Issue 5: May, 2023

New FOI Application Fee

The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act authorizes public bodies to charge a non-refundable $10 application fee for non-personal FOI requests. UBC implemented this fee on April 1, 2023. Requests for access to one’s own personal records will remain free of charge. Please note that this application fee is in addition to the cost recovery fee for non-personal FOI requests that UBC is authorized to charge for the time it takes to locate and retrieve any records and the time to prepare the records for review..

Where Should You Search for Emails?

If your emails have been requested as part of an FOI request, you may be wondering which folders you are expected to search. Our expectation in these circumstances is that you search your inbox (including subfolders), sent and deleted items folders. This would also include any archives of your inbox you have saved. Remember that we are not required to provide records beyond the requested date range. It is therefore important to take note of any date restrictions or any other limiting search terms, prior to gathering records for an FOI request.

Forwarding an FOI Request

When we send an FOI search request to you or a member of your team, we are doing so under the assumption that it is being sent to the appropriate person. If you know that someone else in your unit has records that may be responsive to the request, we ask that you forward the request on to them with a cc to access.and.privacy@ubc.ca . That way we can ensure that we are providing a complete records package to the applicant. Thank you for your assistance with this!

Redaction of Investigation Reports

Under UBC’s investigation policies, complainants and respondents have a right to see the investigation findings, subject to the deletion of any irrelevant third party information. Prior to disclosing investigation reports in accordance with this requirement, it is important for you to send them to the FOI team for review and redaction. This process ensures that you are complying with the policies without violating anybody’s privacy. For more information about this service, contact Tiffany Fan.