Make a complaint

The Access to Information Act gives Canadians the right to request information from federal institutions. If you submitted a request for information to a federal institution under the Act and you are not satisfied with how it was processed, you may complain to the OIC.


Exit Messages

You can ask for records from the OIC by making an access request under the Access to Information Act. Anyone who believes that their access request was mproperly handled by the OIC may make a complaint to the Information Commissioner Ad Hoc.

Complaints regarding a privacy issue made under the Privacy Act are investigated by the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

The OIC investigates complaints under the Access to Information Act. Not all institutions are subject to the Act – it applies to about 250 institutions listed in Schedule I of the Act.

To make an access to information request to a federal government institution, see the ATIP Online Request Service.

The time frame for filing a complaint to the OIC is within 60 days after you have received response to your access request from a federal institution, or within 60 days after you became aware that grounds for the complaint exist.

To inquire as to the status of your complaint, please contact us.

Final Stage

Make a complaint

The Access to Information Act gives Canadians the right to request information from federal institutions. If you submitted a request for information to a federal institution under the Act and you are not satisfied with how it was processed, you may complain to the OIC.

make_a_complaint_triage

Download complaint form pdf

Information Commissioner Caroline Maynard

What we do

Complaints

The Access to Information Act gives Canadians the right to request information from federal institutions. If you submitted a request for information to a federal institution under the Act and you are not satisfied with how it was processed, you may file a complaint with us.

Read more

Guidance

Our guidance for institutions on how we approach investigations and on the Information Commissioner’s interpretation of the Act is available to everyone.

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Parliamentary activities

The Information Commissioner reports directly to Parliament. She appears before parliamentary committees and makes written submissions to them. She also publishes her annual report to Parliament and issues special reports when required. Upon request, the Commissioner provides expert advice to parliamentarians on access to information matters.

Read more about OIC

Events

Right to Know Week

The right to know logo
September 23, 2019 - September 28, 2019
OIC Event

Each year, on September 28, Right to Know Day is celebrated around the world. In Canada, an entire week of activities is organized to raise awareness of the right to access government information, while promoting freedom of information as essential to both democracy and good governance.

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