If you make a referral, provide information or give evidence to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), you are protected by law. These protections include immunity from liability and protection from reprisals.
These protections can apply even if making the disclosure would otherwise breach another law. However, there are exceptions.
On this page, ‘disclosure’ includes making a referral, providing information or giving evidence to the NACC.
Immunity from liability
You cannot be prosecuted, sued, disciplined or penalised for making a referral. For example:
- you cannot be sued for defamation arising from your disclosure
- your employment or contract cannot be terminated, nor can you be disciplined, for making the disclosure.
Protection from reprisals
A ‘reprisal’ is any action that causes you detriment because someone believes or suspects that you have disclosed, may disclose or could disclose information about a corruption issue to the NACC.
Examples of detriment include:
- dismissal from your employment
- injury in your employment
- detrimental changes to your employment position
- discrimination between you and other employees.
However, reasonable administrative action by an organisation to protect you from detriment is not a reprisal. For example, transferring you to another work area to reduce the risk of detriment may be an appropriate step to take.
Taking or threatening a reprisal against you for making a disclosure to the NACC is a criminal offence, punishable by up to 2 years imprisonment.
Exceptions to protections
Protections from liability do not cover:
- an individual’s liability for their own conduct. The immunity is for making the disclosure, not for the underlying conduct that is disclosed. So a public servant cannot get immunity by referring their own conduct to the Commission.
- knowingly making a false or misleading statement to the Commission.
Support for people who report corruption or give evidence
Confidentiality and anonymity
You can choose to make a referral anonymously via the NACC's secure online referral form. However, this restricts our ability to contact you, for example if we want further information.
If you choose to provide contact details, the NACC will still protect your identity, as far as legally and reasonably practicable. NACC staff are subject to strict confidentiality obligations.
If the NACC is considering making a referral public, or disclosing it to another agency, it will first consider the potential impact on the referrer – especially if they have expressed concerns about repercussions or reprisals.
In hearings, the NACC avoids disclosing information that may identify a whistleblower. In a report, where appropriate, the NACC can conceal the identity of the referrer.
The NACC’s Witness Liaison Team can also refer whistleblowers to the Human Rights Law Centre Whistleblower Project. See case study below.
Case study: Working with whistleblowers
The NACC sometimes receives referrals from whistleblowers represented by the Human Rights Law Centre. In one matter, a whistleblower wanting to provide evidence to the NACC had concerns about retaliatory action and destruction of evidence by their agency. The whistleblower, the Centre and the NACC worked cooperatively, resulting in the NACC:
- expediting assessment of the referral
- exercising its coercive powers to lawfully obtain the evidence without compromising the whistleblower’s confidentiality.
This shows how the NACC can work with whistleblowers and their representatives to protect confidentiality while assessing serious corruption concerns.
Policies and procedures
The NACC's witness welfare policies and procedures apply to everyone who reports corruption or gives evidence to the NACC. Key elements include:
- staff who have direct contact with referrers, witnesses or persons of interest must complete mental health awareness training
- all witnesses – including whistleblowers – have access to the NACC’s specialist Witness Liaison team, which provides information and support to help them in their dealings with the NACC.
Ready to report a corruption issue?
If you have information about a serious or systemic corrupt conduct involving a Commonwealth public official, you can make a referral to the NACC. You can make a referral anonymously, but providing contact details may help us assess your referral. See Report corrupt conduct.
Related policy work
On 12 January 2024 the NACC made a submission to the Attorney General’s Department in response to the Consultation Paper on Public Sector Whistleblowing Reforms: Stage 2 – Reducing Complexity and Improving the Effectiveness and Accessibility of Protections for Whistleblowers.
Submission documents
Public Sector Whistleblowing Reforms Phase 2 submission | PDF 264 KB
Public Sector Whistleblowing Reforms Phase 2 submission | Word 207 KB