Access to Information

Access to Information is regulated by law in many countries around the world. For example, the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA, or PAI Act) in South Africa. It is crucial to strike a balance between this critical right and the right to privacy. Read our insights, regulatory updates, judgment summaries, enforcement action (including fines and notes), data breaches or authority guidance.

Important Notice: Non-Compliance with PAIA Forms

Did you receive an email from the Information Regulator with the title "Important Notice: Non-Compliance with PAIA Forms"? Don't panic; it doesn't necessarily mean that you are specifically non-compliant, and there are simple actions you can take to check whether [...]

By |2025-09-22T16:30:42+02:00August 31st, 2025|Categories: Access to Information|Tags: , , , |

PAIA section 32 report for public bodies | PAIA annual report

The information officer of every public body in South Africa must submit a PAIA section 32 report to the Information Regulator annually. Section 32 of PAIA makes it compulsory - a regulatory requirement. PAIA gives effect to section 32 [...]

By |2025-08-14T16:31:50+02:00July 18th, 2025|Categories: Access to Information|Tags: , , , |

PAIA section 83(4) report for private bodies | PAIA report

All private bodies must submit a PAIA section 83(4) report (PAIA report) to the information regulator according to a notice the regulator published. The regulator has requested private bodies to submit this report annually in terms of section 83(4) [...]

Ask the Regulators: Support for PAIA compliance, e-Services and BizPortal

Today, the South African information regulator held a webinar called "Ask the Regulator". The purpose of the webinar was to allow participants to ask the regulator questions and for the regulator to encourage and support them in complying with POPIA […]

Information Officer and PAIA manual for the group or each entity within the group?

The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) states that the head of a private body is the Information Officer, and they should compile a PAIA manual for the private body and update the manual regularly (unless exempt). According to […]

By |2025-11-11T11:50:37+02:00May 28th, 2025|Categories: Access to Information, POPI and Data Protection|Tags: , , |

Information regulator annual performance plan for 2025 to 2026 APP

The information regulator has presented its draft annual performance plan (regulator APP) for 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. It has presented them in different formats to different audiences. For example, the regulator held a stakeholder engagement on 5 [...]

Information Regulator in South Africa

The Information Regulator was created by the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI Act). POPI gives the Information Regulator teeth - it has extensive powers to investigate and fine responsible parties. Data subjects can complain to the Information Regulator [...]

Access to Information Manual | Draft or review

Do you need an Access to Information manual? What is it anyway? The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) says that all public and private bodies in South Africa need to create a manual that contains, amongst other things: [...]

By |2025-09-09T20:13:45+02:00February 18th, 2025|Categories: Access to Information|Tags: , |

PAIA compliance assessments by information regulator

South Africa’s Information Regulator conducts PAIA compliance assessments on public and private bodies in terms of section 77H of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA). PAIA plays a crucial role in an organisation's transparency and accountability to the [...]

Navigating Trustworthy AI in South African Law: An Overview

Building AI without legal guidance is like constructing a bridge without blueprints—it might stand for a while, but it's destined to collapse. As AI continues to rapidly integrate into the South African business environment, aligning it and its use [...]

Information Regulator aims to step up enforcement

The information regulator briefed the public and the media on 11 September 2024 on some enforcement activities over the last quarter (since 1 April 2024). The central theme was that the regulator has taken various enforcement actions but hasn't succeeded [...]

Blouberg Municipality enforcement action | Further processing

The Information Regulator issued an enforcement notice against Blouberg Municipality after a complaint from a former employee. This Blouberg Municipality enforcement action arose because the municipality had unlawfully published the employee’s personal information on its website as part of a [...]