Concerns
If you have made a formal request for access to information under the FOIP Act and are not satisfied with the response you receive, you may contact the Information and Privacy Commissioner to request that he review the decision(s) of the public body. The FOIP Act allows the Commissioner to review decisions such as:
- failing to respond within 30 days
- the adequacy of search
- withholding information from you under one or more of the exemptions of the Act
- the calculation of fees
- decisions regarding fee waivers
- the decision to refuse to make a correction
The Commissioner will either uphold or overrule the decision of the public body.
You can request that the Commissioner review the decision of a public body by completing and submitting the Request for Review form, which appears at the bottom of this, with applicable attachments. Individuals should be aware that the information they send to the Information and Privacy Commissioner requesting review of the public body’s decision will be sent to the head of the public body and any other person the Commissioner considers to be affected.
Individuals may also request an investigation by the Commissioner if they believe their own personal information has been collected, used or disclosed in violation of the FOIP Act. In these cases, the Complaint form requesting investigation of a privacy breach will automatically be sent to the public body unless the individual expresses a concern at the outset, in which case the Commissioner will decide whether or not to provide the complaint, in whole or in part, to the public body.
Each of the Request for Review form and the Complaint form requires that the individual provide an address for service, where that individual is to be contacted by the Commissioner, his staff, the public body and any affected party for all purposes related to their review or complaint. Similarly, the public body and every affected party are required to have addresses for service. Every address for service will be shared with all other parties to the review or complaint. Any change to any party’s address for service must be communicated to both the Commissioner’s Office and all other parties immediately; failure to do so on the part of the individual may result in that individual’s review or complaint not proceeding. These requirements may be modified in appropriate circumstances, such as the involvement of undisclosed (unnamed) parties.
The Commissioner's mailing address is:
# 410, 9925 - 109 Street 2460 – 801 – 6th Avenue SW
Edmonton, AB Calgary, AB
T5K 2J8 T2P 3W2
At this time, the Information and Privacy Commissioner does not accept requests for review or complaints via email.
Request for Review Form
Complaint Form
Third Party Request for Review Form
Address for Service Form