provided through the mechanisms outlined below or via the department's general enquiries process.
Australian Privacy Principle 5 Notice
The department is collecting personal information, in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988, for the purposes of responding to your feedback, query or complaint.
The department will use your personal information to provide you with a response where required and will store this information securely. The department may disclose information to service providers for the purposes of appropriately responding to your enquiry. If you do not provide the information requested the department may not be able to respond to your enquiry.
The department's privacy policy contains information regarding complaint handling processes and how to access and/or seek correction of personal information held by the department. The Privacy Officer can be contacted on (02) 6274 6495.
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is an external Australian territory. From 1979 to 2015 Norfolk Island was self-governing with most of the powers of a national government, granted under the Norfolk Island Act 1979.
In March 2015, the Australian Government passed the Norfolk Island Legislation Amendment Act 2015 which allows the Australian Government to assume responsibility for funding and delivering national and state level services and to establish an elected Norfolk Island Regional Council from 1 July 2016. The action was taken to address issues of sustainability that have arisen from the model of self-government requiring Norfolk Island to deliver local, state and federal functions since 1979.
From 1 July 2016, the Australian Government will integrate Norfolk Island with the mainland tax and social security systems, including access to Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. The Australian Government will commence delivering essential national functions such as immigration, biosecurity and customs.
Enquiries about the changes can be sent directly to the department at NorfolkIslandReform@infrastructure.gov.au.
Jervis Bay Territory (JBT)
The department has overall responsibility for the provision of a range of local and state government-type services in the JBT. Some of these services are provided directly by the department's Jervis Bay Territory Administration office, located in Jervis Bay Village, but others are carried out under arrangements with ACT Government agencies, NSW Government agencies, Shoalhaven City Council and commercial contractors. These service providers engage with the communities regularly and have existing feedback mechanisms in place. Enquiries can also be sent directly to the department at: JBT@infrastructure.gov.au.
Territories of Christmas Island and
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
The department has responsibility for the Territories of Christmas Island (CI) and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands (CKI), collectively known as the Indian Ocean Territories. The department provides some state-type services through the Indian Ocean Territories Administration, located on the islands, while others are delivered by the Western Australian (WA) Government and commercial contracts. Australian Government services to CI and CKI, such as those involving quarantine, border protection, bio-security and the National Park, are the responsibility of the relevant Australian Government agencies.
Feedback on services to the Indian Ocean Territories can be provided via the online form, paper form or email.