Provides formal access to records held by the City of Ottawa in compliance with applicable law.
Before you begin
- Begin by contacting 3-1-1 to be linked to the applicable City department that has the information. Most records can be released without having to submit a formal request and departmental staff can let you know if the information can be provided as business as usual or if it should be submitted formally under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (the Act).
- Review the City’s Routine Disclosure and Active Dissemination (RDAD) Plans to view what records may be obtained by direct request to the department. Some of our most common requests for information that do not require a formal submission under the Act but can be obtained directly from a City department, include:
- Requesting a copy of your personal Ontario Works file. Contact information can be found in the Employment and Social Services section of the Community and Social Services Department RDAD plan.
- Accessing building permit records or construction plans of your building or house. Contact information can be found in the Planning Services section of the Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Department RDAD plan.
- Accessing your or your client’s City of Ottawa employment records. Contact information for Human Resources and Payroll can be found in the Innovative Client Services Department and Finance Services RDAD plans.
- Open Data Ottawa may also have the information you are seeking.
- There are some exceptions and exclusions to the information you can obtain from the City of Ottawa through a formal request. They are listed in the Act.
- 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:
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.
What you need
- A completed Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) access form, dated and signed.
- You may also write a letter to the Access to Information and Privacy Office, stipulating clearly the information you are requesting and reference that this information is requested under the Municipal of Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
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".
Fee charges for requests for general information |
|
|---|---|
| Application fee | $5.00 to be paid when you submit your request |
| Search time for the record | $7.50 for each fifteen (15) minutes spent by any person |
| Preparation of record for disclosure | $7.50 for each fifteen (15) minutes spent by any person |
| Development of computer program or other method of producing a record from a machine readable record | $15.00 for each fifteen (15) minutes spent by any person |
| Any additional costs in locating, retrieving, processing and copying the record | Actual costs |
| Disks/CDs | $10.00 for each disk |
| Photocopying | The charge for photocopies is $0.20 per page |
Fee charges for requests for personal information |
|
|---|---|
| Application fee | $5.00 to be paid when you submit your request |
| Development of computer program or other method of producing a record from a machine readable record | $15.00 for each fifteen (15)minutes spent by any person |
| Disks/CDs | $10.00 for each disk |
| Photocopying | The charge for photocopies is $0.20 per page, if the cost of the copies exceeds $5.00. |
All requests must be submitted with the $5.00 application fee. Please note that this application fee is non-refundable. If the application fee is not enclosed with your request, your request will be opened, but processing will not begin until the initial 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 completes 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.
Methods of payment
Online
- Interact Online
- Credit card
In-person
- Cash
- Debit
- Credit card
- Cheque or money order made out to “City of Ottawa”
By mail
- Cash
- Cheque or money order made out to “City of Ottawa”
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.
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 are payable to the City of Ottawa.
- Credit card payments are not accepted.
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. We strongly recommend you schedule an appointment with us, but walk-ins will be accepted between 8:30am – 12pm and 1pm - 4pm.
Please select a location to book an appointment time:
Laurier Client Service Centre, 110 Laurier Avenue West
Nepean Client Service Centre, 101 Centrepointe Drive
Kanata Client Service Centre, 580 Terry Fox Drive (open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays only)
Orleans Client Service Centre, 255 Centrum Boulevard (open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays only)
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)
If submitting your request in-person, payment will be taken at the Client Service Centre at the time of your appointment.
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).