How long to respond to a foia request

Many of those who ask questions just want a simple answer, not all the recorded information you hold. However, requesters do have a right to all the relevant recorded information you hold, and some may be equally frustrated if you take a less formal approach and fail to provide recorded information. The best way round this is usually to speak to the applicant, explain to them how the Act works, and find out what they want. Ultimately, if there is a complaint to the ICO, the Commissioner will make her decision based on whether recorded information is held and has been provided.

Parliamentary Questions PQs are part of parliamentary proceedings and must not be treated as requests for information under FOIA or under the EIR ; to do so would infringe parliamentary privilege. Councils may permit members of the public to raise questions, either orally or in writing, at council meetings. You can deal with many requests by providing the requested information in the normal course of business. If the information is included in the publication scheme, you should give this out automatically, or provide a link to where the information can be accessed see What information do we need to publish?

If you need to deal with a request more formally, it is important to identify the relevant legislation:. Any other non-routine request for information you hold should be dealt with under the Freedom of Information Act. Your main obligation under the Act is to respond to requests promptly, with a time limit acting as the longest time you can take.

Under the Act, most public authorities may take up to 20 working days to respond, counting the first working day after the request is received as the first day. For schools, the standard time limit is 20 school days, or 60 working days if this is shorter. Working day means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday, or public holidays and bank holidays; this may or may not be the same as the days you are open for business or staff are in work. The time allowed for complying with a request starts when your organisation receives it, not when it reaches the freedom of information officer or other relevant member of staff.

Certain circumstances explained in this guidance and in When can we refuse a request? However, in all cases you must give the requester a written response within the standard time limit for compliance. First, read the request carefully and make sure you know what is being asked for. You must not simply give the requester information you think may be helpful; you must consider all the information that falls within the scope of the request, so identify this first.

Always consider contacting the applicant to check that you have understood their request correctly. You should read a request objectively. Do not get diverted by the tone of the language the requester has used, your previous experience of them unless they explicitly refer you to this or what you think they would be most interested in.

Requests are often ambiguous, with many potential interpretations, or no clear meaning at all. You do not have to deal with the request until you have received whatever clarification you reasonably need. However, you must consider whether you can give the requester advice and assistance to enable them to clarify or rephrase their request. For example, you could explain what options may be available to them and ask whether any of these would adequately answer their request.

This could mean: A all expenses claims Mrs Jones ever submitted, plus dates of meetings she attended in June, July and August; or B all expenses claims Mrs Jones submitted in June, July or August, and dates of meetings she attended in the same months.

We do not have a specific policy relating to risk assessment. Please let us know whether you would be interested in any of these documents or what risk assessment information you are interested in seeing. The time for compliance will not begin until you have received the necessary clarification to allow you to answer the request.

The Act only covers recorded information you hold. If you know that the information is held by another public authority, you could transfer the request to them or advise the requester to redirect their request. Part III of the section 45 code of practice provides advice on good practice in transferring requests for information.

For further information, read our more detailed guidance:. The Act does not allow extra time for searching for information. However, if finding the information and drawing it together to answer the request would be an unreasonable burden on your resources and exceed a set costs limit, you may be able to refuse the request.

Likewise, you may not have to confirm whether or not you hold the information, if it would exceed the costs limit to determine this. See When can we refuse a request? Yes, unless one of the reasons for refusing to do this applies — see When can we refuse a request? You have two duties when responding to requests for information: to let the requester know whether you hold the information, and to provide the information.

If you are giving out all the information you hold, this will fulfil both these duties. If you are refusing all or part of the request, you will normally still have to confirm whether you hold further information. You do not need to give a description of this information; you only have to say whether you have any further information that falls within the scope of the request.

In some circumstances, you can refuse to confirm or deny whether you hold any information. For example, if a requester asks you about evidence of criminal activity by a named individual, saying whether you hold such information could be unfair to the individual and could prejudice any police investigation.

