Complaints
The IGIS can inquire into complaints about the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) or the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB).
The Inspector-General expects courtesy and cooperation from complainants. Violence, threats, abusive behaviour or offensive comments to our staff will not be tolerated.
Who can complain to the IGIS
If you are a New Zealand citizen or you ordinarily live in New Zealand you may complain to the Inspector-General if you believe you have been, or may have been, adversely affected by any act, omission, practice, policy or procedures of NZSIS or the GCSB.
You may also complain to the IGIS if you are an employee of the NZSIS or GCSB after you have exhausted all your internal remedies or earlier with your Director-General's written consent.
Note a complaint is different to a protected disclosure, by which a current or past employee can report serious wrongdoing in the organisation and gain some protection against retaliation. See Protected Disclosures.
How to make a complaint
You can complain in writing by post, email, or phone. If you complain by phone you will be asked to put your complaint in writing as soon as you can. You can have a representative make a complaint on your behalf, such as a lawyer.
By email: enquiries@igis.govt.nz
By phone: +64 4 460 0030
By mail: Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, PO Box 5609, Wellington 6140
When submitting a complaint
- Make sure the complaint accurately reflects what happened to you, in your own words.
- Use plain language.
- Keep the complaint short and succinct, this helps the IGIS assess your complaint more effectively, the IGIS will ask for further information or documents if needed.
What the Inspector-General will do
Assess your complaint
Once your complaint has been received, the Inspector-General will decide as soon as practicable whether to inquire into it.
To made preliminary enquiries into your complaint, the Inspector-General may need to provide your identity and complaint to the relevant intelligence and security agency. This will not be done without your agreement. If you do not agree, the Inspector-General may be unable to proceed.
The Inspector-General may decide not to inquire into a complaint if:
- there is another avenue for your complaint and it is reasonable in the circumstances for you to take it;
- your complaint relates to a decision that you have known about for more than 12 months;
- the subject matter of your complaint is trivial or the complaint is frivolous, vexatious or not made in good faith;
- you do not have a sufficient personal interest in the subject matter of the complaint (for example, you are not personally affected); or
- in the circumstances, and following preliminary enquiries, an inquiry is unnecessary.
If the Inspector-General decides not to inquire into your complaint, you will be told in writing of the reasons for that.
Conduct the necessary inquiry
If the Inspector-General decides to inquire into your complaint, the Inspector-General must notify the Director-General of the relevant intelligence and security agency and provide a copy of the complaint.
Complaint inquiries are conducted in private. This means the Inspector-General will not disclose any information about you and your complaint, other than as necessary for the inquiry.
In conducting the inquiry, the Inspector-General has direct access to the central records system of the intelligence and security agencies and extensive investigatory powers.
You are entitled to be heard during the course of an inquiry. If you wish, you may be represented by a lawyer or someone else of your choice.
If it appears to the Inspector-General that there are grounds for a finding or recommendation that might adversely affect any person, that person will be informed and have an opportunity to be heard.
Conclude and report
The Inspector-General will prepare a report with conclusions and recommendations. These may include recommendations for redress, including, for example, an apology or payment of compensation.
It may be necessary to include classified information in the report. In that case it may not be possible to provide you with the full report, but the Inspector-General will share the findings and recommendations with you to the fullest extent possible.
The final report is provided to you (omitting any classified information), the relevant agency and the Minister responsible for the agency. The Inspector-General’s recommendations are not binding on the agency, but are usually accepted.
The Inspector-General is required to publish an unclassified report on an inquiry into a complaint. This will ordinarily omit any information identifying you as the complainant. The Inspector-General must not disclose information about employment matters or security clearance issues.
The Inspector-General is also required to provide a brief description of the outcome of the inquiry in their Annual Report.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The following outlines the Inspector-General’s expectations for the responsible use of AI and how it may be used when communicating with the office.
AI can help you prepare and communicate about your complaint, but at times it generates inaccurate, unclear, unduly lengthy and irrelevant information. It is preferable for you to provide a short account of your complaint in your own words, where possible.
You are responsible for all information provided to IGIS. Using AI does not remove your responsibility to ensure the information is accurate, reliable, and reflects the facts as you understand them.
Providing inaccurate or irrelevant information, whether generated by AI or otherwise, may affect how IGIS considers your matter. For example:
- It may delay your complaint while IGIS seeks clarification from you.
- In some cases, you may be asked to resubmit information in your own words.
- Providing false or misleading information may result in IGIS declining to inquire into your complaint.