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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Privacy Act 2020

Access to and correction of personal information - Access to personal information

50: Evaluative material as reason for refusing access to personal information

You could also call this:

“Access to personal assessments can be denied if promised confidential”

You can be denied access to your personal information if it is evaluative material. Evaluative material is information used to assess someone’s suitability for a job, promotion, award, or insurance. An agency can refuse to give you this information if they promised the person who provided it that it would be kept secret.

Evaluative material includes opinions or assessments about you that were made only to decide if you are right for a job, promotion, or benefit. It can also be used to decide if you should keep your job or if you should get or keep insurance.

However, evaluative material doesn’t include opinions or assessments made by someone who works for the agency as part of their normal job.

An agency can also refuse to give you evaluative material if they got it from another agency, and that agency would be allowed to keep it secret.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS23394.

Topics:
Rights and equality > Privacy
Work and jobs > Worker rights
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“Reasons for refusing access to personal information to protect individuals”

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51: Security, defence, international relations as reason for refusing access to personal information, or

“Personal information can be withheld if sharing it might affect national security or foreign relations”

Part 4 Access to and correction of personal information
Access to personal information

50Evaluative material as reason for refusing access to personal information

  1. An agency may refuse access to any personal information requested if—

  2. the information is evaluative material and the disclosure of that information or of the information identifying the person who supplied it would breach an express or implied promise—
    1. that was made to the person who supplied the information; and
      1. that was to the effect that the information or the identity of the person who supplied it, or both, would be held in confidence; or
      2. the information is evaluative material that was made available by the agency to another agency, and that other agency may refuse to disclose the information under paragraph (a).

        1. In this section, evaluative material—

        2. means evaluative or opinion material compiled solely—
          1. for the purpose of determining the suitability, eligibility, or qualifications of the individual to whom the material relates—
            1. for employment or for appointment to office; or
              1. for promotion in employment or office or for continuance in employment or office; or
                1. for removal from employment or office; or
                  1. for the awarding of contracts, awards, scholarships, honours, or other benefits; or
                  2. for the purpose of determining whether any contract, award, scholarship, honour, or benefit should be continued, modified, or cancelled; or
                    1. for the purpose of deciding whether to insure any individual or property or to continue or renew the insurance of any individual or property; but
                    2. does not include any evaluative or opinion material described in paragraph (a) that is compiled by a person employed or engaged by an agency in the ordinary course of that person’s employment or duties.

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