Do you need a PAIA manual? Do you want to draft one for your organisation? The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) requires all public and private bodies in South Africa to have a manual. Essentially, the manual explains to people how they can get access to the records held by the body. If you are a high public interest organisation, you need to think more broadly about access to information, and not just about getting a PAIA manual.

Who is exempt from having a PAIA manual?

No one. Everyone must have a PAIA Manual? Some private bodies were exempt from having a PAIA manual before 31 December 2021 but from 1 January 2022, no body is exempt from having a PAIA Manual. So, don’t bother to check the exemption.

A record of your processing activities

In South Africa section 17 of POPIA requires a responsible party to maintain a record of all processing operations (or activities or functions) under its responsibility in a manual. This means that POPIA requires you to provide additional information in your PAIA manual.

Actions you can take

  • Use our public interest self-assessment to determine if you are a low or high public interest organisation.
  • If you are a high public interest organisation, join our programme to help you comply with PAIA.
  • If you already have a PAIA manual, make sure it is up-to-date by asking Michalsons to review it to check that it complies with the latest law including POPIA and the PAIA Regulations.
  • Ask Michalsons to draft a PAIA manual for you to comply with your legal obligations.
  • Comply with PAIA by asking Michalsons for other assistance.

What about an online PAIA manual template?

Online PAIA templates simply can’t do the job properly. Those templates are often created to cover the bare minimum requirements for PAIA manuals and could really only help you with about 50% compliance with PAIA. Based on the amount of time we have worked on it, a manual we draft for you is close to complete compliance with the law. High public interest organisations simply can’t use online templates because they have to consider many factors before they can even draft their PAIA manuals.

We have created a manual template over a number of years that is tried and tested. We use this template to create a customised PAIA manual specifically for you. There is actually quite a bit of tailoring that is required. One size does not fit all. You can do a cut and paste job from another organisation’s manual, but it will not be suitable for you. How will you know what applies to you and what doesn’t? Most organisations’ manuals that you will find on the internet are out-of-date and do not comply with the latest laws.

The more records you have as an organisation, the greater the task is to draft the PAIA manual. Also, the more personal information you process, the greater the task.

When is the PAIA manual deadline?

The deadline was 31 December 2021. From 1 January 2022, every body must have a manual.

The risk of non-compliance

If you do not have a PAIA manual, your information officer could be fined or imprisoned for a period not exceeding two years.

How you benefit

  • Save time.
  • Establish a procedure for people to request information from you in a structured way.
  • Reduce your admin burden.
  • Build trust with your customers and stakeholders.
  • Project a good public image. Demonstrate that you comply with the law.
  • Avoid regulatory investigations and fines.

What you get?

The manual will be:

  • drafted in plain language so you can understand it
  • up-to-date with the latest law
  • relevant to your organisation
  • in editable word format so you can make changes and convert it to pdf
  • well structured
  • comprehensive

We will answer your questions and ensure that you do it correctly.

What is the process?

  1. We will ask you various questions and gather the necessary information.
  2. We create the necessary document customised for you. You review and approve it.
  3. We send you a final version for you to add to your website.

What must you do with your PAIA manual?

Your manual needs to be available on your website (if you have one) and at your principal place of business. You don’t need to send your manual to the Information Regulator unless they request it. You don’t need to submit it to anyone.

Can you charge for giving access to information?

Yes, you can. You can read what the prescribed fees are for a public and a private body.

The relationship between a PAIA manual and a privacy policy

Considering that there is a close relationship between the PAIA manual and a privacy policy, you might want us to draft a privacy policy for you at the same time. Outsource this task and get it done right. In our view, there is no such thing as a POPIA manual.