As part of our broader commitment to accountability and integrity, we are transparent about our activities where we can be. We publish a range of information about our work.
Our approach to transparency
As with all members of the National Intelligence Community, we have multiple layers of accountability, are committed to strong, independent oversight and are transparent about our activities where we can be. You can learn more about how we maintain accountability and integrity in our work.
Due to the nature of our work and the classification of document contents, we are not able to share publicly the same volume of corporate information as some other Australian Government agencies. Nevertheless, we endeavour to make as wide an array of our corporate reporting available for public release as possible.
Our commitment to transparency includes publication of our Portfolio Budget Statements, annual reporting to the Parliament by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, and the appearance of the Director-General of National Intelligence at the Senate Finance and Administration Legislation Committee.
Portfolio Budget Statements
Budget and resourcing information regarding the Office of National Intelligence is available in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet Portfolio Budget Statements:
- 2021-22(Opens in a new tab/window)
- 2020-21(Opens in a new tab/window)
- 2019-20(Opens in a new tab/window)
- 2018-19(Opens in a new tab/window)
- 2017-18(Opens in a new tab/window)
Open access to historical records
The Office of National Intelligence is exempt from the Freedom of Information Act 1982. Access to records is gained under the Archives Act 1983 and records are eligible for public release once they enter the open access period, subject to the exemption of any material of continuing sensitivity as prescribed by section 33 of the Archives Act.
Requests to access Office of National Intelligence records can be made at the National Archives of Australia (NAA) and they can be located through the NAA website(Opens in a new tab/window).
Child safety practices
ONI’s annual child safety statement of compliance for 2025-2026 was endorsed by the Chief Operating Officer on 13 October 2025.
ONI maintains an ongoing commitment to child safety and wellbeing, consistent with the requirements of the Commonwealth Child Safe Framework. While our work does not involve direct interaction with children, we recognise our responsibility to ensure that our policies, systems and governance arrangements continue to support safe environments should any incidental or indirect contact occur.
To support this commitment, ONI has recently updated its child safety policy to strengthen existing controls and provide clearer guidance for staff and contractors.
Our mitigation strategies include:
- embedding child safety considerations into our risk management processes and annual reviews
- ensuring that recruitment, induction and training practices align with child safe principles
- maintaining governance and reporting mechanisms that provide assurance around child safety compliance.
ONI's overall risk rating remains low. This reflects the absence of direct interaction with children, the limited circumstances in which incidental contact may occur, and the safeguards we have in place to manage these situations.
Through these measures, ONI ensures that even without direct service delivery to children, our policies, systems and workplace culture continue to reflect and uphold the objectives of the Child Safe Framework.