Program directory · Offices of the Information and Privacy Commissioners of Canada
Compliance with access to information obligations
- Program code
- BRF01 (IPC)
- Core responsibility
- Government Transparency
- In Departmental Plans
- 2018-19 – 2026-27 · Missing from some plans
What it does
The Information Commissioner is the first level of independent review of government decisions relating to requests for access to information under the control of government institutions. The second level of independent review is performed by the Federal Court.
Source: the department's Program Inventory, via GC InfoBase.
History and lineage
First appears in GC InfoBase's actual spending by program in 2018-19. The data does not record when a program was created; it may be older than its first appearance here, which is limited by the sources (program spending starts in 2010-11, Departmental Plans in 2018-19).
| Program | Relation | Years with data | Actual spending over those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compliance with access to information obligations | This program | 2018-19 – 2028-29 | $78.4M |
No earlier or later program in the same department has a similar name.
Significant changes in scope and budget
Detected from the data: renames between plans, programs it appears to replace, merge with or split into (matched by name), year-over-year changes in spending of at least 25% and $5M, or in employees of at least 20% and 25 FTEs, linked budget measures, and results indicators added or dropped.
| Year | What changed | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | Indicators added: Median turnaround time for completion of investigations of administrative complaints; Median turnaround time for completion of investigations of refusal complaints; Percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of being registered; Percentage of complaints in the inventory at each year-end that were registered during the current year or previous year; Percentage of completed refusal investigations that result in more information being released to complainants; Percentage of investigations of administrative complaints completed within 60 days; Percentage of investigations of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within 180 days of being registered; Percentage of investigations of refusal complaints completed within 270 days | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2021-22 | Indicators dropped: Median turnaround time for administrative cases; Median turnaround time for refusal cases; Percentage of recommendations from investigations of complaints that are adopted; Percentage of recommendations from systemic investigations that are adopted | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2024-25 | Indicators added: Commissioner’s orders are published within established service standards; Complaint investigations completed each year is equal to or more than the complaints received; Percentage of administrative complaint investigations completed within established service standards; Percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within established service standards; Percentage of refusal complaint investigations completed within established service standards; Percentage of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within established service standards | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2024-25 | Indicators dropped: Median turnaround time for completion of investigations of administrative complaints; Median turnaround time for completion of investigations of refusal complaints; Percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of being registered; Percentage of complaints in the inventory at each year-end that were registered during the current year or previous year; Percentage of completed refusal investigations that result in more information being released to complainants; Percentage of investigations of administrative complaints completed within 60 days; Percentage of investigations of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within 180 days of being registered; Percentage of investigations of refusal complaints completed within 270 days | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2026-27 | Indicators added: Percentage of admissible complaints that are less than two years old; Percentage of delay complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of completion of the complaint intake process; Percentage of delay complaints concluded within 90 days of being assigned to an investigator; Percentage of extension of time complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of completion of the complaint intake process; Percentage of extension of time complaints concluded within 120 days of being assigned to an investigator; Percentage of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within 120 days of completion of the complaint intake process; Percentage of refusal complaints concluded within 270 days of being assigned to an investigator | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2026-27 | Indicators dropped: Commissioner’s orders are published within established service standards; Complaint investigations completed each year is equal to or more than the complaints received; Percentage of administrative complaint investigations completed within established service standards; Percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within established service standards; Percentage of refusal complaint investigations completed within established service standards; Percentage of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within established service standards | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
Success criteria
The program's indicators from its department's Departmental Results Framework: the target set in each year's plan, and the result reported the following year. Source: GC InfoBase.
Historical: targets against results
Commissioner’s orders are published within established service standards
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | ≥ 100% | 2024 | 97% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Complaint investigations completed each year is equal to or more than the complaints received
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | ≥ 100% | 2024 | 113% | Met |
Percentage of administrative complaint investigations completed within established service standards
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | ≥ 85% | 2024 | 74.4% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within established service standards
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | ≥ 85% | 2024 | 35.5% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of refusal complaint investigations completed within established service standards
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | ≥ 85% | 2024 | 71.2% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within established service standards
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | ≥ 85% | 2024 | 30.9% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Median turnaround time for completion of investigations of administrative complaints
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≤ 30 | 2023 | 17 | Met |
| 2023-24 | ≤ 30 | 2023 | 19 | Met |
Median turnaround time for completion of investigations of refusal complaints
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≤ 120 | 2023 | 197 Not met as this year, again, the OIC received an unprecedented number of complaints. The OIC has adapted its processes to accommodate the Commissioner’s order making powers; indicators are under review as a result. | Not met |
| 2023-24 | ≤ 120 | 2023 | 161 Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of being registered
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 33% Not met as this year, again, the OIC received an unprecedented number of complaints. The OIC has adapted its processes to accommodate the Commissioner’s order making powers; indicators are under review as a result. | Not met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 14.9% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of complaints in the inventory at each year-end that were registered during the current year or previous year
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | ≥ 85% | 2024 | 69.7% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of completed refusal investigations that result in more information being released to complainants
Expected result: Complaint investigations result in increased access to government information
