How to make a request under the Access to Information Act

The following requests should be made to Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) under the Access to Information Act:

• requests that pertain to information about WD; or
• requests for information that would have been created by WD.

For requests for information held by other government institutions, please refer to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat list of departmental Access to Information and Privacy Coordinators.

Formal requests for information under the must:

• be in writing (e-mail requests cannot be accepted);
• be signed by the requester and dated;
• include the name of the individual or representative of a corporation, name of corporation (if appropriate), Canadian mailing address, telephone number and, if possible, an e-mail address where the requester can be contacted between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays;
• include the $5.00 application fee, which entitles the requester to five hours of search and preparation time.

Written requests may be submitted using the Access to Information Request form (TBS/SCT 350-57), or in a letter indicating that the request is made in accordance with the Access to Information Act.  Payment can be made by cash, or cheque or money order made payable to the Receiver General for Canada. Please note that the request will not be processed until the application fee is received.

There may be additional fees associated with processing requests made under the Access to Information Act. Additional fees may be incurred for search and preparation time in excess of five hours, reproduction fees, and release packages in alternative formats. These fees are charged in accordance with section 11 of the Access to Information Act and described in the Access to Information Regulations.

Requests must include sufficient detail to enable an experienced WD employee, with a reasonable effort, to identify the records that are being requested. Examples include, but are not limited to, program or project names, time periods, client identifiers, file names, report titles, locations (office or region/branch), or names of individuals.

Principles for Assisting Applicants (Duty to Assist)

In processing your request for information under the Access to Information Act, Western Economic Diversification Canada will:

1. process access requests without regard to the identity of the requestor;
2. offer reasonable assistance throughout the request process;
3. provide information on the Access to Information Act, including information on the processing of an access request to the requestor and their right to complain to the Information Commissioner of Canada;
4. inform the requestor as appropriate and without undue delay when a request requires clarification;
5. make every effort to locate and retrieve the requested records under the control of the Department;
6. apply limited and specific exemptions to the requested records;
7. provide accurate and complete responses;
8. provide timely access to the requested information;
9. provide records in the format and official language requested, as appropriate; and
10. provide an appropriate location within the Department for requestors to examine the requested information.

All requests for information under the control of any WD office pursuant to the Access to Information Act must be sent to:

Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator
Western Economic Diversification Canada
Suite 1500, Canada Place
9700 Jasper Avenue N.W.
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4H7

In addition, inquiries concerning the request process for Access to Information at WD may be e-mailed to atip-aiprp@wd-deo.gc.ca. Inquiries related to the processing of a specific request should be directed to the ATIP Officer handling your request; please reference the request number assigned by our office in your correspondence.