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FOI publication scheme
From Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC)
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Section 8 of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, 2014 requires public bodies to make information available about their structures, functions, powers and the services they provide to the public as well as details of the types of records they hold and the procedures and practices they operate under. This is known as the Publication Scheme. The purpose of the Scheme is to publish information about public bodies outside of the FOI Act to foster greater openness, transparency and accountability.
The Publication Scheme for the Office of the Information Commissioner is set out below.
The information below is kept up-dated and if necessary a hard copy will be made available for viewing by appointment.
The primary function of the Office of the Information Commissioner is to review decisions made by public bodies under the Freedom of Information Act, 2014 (the FOI Act).
The Office of the Information Commissioner (the Office) was established under the FOI Acts 1997-2003 and the FOI Act 2014 provided for the continuance of the Office, for the purpose of providing an independent review of decisions made by public bodies on requests for access to records and to enable the operation of the FOI Act generally to be kept under review.
The Office is under the direction of the Information Commissioner (the Commissioner) and is itself a public body for the purposes of the FOI Act. Accordingly, its records may, subject to certain exceptions, be accessed by an FOI request.
The role and responsibilities of the Office are to fulfil the requirements established under the FOI Act. That Act establishes certain statutory rights for each person:
- A right to access information held by public bodies
- A right to have official information relating to oneself amended where it is incomplete, incorrect or misleading
- A right to obtain reasons for decisions affecting you
The FOI Act allows individuals to gain access to official information to the greatest extent possible, consistent with the public interest and the right to privacy of individuals.
The main functions of the Commissioner are:
- To review decisions made by public bodies in relation to FOI requests when asked by an applicant. The Commissioner can affirm, vary or annul such decisions. If the decision is annulled the Commissioner may make a new decision
- To keep the operation of the Act under review with a view to ensuring maximum compliance. This can involve investigation of the operation of the FOI Act, both generally and in relation to particular public bodies
- To foster an attitude of openness and transparency among public bodies by encouraging the voluntary publication by them of information on their activities which goes beyond what they are obliged to publish under the FOI Act
- To prepare and publish commentaries on the practical operation of the FOI Act
The range of records held in the Office falls within the following broad categories (some overlap may occur)
- Personnel Records
- Accounts Records
- Assets Register
- Civil/Public Service Guidelines and Circulars
- Published Media Coverage, including press cuttings
- Speeches and Presentations by the Commissioner/staff of the Office
- Contacts with public bodies including the names of liaison officers for each body covered by the FOI Act
- Notes and minutes of management meetings and associated documentation
- Records relating to publication of reports e.g. annual reports, including records relating to translation, tendering, designing and printing
- Management of the website of the Commissioner
- Management of case reviews
- Statistics on case reviews
- FOI requests for access to records held by the Office
- Applications for review of FOI decisions outside the jurisdiction of the Commissioner
- Data Protection Act requests for access to records held by the Office
- General enquiries and correspondence
- Contacts with the Department of Public Expenditure & Reform
- Contacts with Oireachtas Committees
- Decisions/Correspondence with equivalent offices in other jurisdictions
- Discussions with the Central Policy Unit in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform regarding the operation of the FOI Act and the review of the FOI framework currently underway
- Discussions with public bodies concerning the operation of the FOI Acts
- Procedures for handling applications for review and enquiries
- ICT procedure manuals
- Induction materials for new staff
- Liaison arrangements with public bodies
- Communications with the applicant, the public body and any relevant third parties
- Records relating to FOI decisions being reviewed by the Commissioner
- Submissions from concerned parties in connection with a review/investigation
- Legal advice provided to the Office
- Decisions of the Information Commissioner from January 2022
- Other records relating to reviews and investigations, including settlement details, case closure details, investigations, analysis, comment by officials of the Office
- Reports on the operation of the FOI Act
- Annual reports
- Records relating to Ministerial Certificates
- Records relating to non-disclosure of records
This Office is committed to best practice structures, processes and systems that support the successful operation of duties in an ethical, accountable, transparent and effective manner. Details of the Office's governance arrangements can be found in its Corporate Governance Framework document, which sets out the systems, principles and processes by which the Office is directed and controlled.
The Office also contributes to, and is guided by, the wider Strategic Plan of the Office of the Ombudsman which sets out our strategic vision and key objectives for the period 2022-2025.
