Data protection registration and renewal window opens

Tuesday 03 January 2023

Organisations have until the end of February to register with the Data Protection Authority.

The ODPA will be collecting one new bit of information this year to find out which sector they are operating in.

This will allow it to understand the breakdown of the regulated community and what sort of processing organisations may be doing.

“After you've completed the annual exercise of reviewing and renewing your registration with us, it's a good opportunity to review your legal obligations under The Data Protection (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2017 - as they are what you need to focus on 365 days a year to ensure that you are treating people's data well,” said the Bailiwick’s Data Protection Commissioner, Emma Martins.

“Meeting these duties benefits you directly as it helps build trust and confidence with your customers, service users, staff and any other people whose data you use.”

The ODPA have set out three criteria to help someone decide if they need to register:

1. You (whether you are a sole trader, organisation, business, charity, landlord, business association etc.) are established in the Bailiwick of Guernsey.

2. You are working with personal data (i.e. any information that may identify individual people, such as your staff members, your clients, your business contacts, your service users, your tenants etc.)

3. The activity you are performing is not part of your personal/household affairs. There is more detailed information at odpa.gg/registration.

The annual registration fee is based on the number of ‘full-time equivalent’ staff in each organisation and is unchanged from last year: £2,000 per year for organisations with 50 or more full-time equivalent staff, and £50 for all other entities. 

These levies allow the Authority to fulfil its statutory obligations independently of the States. 

Charities and non-profit organisations can register free of charge.

Mrs Martins added: “The registration process is deliberately straightforward so that organisations can focus their efforts on what data protection legislation seeks to achieve: ensuring all human beings are treated with respect and dignity.”

To register with the Authority visit odpa.gg/registration by 28 February.

Anyone with questions about registration can attend a free drop-in session on any Wednesday morning between 09:00 and 12:00 during January and February, more details at: www.odpa.gg/drop-ins.