WHO CAN REQUEST GOVERNMENT INFORMATION?
Any Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada can request access to information held by the federal government.
WHAT INFORMATION CAN I ACCESS?
Under the
Access to Information Act
you have the right to access any record under the control of a
government institution, subject to certain exceptions described below.
A list of government institutions can be found in
Schedule 1 of the act, at:
http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/A-1/157.html#rid-218.
WHAT ARE THE EXCEPTIONS TO MY RIGHT OF ACCESS?
There are a number of circumstances in which you may be denied access to information, including the following:
Publicly available information
You may be denied access to information that is available to the
public. This includes information that will be made available to the
public within 90 days of the date when the request is received.
Another Act prevails
If the information you want is governed by an Act that specifies that the
Access to Information Act does not apply, you cannot access it through an access to information request. For a list of such acts, see:
http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/A-1/157.html#rid-225.
Law enforcement and legal proceedings
Your access request may be denied if disclosure could be harmful to the
enforcement of federal law. This includes information that could
compromise a penal institution, reveal investigative techniques, or
facilitate the commission of an offence. It also includes
investigations conducted by the RCMP while under contract with a
province or municipality other than British Columbia.
If the information is more than 20 years old, it cannot be refused under this rule.
Privileged information
Your request for information may be denied if the information is
protected by legal privilege such as solicitor-client privilege.
Advice
Unless the government institution consents, or unless the information
is more than 20 years old, you may be denied access to records that
could reveal advice to or from government institutions. The term
“advice” is used broadly and includes recommendations to the
government, accounts of consultations or deliberations, negotiation
positions, and human resources information.
A government
institution must, however, give access to information that contributed
to a discretionary decision or adjudication that affected someone's
rights. It must also give access to reports prepared by an employee of
a government institution.
Cabinet confidences
Your request will be refused if disclosure would reveal Cabinet
confidences contained in records that are less than 20 years old.
Cabinet confidences include Cabinet memoranda, agendas of meetings,
communication records, briefing notes, draft legislation, and
discussion papers less than four years old.
Relations with other governments and defence of Canada
Your access request may be denied if disclosure could harm the federal
government’s ability to consult, deliberate or strategize regarding
federal-provincial affairs. It may also be denied if disclosure could
damage international affairs or the defence of Canada. Examples include
information on military tactics, weapons, defence establishments,
foreign intelligence, and diplomatic correspondence.
Security certificate
You cannot access information for which a security certificate has been issued, nor can you appeal this denial of access.
Information provided in confidence by other governments
You cannot access information that another government, including
foreign, provincial and municipal governments, gave to the government
institution in confidence. If, however, the other government consents
to the disclosure or makes the information public, you can access such
information. The government institution must make a reasonable effort
to seek consent.
Economic and other interests of Canada
Your access to information request may be refused if disclosure could
harm the economic interests of a government institution. Information
under this heading includes:
• Government of Canada trade secrets;
• information whose disclosure could prejudice a competitive position;
• research results whose disclosure could affect publication priority; and
• information that could harm Canada's financial interests or its ability to manage the economy.
Testing procedures, tests and audits
You may be denied access to information related to testing or auditing
procedures, or to details of specific future tests or audits, if
disclosure could prejudice the tests or audits.
Business interests of third parties
You cannot access a third party's trade secrets or other confidential
or sensitive information if disclosure could harm the business
interests of a third party. This includes tax return information.
You can, however, get access when the third party consents to the
disclosure. In addition, you may be granted access if disclosure is in
the public interest and that public interest clearly outweighs the harm
that would be caused to the third party. Public interest in this
exception refers to public health, public safety or protection of the
environment.
Third party privacy
Your access request will be denied if disclosure would invade a third
party's privacy. Disclosure of the following will be considered
an invasion of a third party's privacy:
• information revealing the race, ethnic origin, age or marital status of a third party;
• information relating to the educational, medical,
criminal or employment history of an individual or to financial
transactions between an individual and the government institution;
• the party’s address, fingerprints or blood type, or any number or symbol that could identify the party; or
• a third party's personal opinions or views (except
where these are about another individual or a grant proposal or award
application to a government institution).
Note that this is not an exhaustive list.
There are, however, circumstances when disclosure of a third party’s personal information will be permitted. These include:
• when the relevant third party consents to disclosure; and
• when the public interest in disclosure outweighs the invasion of privacy.
Records held by archives, libraries, galleries and museums
You cannot, under the
Access to Information Act, access archived and library materials, including:
• published materials or materials available for purchase by the public;
• library or museum materials preserved solely for public reference or exhibition purposes; or
• material placed in the National Archives of Canada,
the National Library, the National Gallery of Canada, the Canadian
Museum of Civilization, the Canadian Museum of Nature or the National
Museum of Science and Technology by or on behalf of persons or
organizations other than government institutions.
Individual safety
Your access request may be denied if disclosure could threaten the safety of individuals.
Exceptions related to personal information
For exceptions related to requests for access to your own personal information, see
Accessing Personal Information from the Government of Canada.
HOW DO I MAKE A REQUEST?
1. Check whether the information is publicly available
There are several ways to find out whether the information you want has
been made public. First, you can search Government of Canada
Publications and order a copy of the available information. This will
usually require you to pay a fee. See:
http://publications.gc.ca/. You can also obtain the information through the Depository Services Program. See:
http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/index-e.html.
This program requires government departments to submit manuscripts of
published information for public distribution. The DSP works with about
a 1,000 libraries to send information across Canada. In addition, you
can check the database at
http://www.onlinedemocracy.ca/CAIRS/CAIA-OD.htm
to see if someone has already requested the same record. Finally, you
can call the government institution and ask whether the information is
publicly available or has been released in response to another request.