Available on the Annual reports page.
Commissioner: Ger Deering
Director General: Elaine Cassidy
Senior Investigator: Stephen Rafferty (Principal Officer)
Investigators: 10 Assistant Principal Officers (9.6 WTE)
Investigating Officers: 4 Administrative Officers
Support Unit: 1 Higher Executive Officer, 3 Executive Officers and 2 Clerical Officers
The Information Commissioner also serves as Ombudsman, and as Commissioner for Environmental Information. The Ombudsman is also an ex officio member of the Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO), the Commission for Public Service Appointments, the Referendum Commission and the Constituency Commission. His salary is equivalent to that of a Secretary General III in the Civil Service.
Similarly, the Director General acts as Director General for the Office of the Ombudsman, the Office of the Information Commissioner and the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information. The salary is that of an Assistant Secretary in the Civil Service.
Read the circular covering the salary scales of civil servants.
The Office is located at 6 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, D02 W773
Opening hours: between 9.15 and 5.00 Monday to Friday.
Telephone: +353-1-639 5689
Email: info@oic.ie
Contact David Nutley, Communications, Office of the Ombudsman
Phone: 01 639 5610 or 086 023 1420
Email: david.nutley@ombudsman.ie
The Customer Service Charter sets out our commitments and the service standards you can expect from us.
The staff of the Office are civil servants in the Civil Service of the State and are therefore bound by the Civil Service Code of Standards and Behaviour.
The Commissioner may review the following decisions made under the FOI Act:
1. A decision to refuse to provide all records requested;
2. A decision to refuse to provide a complete record;
3. A decision to refuse to provide the record in the format sought;
4. A decision to defer granting of access to the record;
5. A decision to refuse to correct personal information;
6. A decision under section 10 whereby reasons must be given for actions of public bodies which materially affect a person;
7. A decision to charge a fee or seek a deposit before information is released;
8. A decision to release records in the public interest when the records contain information that is personal, was given in confidence to the public body or is commercially sensitive;
9. A decision to extend the time limit within which a request for access must be decided.
In most cases, the Commissioner can only accept an application for a review if the requester has availed of the internal review mechanism operated by the body itself. There are two exceptions to this:
- If the initial decision was taken by the head of the public body; or
- Decisions described at 7, 8 and 9 above as well as some deferral decisions described at 4 above
The Commissioner may not review a decision in a case where a ministerial certificate under section 34 of the FOI Act is in force. Section 34 contains a provision whereby a Minster of the Government may, by certificate, declare a record to be exempt from the scope of the FOI Act on the grounds that it “is of sufficient sensitivity or seriousness to justify his or her doing so.”
The Commissioner may refuse to grant an application for review where the application is considered to be frivolous or vexatious or where the application relates to a matter which is the subject of another review.
If you are seeking a review of a decision you must apply to the Commissioner within specific time limits. Normally, an application for review should be made to the Commissioner within 6 months of the decision having been notified to you. The Commissioner has discretion to extend this time limit – for as long as he may determine – where he feels there are reasonable grounds for doing so.
Generally, a two week time limit applies where:
- The decision relates to the extension of the time limit applying to the public body to process an FOI request;
- The decision relates to a situation where a public body has relied on the public interest to release a record which contains personal information, confidential information or commercially sensitive information of a third party whom it has consulted.
The Commissioner has discretion to extend the two week period in either case where he is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds to do so
When an application is made to this Office, the Commissioner will provide the body in question with a copy of that application. When the Commissioner decides to accept an application for review, the applicant, the public body concerned, and any other relevant person will be informed and invited to make submissions on the matter.
An application for review may be withdrawn at any stage up until a decision is issued.
If the Commissioner feels that the public body concerned did not give adequate reasons for its decision he can direct that it give fuller information on the decision to both the requester and to himself.
In line with the provisions of the FOI Act, the Commissioner aims to make a decision on a review application within four months. However, more complex applications may take longer. The Commissioner will notify the parties to a review application of his decision and will provide reasons for it. The Commissioner’s Annual Report provides greater detail on the number of applications for review which have not had decisions issued in the four month time limit.
The Commissioner may refer any question of law arising in the course of a review to the High Court for determination. If this happens, he may postpone the making of a decision until after the determination of the High Court.
