Provides formal access to records held by the City of Ottawa in compliance with applicable law.
Before you begin
Before you begin
Before submitting a request for City information or records through the Access to Information and Privacy Office, closely review and consider “How to access City records” to determine if the information is readily available.
Note: The ATIP Office is responsible for providing access to existing records in the custody and control of the City of Ottawa. The ATIP Office does not create new records in response to an access to information request. The ATIP Office cannot answer requests worded as questions. If the wording of your request does not clearly identify what records are being requested, an Analyst will contact you to clarify and reformulate the subject of the request.
The City of Ottawa does not process requests for information for records held by other institutions. Institutions that process their own formal requests for information, include:
Cost
Cost
Note: If you are requesting information about yourself, your request is considered a "personal information request".
All other requests for information, whether about a person other than yourself, or about a government program or activity, are considered "general information requests".
| Activity | Applicable to | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Mandatory application fee (payable when submitting the request) | General and personal information requests | $5.00 |
| Search time for the record | General information requests | $7.50 for each fifteen (15) minutes spent by any person |
| Record preparation for disclosure | General information requests | $7.50 for each fifteen (15) minutes spent by any person |
| Any additional costs to locate, retrieve, process and copy the record | General information requests | Actual cost |
| Development of computer program or other method to retrieve a record | General and personal information requests | $15.00 for each fifteen (15) minutes spent by any person |
| Disks/CDs | General and personal information requests | $10.00 per disk |
| Photocopying | General and personal information requests | $0.20 per page |
All requests must be submitted with a non-refundable $5.00 application fee.
If the application fee is not enclosed with your request, your request will be opened, but processing will not begin until the mandatory fee has been received by the Access to Information and Privacy Office. The Office will inform you in writing that the request is on hold and awaiting the fee payment.
You will be provided with a fee estimate if anticipated fees are $25 or more.
If the estimate of fees to be paid is $100 or more, you will be required to pay a 50 per-cent deposit before the ATIP Office continues processing your request.
Please note that the fee charges are prescribed by section 45 of the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and section 6 of the Regulations and Guidelines for Municipalities and Local Boards.
All monies are payable by cash, credit card, debit, Interact Online, money order or cheques, made payable to the City of Ottawa.
Request and pay
Request and pay
Electronic submission
Should you wish to submit your request, including the mandatory $5 application fee, electronically, you can do so using our Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) access form.
Methods of payment for online include Interact Online and credit card.
Please note that a Paymentus Corporation service fee applies for processing an online payment. Payments using a credit card will be subject to a service fee of 1.99%. Interact Online payments are subject to a flat fee of $0.49 per transaction. Should you not consent to this additional service fee, please consider the mail or in-person options.
Requests by mail
Should you wish to submit your request and the mandatory $5 application fee by mail, please complete the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) access form, select “Mail in/in-person” under “Payment options”, then print, sign and date the form.
Please note the following considerations when submitting your request by mail:
- We only accept money orders, cash or cheques.
- Cheques and money orders are payable to the City of Ottawa.
- Credit card payments are not accepted for mail requests.
Payments are credited only when received and processed, not the postmarked day.
Please mail the completed form and application fee to:
Access to Information and Privacy Office
110 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, ON
K1P 1J1
In-person
The following service will be provided in person between 8:30am - 4pm.
- Laurier Client Service Centre, 110 Laurier Avenue West
- Nepean Client Service Centre, 101 Centrepointe Drive
- Kanata Client Service Centre, 580 Terry Fox Drive
- Orleans Client Service Centre, 255 Centrum Boulevard
- Metcalfe Client Service Centre, 8243 Victoria Street (open Tuesday)
- West Carleton Client Service Centre, 5670 Carp Road (open Wednesday)
- North Gower Client Service Centre, 2155 Roger Stevens Drive (open Thursday)
Methods of payment for in-person include cash, debit, credit card, cheque or money order made payable to "City of Ottawa".
Personal information requests
In accordance with the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, the Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) Office will only release personal information requests to the individual to whom the information relates. As such, the ATIP Office may require additional proof of identity, including a government-issued I.D., before a request is initiated.
If you are unsure of your options or require accommodation or support to complete the form, please call 3-1-1 or 613-580-2400 (TTY 613-580-2401).