International Air Services Commission Client Service Charter

From the Chairman

This charter sets out the standards of service that you can expect from the International Air Services Commission and its staff. These standards apply to how we make decisions and to how we deal with you. We want to give you the best service possible and we welcome your ideas for helping us do so.

Mr John Martin
Chairman

About the Commission

The Commission is an independent statutory authority comprised of three people - a Chairperson and two members. It is established under the International Air Services Commission Act 1992 (the Act). The aim of the Act is to improve the welfare of Australians by promoting economic efficiency through competitive international air services.

Our role is to allocate capacity to Australian airlines so they can operate these international air services. We assess applications for capacity from airlines, using public benefit criteria in a policy statement given to us by the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government. If an application meets the criteria, we make a determination granting capacity to the airline concerned. We also decide on airlines' applications to vary or renew determinations from time to time.

For more straightforward cases, we have authorised our delegate, usually the Commission's executive director, to make determinations and decisions on our behalf. The Commission decides on the more complex applications. In either case, you can expect the same high level of service from us.

Making an application

If you wish to apply for capacity, or make a submission when we have invited these in certain cases, procedures for doing so can be found on our Internet site at www.iasc.gov.au. We suggest that prospective new airlines first contact the Commission's executive director.

Our clients

In the broadest sense, the Australian community is our primary client because competitive air services promote the welfare of Australians. At a practical level though, airlines are the clients most directly affected by our decisions. However, our work is also relevant to many other parties. These include:

• the travelling public;
• the tourism and air freight industries, including Australian exporters;
• the wider aviation industry, including airport owners, providers of services to airlines, and employee associations;
• the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government;
• Australian and State government departments and agencies; and
• the aviation industry press and analysts.

Our service promises

We aim to provide you with the highest standards of service, both in the way we deal with you and in making our decisions. We make these commitments to you:

In our dealings with you, we will

• treat you courteously and professionally;
• provide you with clear and accurate advice;
• include contact names and phone numbers in our correspondence;
• answer phone calls promptly by name or return any missed calls within one working day if you leave a message;
• reply to your emails within two working days;
• reply to your letters within ten working days; and
• respond constructively to your suggestions for improving our service.

In our decision-making processes, we will

• notify you within five working days of receiving an application for capacity;
• follow our published procedures for handling applications - the procedures are on our Internet site or we will post, email or fax them to you upon request;
• seek only information that we consider is reasonably necessary for us to best carry out our functions;
• protect information you provide to us in confidence (although we prefer to keep confidential information to a minimum to ensure transparent decision making);
• make our decisions consistent with the requirements of the Act and the Minister's policy statement;
• make decisions about uncontested applications within four weeks of receipt and contested or opposed applications within twelve weeks, or inform the airline/s involved if there are reasons why a decision may take longer than this;
• finalise the renewal of existing determinations quickly and, in the case of contested renewals, at least six months prior to the expiry date; and
• notify applicants by email within one working day of a decision being made, and other interested parties by email and on our Internet site within three working days.

What we ask of you

We ask you to provide comprehensive and accurate information in good time and to be straightforward in your dealings with us.

Accessibility

We will keep you informed quickly and comprehensively about our activities. We also endeavour to make contacting us as easy as possible. Contact details conclude this charter.

Our primary method of communication is by email. We provide information about current cases directly to interested parties who ask for it via this means. We advise you of applications received, and Commission decisions about those applications. You can request our emails to attach copies of these documents, or simply for the emails to include links to the documents on our internet site. Please contact us if you wish to be added to either notification list.

Our Internet site at www.iasc.gov.au provides up-to-date information about the Commission's business. It includes applications received, documents relating to current cases and all Commission determinations and decisions. Other important documents are on the site, including the Act and the Minister's policy statement, as well as the Commission's procedures.

If you do not have access to email or our Internet site, notifications and copies of documents can be provided to you by facsimile or post, or if you visit our offices.

Monitoring and review

We will monitor our performance against our service commitments. We encourage you to comment on our performance, including by suggesting ways to improve our service. If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of our service, it is important that you tell us so we can address your concerns. Comments should be provided to the Commission's executive director by mail, email or telephone.

At the end of each year we will assess how we have performed against our service standards. We will invite your comments on our service performance, such as through a brief confidential questionnaire. The aggregated results of the assessments will be summarised in our annual report. If you wish to receive a copy of the annual report, please let us know and we will post it to you. Alternatively, the report can be downloaded from our Internet site.

We will also review annually the service charter itself, to ensure that it is meeting your requirements. This may include arranging an independent review from time to time.

Contact details

International Air Services Commission
Telephone: (02) 6267 1100
Facsimile: (02) 6267 1111

Email: iasc@infrastructure.gov.au
Internet: www.iasc.gov.au

Postal address: GPO Box 630, Canberra ACT 2601
Premises: Mezzanine Level,
62 Northbourne Avenue, Canberra