Contact the Department
Information on how to contact staff in the Department via email.
Email transactions | Contact details | Data formats | Email confidentiality | Email authentication and non-repudiation | Email protocols | Disruptions to email services | Unacceptable use of email | Changes to email transaction guidelines | No email access? | Want more information about transacting with the Department by email?
Email transactions
The Department has the facilities to accept email correspondence. You are welcome to use this medium to transact electronically with the Department; however, certain transactions may not be able to be conducted via email - confirm with the relevant work area.Like a postal address, it is important that your email is sent to the correct address to be actioned efficiently. The Department has a large number of email addresses, the structures include: firstname.surname@health.gov.au, section@health.gov.au, campaign@health.gov.au and so on. You will need to establish the correct email address before sending your message.
Contact details
When emailing the Department please include relevant contact details (i.e. your full name, email address, postal address, phone number and/or fax number) to receive a reply. Replies from the Department will be directed to the email address from which a communication was sent unless an alternative email address or form of communication is specified.Please note that we may need to forward your email to other Government agencies who are better able to answer your question. If you do not wish for this to occur please let us know in your email.
Data formats
Top of pageIf you intend attaching a document to your email message, it will only be accepted in the following formats:Attachment type | Acceptable formats |
| Editable document | Microsoft Word 2003 compatible (.doc) Rich Text Format (.rtf) Text (.txt) |
| Non-editable document | Adobe Acrobat 6 compatible (.pdf) Microsoft Document Imaging (.mdi) |
| Spreadsheet | Microsoft Excel 2003 compatible (.xls) Comma Separated Variable (.csv) ASCII Delimited Text [tab or comma delimited] (.txt) |
| Database | MS Access 2003 compatible (.mdb) ASCII Delimited Text [tab or comma delimited] (.txt) |
| Presentation | Microsoft PowerPoint 2003 compatible (.ppt) |
| Sound | MS Media Player 9 compatible (.wma) (.wav) (.mp3) |
| Video | Windows Media Player 9 compatible (.mpg) (.avi) Apple Quicktime Player 6.3 compatible (.mov) |
| Image | Graphics Interchange Format (.gif) JPEG file (.jpg) Portable Network Graphics (.png) Bitmap (.bmp) Tagged Image Format (.tif) |
| Compressed | WinZip 8.1 compatible (.zip) [containing files in above mentioned formats] |
| Note: | Please do not send executable files as attachments |
Note: Ensure that attachments are not password protected. Please note that while the Department is able to receive attachments containing speech, such communications may not be sufficient to satisfy a legal requirement for writing or production of information under the Electronic Transactions Act 1999. You may receive an automated message generated by the Department's email screening mechanism if a file is considered unacceptable. There may be unforseen circumstances that prevent your email from reaching the Department, so request a return receipt to confirm delivery.
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Email confidentiality
The confidentiality of email messages sent to the Department cannot be guaranteed. Standard email is usually sent via several computer systems on the Internet before reaching the Department and while it may reside there for only seconds there is a possibility that a third party may view the message. The Department's outsourced Information Technology provider (IBMGSA) also have access to all email accounts.Emails received by the Department may be retained in an archival form as required by Commonwealth laws and regulations governing the retention of historical records of government agencies. The emails may be accessed and used by an authorised officer of the Department when an appropriate need exists.
Please refer to the Department's privacy statement concerning emails.
Email authentication and non-repudiation
The Department is currently investigating the form that client authentication and digital signature management should take to effectively meet the Department's service requirements. In the meantime, if proof of identify and/or signature are required you should discuss the appropriate mechanisms with the relevant program area.Email protocols
A 'protocol' is a formal description of the electronic message formats and rules computers must follow to exchange information. The Department will only accept emails transferred by the Simple Message Transfer Protocol (SMTP); moreover, attachments to email messages will only be accepted if transferred by the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) protocol.Top of page
Disruptions to email services
The Department reserves the right to stop the email gateway without notifying clients in circumstances such as urgent equipment maintenance. The Department will not be responsible for any loss which may result.If the Department's email gateway becomes unavailable, your email will usually be returned with an accompanying message indicating that it had failed to reach its destination.
Unacceptable use of email
Do not send the Department email that is:- harassing;
- threatening;
- unsolicited (i.e. 'spam');
- designed to cause damage; and
- containing information that is illegal (e.g. obscene material).