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CommonWatch FOI · Federal ATIP

ATIP request management for federal institutions.

Access to information and privacy requests under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act: the 30-day clock, extensions with notice to the Information Commissioner, exemptions, third-party notices, the $5 application fee, complaints, bilingual decision letters and the TBS annual statistical report.

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Federal regime

One setting puts the workspace under federal ATIP.

Each CommonWatch FOI environment runs one regime: Ontario MFIPPA or federal ATIP. Under federal ATIP, general requests follow the Access to Information Act and personal information and correction requests follow the Privacy Act. The clock, extension, exemption, fee and letter screens follow the Act that applies to each request.

For ATIP coordinators, analysts and approvers in federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations.

CommonWatch FOI legal clock for a synthetic Access to Information Act request: 30-day time limit under s. 7, a s. 9(1)(b) extension with notice to the Information Commissioner under s. 9(2), a s. 27 third-party notice, the $5.00 application fee and a bilingual decision letter
Access to Information Act request. Synthetic test data.
Access to Information Act

The 30-day clock, s. 9 extensions and the $5 fee.

  • Time limit. 30 days after the request is received (s. 7). A period that ends on a weekend or holiday ends on the next working day.
  • Extensions. Grounds under s. 9(1)(a) volume, (b) consultations and (c) third-party notice. The extension notice must go out within the original 30 days. An extension over 30 days carries notice to the Information Commissioner under s. 9(2).
  • Exemptions and exclusions. Sections 13 to 24 and 26, and exclusions under ss. 68 and 69. A cited section that the Act does not contain is refused.
  • Third parties. Notice under s. 27 within 30 days of receipt, 20 days for representations, the s. 28 decision within 30 days after notice, and release 20 days after the decision.
  • Fees. The $5.00 application fee only (s. 11; Access to Information Regulations s. 7), with waiver. No search, preparation or reproduction fees.
  • Complaints. Complaint to the Information Commissioner within 60 days (s. 31). Commissioner orders take effect on the 31st business day, or the 41st with a third party (s. 36.1(4)). Federal Court review within 30 business days (s. 41).
Third-party notices under Access to Information Act s. 27 with reply-by and decide-by dates for a synthetic supplier
Third-party notice under s. 27. Synthetic test data.
Privacy Act

Personal information and correction requests.

  • Time limit. 30 days after the request is received (s. 14).
  • Extensions. Up to 30 days under s. 15(a)(i) or (a)(ii), and for translation or an alternative format under s. 15(b).
  • Exemptions and exclusions. Sections 18 to 28, and exclusions under ss. 69 and 70.
  • Corrections. Under s. 12(2), the information is corrected or a notation of the requested correction is attached.
  • Complaints. Complaint to the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (s. 29), and Federal Court review within 45 days of the findings (s. 41).
Decision letters

English and French decision letters from the decision.

The decision letter is built from the recorded decision, in English and French side by side: the Act, the outcome, pages reviewed and released, each provision applied with its English and French title, the fee received and the right to complain to the Information Commissioner or the Privacy Commissioner. Outcomes cover all disclosed, part disclosed, all exempt, no records, corrected and notation attached.

TBS reporting

Annual statistical report figures from the case files.

For the Treasury Board Secretariat statistical reports under Access to Information Act s. 94 and Privacy Act s. 72, CommonWatch counts the fiscal year from April 1 to March 31 from the cases themselves:

  • Requests received, outstanding from the previous period, closed and carried forward.
  • Dispositions, completion time bands, and requests closed within or past the legislated time.
  • Exemptions applied, extensions by ground, pages processed and consultations.
  • Application fees collected and waived.
Procurement facts

Hosting, sign-in and the platform.

  • Canadian data residency. Installed in your own Microsoft tenant, or hosted by Two Rivers Digital, on Microsoft Dataverse in Canadian regions.
  • Single sign-on. Staff sign in with Microsoft Entra ID under your multifactor and conditional access policies.
  • Platform. A managed solution on Microsoft Power Platform and Dataverse, the platform under Dynamics 365.
  • Same product. Federal ATIP runs in CommonWatch FOI, which also runs Ontario MFIPPA requests for police services.

Common questions

Is there ATIP request management software for federal institutions on Microsoft Power Platform?

Yes. CommonWatch FOI by Two Rivers Digital runs federal ATIP on Microsoft Power Platform and Dataverse: Access to Information Act and Privacy Act requests, statutory clocks, extensions, exemptions, third-party notices, complaints, English and French decision letters and TBS annual report figures.

How does CommonWatch count the Access to Information Act time limit?

30 days after the request is received under s. 7. A period that ends on a weekend or holiday moves to the next working day, and an extension under s. 9(1) moves the due date and records its ground.

When does an extension need notice to the Information Commissioner?

When an Access to Information Act extension is longer than 30 days, s. 9(2) requires notice to the Information Commissioner at the same time as the notice to the requester. CommonWatch flags it on the extension and refuses an extension recorded after the original 30 days.

What fees does CommonWatch allow under the Access to Information Act?

Only the $5.00 application fee under s. 11 and Access to Information Regulations s. 7, with waiver. Any other fee on an Access to Information Act request is refused.

Does CommonWatch produce bilingual ATIP decision letters?

Yes. The decision letter is built from the recorded decision in English and French, with each provision applied, the pages released and the complaint right to the Information Commissioner or the Privacy Commissioner.

Can CommonWatch produce the TBS annual statistical report on ATIP?

CommonWatch counts the figures for the Treasury Board Secretariat statistical reports under Access to Information Act s. 94 and Privacy Act s. 72 from the case files: requests received and closed, dispositions, completion times, exemptions, extensions, pages, consultations and fees.

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