Subject to the requirements of the FOI Act, the Commissioner decides his own procedures for the conduct of a review. The FOI Act also allows the Commissioner to try to agree a settlement between the parties instead of issuing a formal decision. If a settlement is reached between the parties the Commissioner may discontinue the review.
The fee payable to access our service depends on the type of application for review being submitted. Below is a list of the fees to be charged.
Check the following list to see if you should pay a fee:
- Access to a personal record relating to you: No fee
- Amendment to records (section 9 of the Freedom of Information Act): No fee
- Statement of reasons (section 10 of the Freedom of Information Act): No fee
- Appeal decision of a public body to charge a fee (Note: Fees may apply for search and retrieval and/or copying of records which are the subject of an FOI Request): No fee
- Request to which section 37(8) of the Freedom of Information Act applies: No fee
- Access to a non-personal record: €50
- Access to a non-personal record by the holder of an Irish medical card or a dependent of a medical card holder (Note: We need a photocopy of the medical card): €15
- Third parties appealing a public body's decision to release their information on public interest grounds (section 38 of the Freedom of Information Act): €15
- Appeal decision of a public body to extend the time for the consideration of an FOI request (section 14 of the Freedom of Information Act): €50
- Appeal decision of a public body to extend the time for the consideration of an FOI request by the holder of an Irish medical card or a dependent of a medical card holder (section 14 of the Freedom of Information Act) (Note: We need a photocopy of the medical card): €15
Full details of fees payable, as well as the option to pay fees online, can be found at the Apply for a review page.
The Commissioner’s decision on a review is binding on the parties concerned. Such a decision may be appealed to the High Court on a point of law only, and, subsequently, to the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal.
The Commissioner has published reports on the operation of the FOI Act. To date, the following reports have been published:
- A Study of Section 15 & 16 (FOI Act 1997-2003) Manuals published by public bodies
- Investigation into the Operation of Section 10(1)(a) of the FOI Acts
- Review of the Operation of the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Act 2003
- 10th Anniversary Publication - "Freedom of Information: The First Decade"
- The Freedom of Information Act – Compliance by Public Bodies
- Commentary of the Information Commissioner on the FOI Act
- Report on Non-Disclosure Provisions of the FOI Act to the Joint Oireachtas
- Committee on Finance and the Public Service (section 32)
- Information leaflet on the FOI Act and the role of the Information Commissioner
- Guidance notes on various sections of the FOI Act
- Investigation under Section 44 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2014
The above reports can be found on our website at Publications.
The Office is a review body and does not make public policy. However, the Commissioner occasionally provides comments on relevant policy proposals.
Vote 19 (Office of the Ombudsman) funds the activities of an organisation comprising the Office of the Ombudsman and the Commission for Public Service Appointments (Programme A); Standards in Public Office Commission, including the Regulation of Lobbying function (Programme B); and, the Office of the Information Commissioner and the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information (Programme C).
These offices carry out separate and distinct statutory functions: nonetheless they function as a single amalgamated agency under one Vote and one Accounting Officer and corporate management board which manages the organisation while simultaneously protecting and preserving the statutory independence and functions of each of the constituent parts. Each office has its own complement of staff but the finance, human resources, accommodation and information technology functions are shared between all offices.
At the end of each financial year, each department is required to prepare an account known as the Appropriation Account. The Appropriation Account provides details of the outturn for the year against the amount provided by Dail Eireann. The 2022 Appropriation Account can be accesed here.
Revised Estimates are a detailed version of Budget Day Estimates and include information on spending within individual programmes along with the overall financial allocation for our Office. Revised Estimates also include key high level output metrics, context and impact indicators. These provide information on our expenditure and the impact the expenditure is having. The Revised Estimates for the Office of the Ombudsman can be viewed here.
Public procurement refers to the process by which public bodies purchase works, goods or services from suppliers which they have selected for this purpose. It ranges from the purchase of routine goods or services to large scale contracts for infrastructural projects and involves a wide and diverse range of contracting authorities.
Access the Procurement Policy of the Office below.
The following are links to guidance documents for suppliers:
The Office of the Ombudsman provides the Corporate Services support (including Finance) for the Office of the Information Commissioner, and a number of other statutory Offices. While the different Offices each carry out separate and distinct statutory functions, the Office functions as a single amalgamated agency in organisational terms. The Office is funded by one Vote and is overseen by an Accounting Officer (Director General) who is supported by a Management Advisory Committee.
