All information held by administrative authorities, unless it is classified as restricted, should be freely accessible to the public.
In France, the right to access State-held information is reflected in the right to access administrative documents and the right to use public information for other purposes.
Request
If you ask administrative authorities for public information which is generally available, you do not need to explain why you need the information. But your request must be precise so that the administration can identify the desired document.
1. Which documents are available to you?
You can exercise your right of access if your request meets three conditions: you are requesting access to a document, which is of an administrative nature, and which the administration has in its possession.
1. The document must be formally completed
The right of access is reserved for documents that already exist. The administration is therefore not obliged to write it up for you.
example Drafts cannot be communicated to you.
exception A document that prepares a decision may be disclosed only when the decision has been taken.
2. The information requested must concern an administrative document
The definition of an administrative document is extremely broad. The list is not exhaustive. All documents such as reports, statistics, opinions, decisions, produced or received within the framework of their public service, by the State, local authorities or any person entrusted with such a service constitute administrative documents.
3. The administration must be in possession of the document you request to access
The administration includes:
- State administrations
- local authorities
- public establishments
- private bodies who participate in a public service, if the documents they produce or receive in this context have a sufficiently direct link with the public service
example Your personal health record can be communicated by the administration that holds it.
An online simulator allows you to know, as an indication, the communicability of certain administrative documents.
Read more if you want to request information that is not publicly available, but instead is restricted.
2. Which administration or organization should you contact?
You should go directly to the administration or organization that holds the document.
Some authorities, such as departments, must appoint a person responsible for access to administrative documents. Find out more in the directory.
If the document is in the public archives, a request must be made to the relevant department. Find out more information on the national archives.
3. How to apply?
You may request public information from an administrative institution in any form – orally, in writing or electronically.
You should keep a dated copy of your request in case the administration does not reply.
In your request, you should indicate whether you wish to consult the document on site or receive it by post or e-mail.
Time
The institution, should provide the information within 1 month of the receipt of your request.
exception If the information concerns your health information, the deadline is 8 days if the file is less than 5 years old, and 2 months if the file is older than 5 years.
If you do not receive any response, this means that your application has been implicitly rejected.
You can choose how you want the document to be communicated to you, within the limits of the administration's technical possibilities. The information may be provided orally, in written form and where possible, through electronic communication as well.
Fees
In the situation where your request does not require additional activities from the state institution, the information should be provided free of charge. However, the administration may require you to cover the fees necessary for finding or copying the information that you seek. In any case, the fee for the information cannot exceed the costs incurred by the institution to fulfil your request.
Refusal & Explanation
Administrative bodies cannot refuse to give you access to public information in which they possess if all three conditions previously mentioned are fulfilled. Where an institution partly of fully denies you access to public information which it possesses, it must issue a written decision explaining the motivation, indicating the considerations of law and fact used for denying access to the information requested.
How to complain
Read more about how to complain if you have been denied access to public information.