Yes, under the law you must release the information unless there is good reason not to. For more about when you may be able to refuse the request, or withhold some or all of the information, see When can we refuse a request? Agencies typically process requests in the order of receipt. The time it takes to respond to a request will vary depending on the complexity of the request and any backlog of requests already pending at the agency.

A simple request can be processed faster by the agency than one that is complex. Simple requests are typically more targeted and seek fewer pages of records. Complex requests typically seek a high volume of material or require additional steps to process such as the need to search for records in multiple locations.

Under certain conditions you may be entitled to have your request processed on an expedited basis. There are two specific situations where a request will be expedited, which means that it is handled as soon as practicable.

These two situations apply to every agency. Second, if there is an urgency to inform the public about an actual or alleged Federal Government activity, if made by a person who is primarily engaged in disseminating information, his or her request will be expedited.

Agencies can also establish additional standards for granting expedited processing which they describe in their FOIA regulations.

If you are seeking records on yourself you will be required to provide a certification of your identity. This certification is required in order to protect your privacy and to ensure that private information about you is not disclosed inappropriately to someone else. Whenever you request information about yourself you will be asked to provide either a notarized statement or a statement signed under penalty of perjury stating that you are the person who you say you are.

Generally, when requesting information about another person you will receive greater access by submitting authorization from that individual permitting the disclosure of the records to you, or by submitting proof that the individual is deceased. Not all records are required to be released under the FOIA. Congress established nine exemptions from disclosure for certain categories of information to protect against certain harms, such as an invasion of personal privacy, or harm to law enforcement investigations.

The FOIA authorizes agencies to withhold information when they reasonably foresee that disclosure would harm an interest protected by one of these nine exemptions. The nine exemptions are described below. Congress has provided special protection in the FOIA for three narrow categories of law enforcement and national security records. The third exclusion is limited to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and protects the existence of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence, or international terrorism records when the existence of such records is classified.

Records falling within an exclusion are not subject to the requirements of the FOIA. So, when an office or agency responds to your request, its response will encompass those records that are subject to the FOIA. The FOIA Public Liaison is there to explain the process to you, assist in reducing any delays, and help resolve any disputes.

Often, a simple discussion between you and the agency will resolve any issues that may arise. If necessary, filing an appeal is very simple. Typically, all you need to do is send a letter or e-mail to the designated appeal authority of the agency stating that you are appealing the initial decision made on your request. Following these instructions will help you obtain the information you are seeking in the shortest amount of time.

These regulations are available on the web and in law libraries and Federal Depository Libraries. You may not need to make a FOIA request to access the following types of information:. The Agency's Annual FOIA Reports -- which include such information as the number of requests received by the agency, the total amount of fees collected by the agency, information regarding the backlog of pending requests, and other information about the Agency's handling of FOIA requests -- are also available through the web.

Requests can be delivered by mail , sent by overnight delivery, submitted to FOIAonline. There is no central office in the government which handles FOIA requests for all federal agencies. A request must be made to the agency that has the records you seek.

Requests must be in writing, either handwritten or typed. Your request should be as specific as possible with regard to names, dates, time frames, places, events, subjects, etc. Describe the record as accurately and definitively as possible.

You do not have to give a requested record's name or title, but the more specific you are, the more likely it will be that the record you seek can be located. This does not mean, however, that EPA will disclose every record sought. There are nine exemptions that authorize the withholding of information of an appropriately sensitive nature.

You should be aware that the FOIA does not require agencies to do research for you, to analyze data, to answer questions, or to create records to respond to a request. When EPA cannot process your request due to the lack of necessary information, you may be contacted and additional information will be requested. Under certain circumstances, you may be entitled to receive more information under the Privacy Act of a separate federal statute than under the FOIA. Under the FOIA, anyone can request any agency record.

Privacy Act requests are more limited and can be made only by U. To protect your privacy, when you make a written request for information about yourself, you must provide either a notarized statement or a statement signed under penalty of perjury stating that you are the person you claim to be. You may fulfill this requirement by:. Federal agencies are generally required to respond to a FOIA request within twenty working days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.