DIAC Wins International Government Technology Award

Australia's IT wizardry supporting the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's (DIAC) new online visa and citizenship sites has recorded its second award with a first prize in the business process management category at the international FutureGov Government Technology Awards in Bali. Both initiatives were developed as part of the Systems for People program.

The honour was presented to the department for the Visa and Citizenship Wizards, the department's online client self-service initiatives. The wizards also won first prize at the prestigious e-Awards for Excellence in e-Government at the CeBIT international business technology conference in Sydney in May.

The FutureGov Government Technology Awards are an international prize that recognises best-practice in public sector technology programs throughout the Asia-Pacific and the Gulf states and were formally announced at the award dinner in Bali on October 9. This year more than 600 government, education and healthcare organisations nominated for the awards in twelve different catagories.

DIAC's security referral service (SRS) was also short-listed as a finalist in the information management and information security categories.

About Visa Wizard and Citizenship Wizard

The Visa Wizard is an interactive, client self-service tool designed by the DIAC to provide prospective travellers and migrants with tailored information about their visa options.
See: Visa Wizard

Similarly the Citizenship Wizard provides citizenship information to clients based on their individual circumstances. Both Wizards are easily accessed via the department's website 24 hours a day, seven days a week from anywhere in the world.
See: Citizenship Wizard

This new online capability means clients have easier access to clear, consistent information and improved client service. Since September 2008, the visa wizard has received more than 3.3 million page views, at an average of 8300 each day. The citizenship wizard was launched in December 2008 and has been viewed nearly 220 000 times at an average of 776 views daily.

‘The visa wizard and the citizenship wizard are the first in a suite of online services the department is developing. This means faster and better services tailored to the needs of clients,’ Secretary Andrew Metcalfe said.

More information

More information on the international FutureGov Government Technology Award can be found on the department's newsroom or on the futureGOV website.
See:
Media Release – Immigration wizardry wins international e-business award
FutureGOV