Meeting the Digital Access Standard
The Digital Access Standard is made up of 5 criteria agencies must follow to determine if they need to reuse an existing access point or if they can create a new one.
To successfully apply it, agencies must meet all the criteria and be able to demonstrate:
- it is understood where the users of a new service already go to access existing digital government services
- capabilities needed to support the new service are well defined
- that the Australian Government Architecture (AGA) has been used to identify the tools, capabilities, policies and standards relevant to the new service
- the decision-making framework has been applied
- service delivery partners (where relevant) have been engaged to reuse existing access points and capabilities.
Alignment with the Investment Oversight Framework
Agencies are expected to consider how their proposal aligns to the Digital Access Standard throughout all states of the Digital and ICT Investment Oversight Framework.
During the design phase, agencies should consider how to apply the Digital Access Standard during the Strategic Planning and Prioritisation states to ensure alignment with the strategic outcomes of government.
From 1 January 2025, proposals for new digital services will be assessed through the IOF, at the following states:
- Prioritisation state: The Digital Access Standard will be assessed as part of the existing Digital Investment Overview (DIO). Where the proposal has a public-facing digital service, agencies will be required to demonstrate they have considered the criteria of the Digital Access Standard, and suitability of either integration with an existing, or development of a new access point.
- Contestability state: The Digital Access Standard will be assessed as part of the existing ICT Investment Approval Process. Agencies must demonstrate to the DTA how they have or will apply the Digital Access Standard and provide evidence to support it through the Digital Capability Assessment Process (DCAP). Guidance of what evidence is required will be provided as part of the DCAP Agency Guide.
- Assurance state: The Digital Access Standard will be assessed through the Assurance Framework. Agencies will be required to demonstrate to the DTA how they applied the Digital Access Standard and provide supporting evidence.
For new services, agencies should consider obligations under the Digital Access Standard throughout the Sourcing and Operations states.
The Digital Access Standard will not apply to existing services in the first instance. Agencies will be consulted to determine if a process for the assessment of existing services will be applied in future.
Additional information on how the DTA will assess compliance with the Digital Access Standard is provided in the Compliance and Reporting Framework. This framework will continue to be evaluated and is expected to mature over time.