Contact information for each government institution’s Access to
Information Coordinator can be found at
http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/gos-sog/atip-aiprp/apps/coords/index_e.asp.
2. Contact government institutions
Call the government institution and ask if it is willing to provide
access to the information you want. Such informal methods can be
effective. Note, however, that informal access to information requests
do not trigger time limits for responding to you, nor do they trigger
certain rights, such as the right to complain to the Information
Commissioner.
3. Identify the appropriate government institution
a) Determine whether the institution is subject to access to information law
A list of government institutions can be found at the following websites:
http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/A-1/157.html#rid-220
http://infosource.gc.ca/fed/fed05_e.asp
b) Determine whether the information is in the custody or control of the government institution
Access to information laws only apply to records in the custody or
control of a government institution. If a record is destroyed, it is no
longer in the custody or control of a government institution, but it is
an offence to wilfully destroy records in order to evade an access
request.
4. Frame your request carefully
a) Use InfoSource to identify likely sources of information
InfoSource is a website that provides links to government institutions and their information banks. It can be found at:
http://www.infosource.gc.ca/enq-ctr/enq-ctr00_e.asp.
Click on the link to the government institution that has the records
you seek. The menu on the left allows you to access the institution’s
information holdings. By informing the government institution that the
requested information may be in a particular file, your request is more
likely to be successful and may take less time to process.
The InfoSource menu will also indicate whether the institution has
manuals. Manuals can sometimes contain the information you are looking
for and can be accessed without a formal request by visiting the
institution’s reading room or by having it send a copy to your local
library. There is no fee for this service.
b) Request "records"
Request access to records, not to information, because "record" has a
specific and broad definition which includes: “any correspondence,
memorandum, book, plan, map, drawing, diagram, pictorial or graphic
work, photograph, film, microform, sound recording, videotape, machine
readable record, and any other documentary material, regardless of
physical form or characteristics, and any copy thereof.”
c) Request indexes, catalogues, and other records-management aids
If you are seeking information that spans a broad area or could involve
many records, you should first consider requesting indexes, file lists,
file plans, and other records-management aids. These records of records
can help you narrow your request and choose only the most relevant
materials. This process can also shed light on other issues you may not
have been aware of. The only drawback is that this is a two step
request process: once you decide which records you would like, you must
file another request to which the government institution will have 30
days to respond.
d) Indicate that your request is in the public interest
If disclosure of the information you are requesting is in the public
interest, mention it, since this is a factor that supports disclosure.
e) Be specific
Unless you absolutely need it, try not to request everything available
on a subject so as to ensure a faster and less costly response. In
addition, the more specific your request is, the less likely the
government institution will request a time limit extension on the
grounds that answering the request within 30 days would unreasonably
interfere with its operations.
5. If you need help
If you need help, ask the access staff of the relevant government institution. They are required to help you with your request.
DO I HAVE TO USE A FORM?
You do not have to use a form, but one is available and it can help you structure your request. The form can be found at:
http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/tbsf-fsct/350-57_e.asp.
WHAT WILL IT COST?
There is a $5 application fee for requesting government information. In addition, fees may be charged for the following:
• making copies or converting a record into an alternative format; and
• search and preparation time for each hour (the first five hours are free).
The government institution will send a written notice of the applicable
fees and any deposit due. Payment of the $5 fee and any deposit must be
sent with your request. Cheques should be made out to the Receiver
General of Canada.
You may ask to have some or all of the fees waived. This request may be granted if:
• you can’t afford the fee, or it would otherwise be fair to waive the fee; or
• disclosing the information is in the public interest and relates to public health or safety.
If disclosure is in the public interest and you’d like to have the fees
waived, mention this in your application. You may, for example, want to
phrase your request as follows: “As this request is in the public
interest, I ask that all fees please be waived.
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?
The government institution must make every reasonable effort to respond
to your request within 30 days of receiving it. If your request is
transferred to another government institution, the new institution must
respond to you within 15 days of receiving your request.
A transfer to another body is only allowed when:
• the record is in the custody or under the control
of the government institution to which your request is being
transferred; or
• the record originated with, or
was first obtained by, the government institution to which your request
is being transferred.
A government institution can extend the time limit for responses when:
• you have requested a large number of records and
responding within 30 days would unreasonably interfere with the
operations of the government institution; or
•
the government institution needs time to consult with, or give
notice to, a third party or another government institution before
deciding whether to grant access to a record.
Failure
to respond to a request within 30 days is considered a denial of
access. You can complain to the Information Commissioner about both
denial of access and failure to respond on time. For more information,
see "What else can I complain about?" below.
WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS REGARDING FORMAT?
Copies v. originals
You may have copies sent to you or you may view the originals. A
government institution may impose one format (copy or original)
depending on considerations of length and the nature of the record.
Language
You have the option of requesting that information be provided in
French or English. If it exists only in one of these languages, the
government institution may have it translated if to do so would be in
the public interest.
Alternative formats
A government institution is required to provide records in alternative
formats for the hearing or seeing impaired if records already exist in
such formats. If they do not exist in such formats, the government
institution will give access in that format if necessary to enable the
individual to exercise his or her Access to Information rights.
WHAT CAN I DO IF MY REQUEST FOR ACCESS IS DENIED?
If you are not satisfied with a government institution’s response to
your access request, you have the right to appeal its decision to the
Office of the Information Commissioner. For more information, see
Appealing Federal Access to Information Decisions.