A list of Purchase Orders over €20,000 and Prompt Payments Purchase Orders over €20,000 and Prompt Payments is on the Ombudsman website.
A list of all non-personal FOI requests received by the Office since 1st January 2015 can be viewed here:
Under the FOI Act, any person is entitled to apply to the Office of the Information Commissioner for access to information which is not otherwise publicly available. In general, you have a right of:
1. Access to records held by the Office
2. Correction of personal information, relating to you, held by the Office, where such information is inaccurate, incomplete or misleading
3. Access to reasons for decisions made by the Office which directly affect you
Not all records held by the Office can be accessed. The FOI Act does not apply to records relating to reviews carried out by the Office or investigations under section 44. However, records relating to the general administration of the Office; such as human resources, procurement etc, can be accessed, unless another exemption of the FOI Act applies.
Anne Greenalgh
FOI Liaison Officer
Office of the Information Commissioner
6 Earlsfort Terrace,
Dublin 2, D02 W773
Telephone: +353-1-639 5773
Email: info@oic.ie
Requests should be made in writing and should state that they are being made under the FOI Act. The request should indicate whether electronic or paper copies are being requested. To help identify records, requesters should describe the records in as much detail as possible. Please provide a contact number to allow the FOI request to be clarified if necessary. If you need help in the wording of your FOI request the staff of the Office will assist you.
The Office will acknowledge a request under the FOI Act within two weeks. The decision will issue within four weeks.
If are not satisfied with the FOI decision issued, there is a right to request an internal review of the decision. If the original decision has not issued within four weeks this is considered to be a refusal of your request and you are entitled to request an internal review of this refusal.
Requests for internal review of decisions of the Office should be made, in writing, to:
Anne Greenalgh
FOI Liaison Officer
Office of the Information Commissioner
6 Earlsfort Terrace,
Dublin 2, D02 W773
Telephone: +353-1-639 5773
Email: info@oic.ie
who will ensure that the review is carried out by an official at a higher level than the official who made the original FOI decision.
A request for internal review should be made within four weeks of the original decision. The decision following internal review must issue within three weeks of its receipt.
The FOI Act is intended to allow access to information held by public bodies which is not routinely available by other means. The following information about the activities and functions of the Office is available on our website without the need to use the FOI Act.
The Commissioner submits a report to the Oireachtas each year in relation to the Office’s activities during the previous year. Annual reports are available from:
The Office at 6 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, D02 W773
On our website at Annual reports
The Commissioner also publishes reports on the operation of the FOI Act. To date, the following reports have been published:
- A Study of Section 15 & 16 (FOI Act 1997-2003) Manuals published by public bodies
- Investigation into the Operation of Section 10(1)(a) of the FOI Acts
- Review of the Operation of the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Act 2003
- 10th Anniversary Publication - "Freedom of Information: The First Decade"
- The Freedom of Information Act – Compliance by Public Bodies
- Commentary of the Information Commissioner on the FOI Act
- Report on Non-Disclosure Provisions of the FOI Act to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance and the Public Service (section 32)
- Information leaflet on the FOI Act and the role of the Information Commissioner
- Guidance notes on various sections of the FOI Act
- The above publications are all available free of charge from the Office or on the Special reports.
This website (www.oic.ie) contains information about the Office. This includes:
- Information about the Commissioner and his role
- Information on the Office, including its compliance with the Irish Language Scheme, the Disability Act and the reuse of Public Sector Information
- Full text of the FOI Acts of 1997, 2003 and 2014
- How to make an FOI request to the Office
- How to make an application to the Commissioner for review of an FOI decision of a public body
- All decisions of the Commissioner
- All High Court, Supreme Court and Court of Appeal Judgements on appeals of decisions of the Commissioner
- Speeches and Presentations of the Commissioner and staff of the Office
- Guide to the FOI Act
- Guidance Notes on sections of the FOI Act
- Sample Questions to ask Public Bodies when reviewing their decisions
S.I. No. 426/2014 - European Union (Energy Efficiency) Regulations 2014
Under the terms of these Regulations the energy consumption and performance of all public sector organisations must be reported annually. The secretariat to the Standards in Public Office Commission, the Office of the Information Commissioner, the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information and the Commission for Public Service Appointments is provided by the Office of the Ombudsman at its offices in 6 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2. This report itemises energy usage across the whole office.