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≥ 50% | 2023 | 46.6% Not met as this year, again, the OIC received an unprecedented number of complaints. The OIC has adapted its processes to accommodate the Commissioner’s order making powers; indicators are under review as a result. | Not met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 50% | 2023 | — Not Available. Due to changes in internal processes related to data collection, it is no longer possible to provide accurate information for this indicator and it has been removed as an indicator for future years. | No result reported |
Percentage of investigations of administrative complaints completed within 60 days
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 79% Not met as this year, again, the OIC received an unprecedented number of complaints. The OIC has adapted its processes to accommodate the Commissioner’s order making powers; indicators are under review as a result. | Not met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 70.9% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of investigations of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within 180 days of being registered
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 47.1% Not met as this year, again, the OIC received an unprecedented number of complaints. The OIC has adapted its processes to accommodate the Commissioner’s order making powers; indicators are under review as a result. | Not met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 37.6% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Percentage of investigations of refusal complaints completed within 270 days
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 57.7% Not met as this year, again, the OIC received an unprecedented number of complaints. The OIC has adapted its processes to accommodate the Commissioner’s order making powers; indicators are under review as a result. | Not met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 85% | 2023 | 61.6% Not met due to volume of complaints received in the year which is outside of the OIC’s control. Nevertheless the OIC was able to close more files than it received and was able to reduce the inventory of older files. | Not met |
Median turnaround time for administrative cases
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≤ 90 | 2019 | 22 | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≤ 90 | 2020 | 48 Calculated for the 28 percent of administrative complaints not closed by the OIC Registry. | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≤ 90 | 2021 | 81 | Met |
Median turnaround time for refusal cases
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≤ 270 | 2019 | 190 | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≤ 270 | 2020 | 180 | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≤ 270 | 2021 | 272 Target exceeded by two days due to challenges related to the remote work environment. | Not met |
Percentage of recommendations from investigations of complaints that are adopted
Expected result: Institutions meet their obligations under the Access to Information Act and adopt measures to address institutional and systemic issues affecting access to information.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≥ 95% | 2019 | 39% The lower percentage is largely due two institutions with whom the OIC had multiple complaints declining to take some of the actions the Commissioner recommended to resolve complaints. | Not met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ 95% | 2020 | 0% N/A: Since the coming into force of Bill C-58, the Commissioner has the power to order institutions to release information. This, in combination with changes in internal processes related to reporting on investigations, makes it impossible to provide accurate information on the 2019–20 results in this category. | Not met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ 95% | 2021 | — Since the coming into force of Bill C-58, the Commissioner has the power to order institutions to release information. This, in combination with changes in internal processes related to reporting on investigations, makes it impossible to provide accurate information on the 2020–21 results in this category. | No result reported |
Percentage of recommendations from systemic investigations that are adopted
Expected result: Institutions meet their obligations under the Access to Information Act and adopt measures to address institutional and systemic issues affecting access to information.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≥ 80% | 2019 | 0% There were no systemic investigations completed. | Not met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ 80% | 2020 | 77% The Minister of Defence agreed with spirit of all recommendations resulting from the one systemic investigation completed in 2019–20. | Not met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ 80% | 2021 | — Ministers of Public Safety, Heritage, IRCC agreed with spirit of all recommendations resulting from investigations initiated by the Commissioner | No result reported |
Current: the 2026-27 plan's targets
Percentage of admissible complaints that are less than two years old
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Percentage of delay complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of completion of the complaint intake process
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Percentage of delay complaints concluded within 90 days of being assigned to an investigator
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Percentage of extension of time complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of completion of the complaint intake process
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Percentage of extension of time complaints concluded within 120 days of being assigned to an investigator
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Percentage of refusal complaints assigned to investigators within 120 days of completion of the complaint intake process
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Percentage of refusal complaints concluded within 270 days of being assigned to an investigator
Expected result: Canadians receive timely resolution of complaints about how federal institutions process access to information requests.
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 85% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Future goals: targets due after 2026-27
No targets with a later due date.
Spending and employees: planned against actual
Spending
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Planned | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | $8.7M | $10.2M |
| 2019-20 | $8.8M | $10M |
| 2020-21 | $9.9M | $10.2M |
| 2021-22 | $12.8M | $11.6M |
| 2022-23 | $12.1M | $11.1M |
| 2023-24 | $11.2M | $12.4M |
| 2024-25 | $12M | $12.9M |
| 2026-27 | $12.6M | — |
| 2027-28 | $12.6M* | — |
| 2028-29 | $12.6M* | — |
Employees (FTEs)
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Planned | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 71 | 57 |
| 2019-20 | 71 | 66 |
| 2020-21 | 86 | 73 |
| 2021-22 | 103 | 91 |
| 2022-23 | 103 | 91 |
| 2023-24 | 96 | 87 |
| 2024-25 | 99 | 88 |
| 2025-26 | 95 | — |
| 2026-27 | 95 | — |
| 2027-28 | 95* | — |
| 2028-29 | 95* | — |
Planned spending, plan by plan
Each row is one year's Departmental Plan and its forecast for the next three fiscal years; read a column down to see how the forecast for one year changed. The last row is what was actually spent. Click an amount for its source. Biggest changes in federal spending plans
| Plan | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | 2027-28 | 2028-29 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 plan | $8,749,198 | $8,749,198 | $8,749,198 | ||||||||
| 2019-20 plan | $8,828,677 | $8,828,677 | $8,828,677 | ||||||||
| 2020-21 plan | $9,931,748 | $9,928,499 | $9,936,287 | ||||||||
| 2021-22 plan | $12,784,230 | $12,062,126 | $12,062,126 | ||||||||
| 2022-23 plan | $12,091,774 | $12,091,774 | $12,091,774 | ||||||||
| 2023-24 plan | $11,223,587 | $11,223,587 | $11,223,587 | ||||||||
| 2024-25 plan | $12,018,752 | $12,067,635 | $12,074,490 | ||||||||
| 2026-27 plan | $12,579,568 | $12,579,568 | $12,579,568 | ||||||||
| Actual | $10,190,226 | $9,976,641 | $10,208,219 | $11,631,748 | $11,149,529 | $12,399,598 | $12,857,733 |
Actual spending is from Departmental Results Reports and the Public Accounts, as published in GC InfoBase. FTEs are full-time equivalents.
