Information shared with the Export Controls team is held securely on MFAT IT systems. These IT systems are configured so that Export Controls information is only accessible by MFAT employees who require access to this information in order to perform their Export Controls work.
All information shared with the Export Controls team is subject to both the Official information Act 1982(external link) (OIA) and the Privacy Act 2020(external link). This information may in part or whole and only as necessary, be released to or shared with other New Zealand government agencies such as the New Zealand Customs Service, as well as the importing, transit and/or trans-shipment state, and export controls partner states.
The OIA gives New Zealand individuals and body corporates the ability to request official information, and obligates agencies (and Ministers) to respond to these requests.
The Privacy Act 2020 governs how organisations and businesses can collect, store, use and share your information. It places some limits on what personally identifiable official information can be released in response to OIA requests.
MFAT receives a number of Export Controls related OIA requests a year. Sometimes these ask for personal information and/or commercial-in-confidence information. MFAT works to respond to all OIA requests as transparently as possible whilst protecting personal information and treating commercial-in-confidence information with due care.