The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) 2016-20 Corporate Plan is the primary strategic planning document, and outlines how the ANAO intends to deliver against the purpose over the coming four years.

An Audit Committee Chairs Forum was held on Friday, 4 December 2020. The venue was the Australian National Audit Office, 38 Sydney Avenue, Forrest ACT.

The text on this page is the communique from the forum. 

The Auditor-General responded on 2 May 2022 to correspondence from Senator Rex Patrick dated 5 April 2022, requesting that the Auditor-General conduct an investigation to examine the process in making statutory and other senior appointments across the whole government over the six months preceding the application of caretaker conventions prior to the 2022 Federal election. 

The objective of this audit was to examine whether procurements of office furniture have been consistent with the Commonwealth Procurement Rules and are achieved value for money.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission’s administration of the Biometric Identification Service project.

The Auditor-General responded on 17 April 2025 to correspondence from Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash dated 21 March 2025, requesting that the Auditor-General conduct an investigation to examine the Incolink grant. 

The ANAO provided an article to the March 2023 edition of the PASAI newsletter on the development of a methodology for auditing ethics. The article was titled SAI Australia develops methodology for auditing ethics.

Increased transparency and accountability on progress with major Defence equipment acquisitions has been a focus of parliamentary interest for some time. Beginning in 2007–08, an annual program has been established in conjunction with the Department of Defence to enable the ANAO to review and report to the Parliament on the status of major Defence acquisition projects, as set out in the major projects report. The review includes information relating to the cost, schedule and progress towards delivery of required capability of individual projects as at 30 June each year, and is undertaken at the request of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit.

This report complements the Interim Report on Key Financial Controls of Major Entities financial statement audit report published in June 2021. It provides a summary of the final results of the audits of the Consolidated Financial Statements for the Australian Government and the financial statements of Australian Government entities for the period ended 30 June 2021. 

The Auditor-General responded on 26 April 2023 to correspondence from the Hon David Coleman MP dated 29 March 2023 and 12 April 2023, requesting that the Auditor-General conduct a full investigation into the design and administration of Round 6 of the Mobile Black Spot Program.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the design and establishment of the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Airservices’ contract management for the OneSKY program.

An Audit Committee Chairs Forum was held on Friday 8 December 2023. The text on this page is the communique from the forum.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Defence’s arrangements to manage the security authorisation of its ICT systems.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has effective arrangements to comply with domestic and international travel requirements.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service's management of the Cape Class patrol boat program.

The objective of the audit was to assess the adequacy of selected Australian Government entities’ practices and procedures to manage business continuity. To conclude against this objective, the ANAO adopted high-level criteria relating to the entities’ establishment, implementation and review of business continuity arrangements.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian National University’s governance and control framework.

The Auditor-General responded on 16 December 2025 to correspondence from the Hon David Littleproud MP dated 4 December 2025, requesting that the Auditor-General undertake a performance and financial audit of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry's biosecurity programs and activities since the 2023–24 Budget.

This edition is intended for officials within government entities responsible for governance, internal audit or a government activity that may be the subject of an ANAO performance audit. The purpose of Insights: Audit Practice is to explain ANAO methodologies to help entities prepare for an ANAO audit.

An Audit Committee Chairs Forum was held on Friday 5 December 2025. The text on this page is the communique from the forum.

The audit objective was to examine the effectiveness to date of the Department of Defence’s administration of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) program, with a focus on ERP Tranche 1 activities.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Indigenous Business Australia’s management and implementation of the Indigenous Home Ownership Program.

The Audit Committee Chairs Forum is a joint initiative of the Department of Finance and the ANAO and includes the general government and non-general government sector Audit Committee Chairs. This communique covers the outcomes of the discussion at the forum on 15 June 2018 including updates from the Auditor-General and the ANAO, and from the Department of Finance.

The objective of the audit was to continue to examine the progress of the implementation of the annual performance statements requirements under the PGPA Act and the PGPA Rule by the selected entities. The audit was also designed to:

• provide insights to entities more broadly, to encourage improved performance; and
• continue the development of the ANAO’s methodology to support the possible future implementation of annual audits of performance statements.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) and Treasury’s management of compliance with foreign investment obligations for residential real estate.

The objective of this audit was to assess whether the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has implemented effective arrangements for the planning and conduct of surveillance activities.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Defence’s design process and implementation to date of the Defence Export Strategy.

