The privacy act (as amended) aims to protect 'personal' information held by the Federal Government, not-for-profit organisations and businesses such as VFS. The privacy act also governs the use of tax file numbers and the use of an individual's credit and savings account information.

On December 21st 2001, National Privacy Principles (or NPP's) came into force. The NPP's are clear guidelines, or 'rules', covering the collection, use, disclosure and security of 'personal' information. It provides customers with more control over how their personal information is handled.

However, the privacy laws do not cover all the information we collect and use. To find out more about what is and is not included, click on the items below.