FOI Fees

Application Fees

There is no fee for requesting records that contain only personal information about you.

There is no fee for making a request seeking to amend a record containing incorrect, incomplete or misleading information about you.

There is no fee for making a request seeking the reasons for a decision made by the public body affecting the individual.

(Internal and external review of decisions on such applications listed above is free of charge.  A review of a decision to impose a fee or deposit is, also, free of charge). 

A fee of €15 must accompany your request for any records that contain more than just your own personal information. A reduced fee of €10 applies in relation to such requests if you are covered by a medical card.

A fee of €75 must accompany most applications for internal review of a decision made by the Council. A reduced fee of €25 applies if you are covered by a medical card.

A standard fee of €150 must accompany an appeal to the Information Commissioner to review a decision relating to non-personal information. A reduced fee of €50 applies if you are covered by a medical card or if you are a third party whose information the Council has decided to release in the public interest.

Search and Retrieval and Copying Fees

The FOI Acts allow for a charge to be made for the time spent finding records and for any photocopying costs incurred in providing the material requested. It is unlikely that any charges will apply in relation to personal records unless a large number of records are involved.

Fees for search, retrieval and copying are set by the Department of Finance and are currently at the following levels:

• €20.95 per hour for search and retrieval
• €0.04 per sheet for a photocopy
• €0.51 for a 3 ½ inch computer diskette
• €10.16 for a CD-ROM.

A deposit may be payable where the total fee is likely to exceed €50.79. The Council will, if requested, assist the requester in amending the request so as to reduce or eliminate the fee.

Reduced Fees and Waivers

No fee will be charged for search, retrieval and copying of records if the cost of collecting that fee would be greater than the fee itself.

Where the information would be of particular assistance to the understanding of an issue of national importance the Council may waive or reduce the search, retrieval and copying fee and deposit.