The information holder should tell you if they do not have the records you requested. If they know that a different institution has them, they should transfer your request and inform you that the request has been transferred. The institution that received your request must then respond to you within 30 business days of the […]

To request 911 records, an applicant must directly contact and request from the originating emergency agency. For example, if a police department was involved, that specific police department in the relevant jurisdiction should be contacted. Please see E-Comm’s 911 website for more information.   Requests for audio recordings of 911 calls may be denied based on […]

The Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) has provided guidance about privacy concerns between landlords and tenants in British Columbia. Simply put, landlords must comply with the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). Anyone offering rent—whether it is a secondary suite, condo, or apartment—is subject to the rules of PIPA. The rules of PIPA […]

Federal public bodies are required to publish the type of information that is under their control. Specifically, federal public bodies organize personal information into personal information banks (PIBs) that are retrievable by name, identifying number, or symbol. PIBs essentially provide a summary of the type of personal information held by government institutions.   Looking up the […]

The federal public body must tell you if they do not have the records you requested. If they know that another federal public body has them, they should transfer your request and let you know that it has done so. The new federal public body that received your request must then respond to you within […]

BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA) is a non-profit organization whose goal is to empower citizens by increasing their access to information and their control over their own personal information. BC FIPA provides public assistance and public legal education.  BC FIPA cannot and does not provide legal advice.  Introduction  The legislation governing access […]

Since 2001, the Canadian federal government has undertaken a startling number of programs and initiatives requiring the collection and sharing of vast amounts of previously uncollected personal information of Canadians. Many of these programs have been shown to have inaccuracies in the data resulting in demonstrably arbitrary decision-making.  The most recognizable program is the Passenger […]

When requesting your personal information from a public body, one of the first things you should do is verify that the public body has the personal information you seek. Accessing information, even if it is your own, can sometimes be a long drawn-out process so it is important to verify they have it before starting […]

In BC, the private sector and public sector are governed by separate freedom of information (FOI) and privacy legislation.   The Freedom of information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) regulates the FOI and privacy practices of organizations in the public sector. Public sector organizations (public bodies) covered by FIPPA include:  Ministries  The Office of the […]

Freedom of information (FOI) requests to BC public bodies can provide you information about either:   government activities or programs, or  personal information from government records about yourself or on behalf of someone else.  There is no limit to how much information you request, but the larger the size of the request, the more resources it […]

Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) requests can be used to access your personal information or government records from a federal public body. Federal public bodies have 30 days to respond to a formal ATIP request, but this time limit can be extended for up to another 30 days. The two reasons a request can […]

Public bodies, as per the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), may collect personal information only if it is expressly authorized under an Act, collected for the purposes of law enforcement, collected at a public event, or it is necessary to be collected.   Generally, public bodies can only use your personal information […]