An Audit Committee Chairs Forum was held at the Hotel Realm on Friday, 9 December 2022. The communique from the forum is now available here.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the implementation of procurement reforms by the DTA and Finance following on from Auditor-General Report No.5 2022–23 Digital Transformation Agency’s Procurement of ICT-related services.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Bureau of Meteorology is effectively managing assets in its observing network.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Home Affairs’ regulation of migration agents.

This edition of audit insights draws together key learnings from Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) performance audit reports tabled in the Parliament of Australia from July to September 2017. It provides insights into entities’ operational implementation of government policies and frameworks, drawing on a number of common findings and key learnings on policy and program design, governance, performance and impact measurement, and risk management.

The objective of this audit was to assess the efficiency of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s delivery of passport services through the Australian Passport Office.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) had complied with gifts, benefits and hospitality requirements.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Government’s personnel security arrangements for mitigating insider threats.

The audit objective was to assess how effectively the selected public sector entities manage risk.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science in administering the low emission technologies for fossil fuels (LETFF) program.

The Auditor-General for Australia is an independent officer of the Parliament with responsibility under the Auditor-General Act 1997 for auditing Commonwealth entities and reporting to the Australian Parliament. The Auditor-General is supported by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO).

The office of Auditor-General is a ten year statutory appointment made by the Governor-General on the advice of the Prime Minister. In recognition of the Auditor-General’s status as an officer of the Parliament, the Australian Parliament’s Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) must approve any proposed recommendation for appointment.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Department of Industry, Science and Resources has effective arrangements to comply with domestic and international travel requirements.

The objectives of this information report are to provide transparency of, and insights on, government grants expense and Commonwealth entities’ self-reporting of grants on GrantConnect.

The audit objective was to re-assess the three entities' compliance with the 'Top Four' mandatory strategies in the Australian Government Information Security Manual (ISM). The audit also aims to examine the typical challenges faced by entities to achieve and maintain their desired ICT security posture.

The objective of the audit was to assess the Department of Human Services' and the Department of Social Services’ management of selected fraud prevention and compliance Budget measures.

The objective of the audit was to examine the effectiveness of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs' (DVA's) planning and management of the Veteran Centric Reform (VCR) program.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's probity management.

The Auditor-General responded on 26 April 2016 to correspondence from Mr Pat Conroy MP on 16 February 2016 regarding the government advertising campaign Welcome to the Ideas Boom.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Department of Health effectively procured services to operate a National Cancer Screening Register.

The Auditor-General responded on 4 February 2021 to correspondence from Senator Sarah Hanson-Young dated 14 January 2021, requesting that the Auditor-General conduct an audit of the approval of the Yeelirrie uranium mine by the Federal Government in 2019.

The objective of this audit was to examine the effectiveness of the Department of Social Services’ administration of NRAS allocations; processing of market rent valuations, statements of compliance and incentive payments; and the supporting business systems and processes.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Defence’s procurement of Hunter class frigates and the achievement of value for money to date.

The audit examined whether the COVID-19 National Medical Stockpile (NMS) procurement requirement was met through effective planning and governance arrangements.

The objective of the audit was to examine the effectiveness of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water's implementation of the National Waste Policy Action Plan 2019.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the department’s strategic procurement of water entitlements to meet the Bridging the Gap target under the Basin Plan.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Federal Police's management of its use of force regime.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Communications and the Arts’ contract management of selected telephone universal service obligations.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority's processes for the prudential regulation of superannuation entities.

The Auditor-General responded on 11 March 2020 to follow-up correspondence from Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, requesting an audit into the Federal and South Australian governments’ agreement to reduce SA’s Murray-Darling river water allocation by 100GL and Commonwealth funding provided to increase the use of the state’s desalination plant to replace the water. The Auditor-General responded to the original correspondence from Senator Hanson-Young on 19 December 2019. The Auditor-General provided a follow-up response to Senator Hanson-Young on 24 July 2020. 

The Auditor-General responded on 29 March 2019 to the follow-up correspondence from the Hon. Mark Dreyfus QC MP dated 26 March 2019. Mr Dreyfus requested that the Auditor-General extend his investigation to look at the conduct of a range of parties in relation to the announcement of grants. This is in addition to the request to investigate the conduct of a range of parties in relation to the announcement of the grant to the Yankalilla Bowling Club, which was the subject of the original correspondence dated 24 February 2019. 

The audit objective was to examine whether the Department of Defence has effective and efficient sustainment arrangements for the Royal Australian Navy’s fleet of eight ANZAC class frigates.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether selected entities had appropriately justified the use of limited tender procurement and whether processes adopted met the requirements of the Commonwealth Procurement Rules.