Scotland has its own freedom-of-information regime: the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and Scottish Environmental Information Regulations.
FOISA applies to Scottish public authorities rather than using FOIA 2000 in the same way as authorities elsewhere in the UK. Appeals/complaints are handled by the Scottish Information Commissioner, not the UK ICO for FOISA merits.
The exact coverage, exemptions, review procedure and deadlines should be checked against Scottish rules before using a template written for FOIA 2000.
Key points
- Identify whether the authority is Scottish and covered by FOISA.
- Use the Scottish review/appeal route.
- Environmental information has a Scottish EIR regime.
- Do not send a FOISA merits complaint to the UK ICO by default.
Why jurisdiction matters
ConsumerWise covers UK-wide issues, but information-access legislation is not completely uniform. A request to a Scottish council or Scottish public body may require FOISA terminology and Scottish appeal rights.
Review before appeal
Scottish FOI has a statutory review process. The review request and Commissioner appeal have their own time limits, so use current Scottish Information Commissioner guidance.
Personal data remains different
Your own personal data remains a data-protection access issue rather than being converted into FOISA merely because a Scottish public authority holds it.
The basic FOISA timetable
Scottish public authorities generally have a maximum of 20 working days to respond to a FOISA request. If you are dissatisfied, the review stage is important: the authority generally has a maximum of 20 working days to respond to a requirement for review. After that, an application can be made to the Scottish Information Commissioner, subject to the statutory requirements and time limits. Keep the original request, response, review request and review outcome as a single chronology.
Do not mix the Scottish and UK appeal routes
For Scottish public-authority FOI disputes, the relevant appeal body is the Scottish Information Commissioner. The UK Information Commissioner deals with UK GDPR/data-protection issues and FOI/EIR for authorities within the regimes it regulates. A Scottish public body can therefore generate both data-protection and FOISA issues, but they travel through different statutory routes.
In practice
- Check the authority’s jurisdiction before using ConsumerWise’s FOI templates.
- Use the Scottish Information Commissioner’s current guidance for deadlines and appeals.
What to do
A practical next-step plan
- Confirm Scottish authority coverage.
- Use FOISA/Scottish EIR as appropriate.
- Track the statutory response/review deadlines.
- Request review if dissatisfied.
- Appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner if eligible.
Common traps
Things that often confuse the issue
- Assuming FOIA 2000 applies identically across the UK.
- Complaining to the wrong Information Commissioner.
Evidence worth keeping
After review, appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner.
The Commissioner requires the internal review step before an appeal in ordinary cases. If a decision is then appealed further, FOISA provides for appeal to the Court of Session on a point of law, with its own strict timescale.
Do not mix regulators.
Scottish FOISA/EIRs → Scottish Information Commissioner. UK GDPR/data-protection complaints in Scotland remain within the ICO’s UK data-protection jurisdiction.
A review request should identify why the handling was wrong.
- Refer to the original request.
- State why you are dissatisfied: missing information, exemption, fees, interpretation or delay.
- Give your name and correspondence address.
- Send it to the authority in a durable written/recorded form.
- Keep proof of date because the review deadline matters.
The key Scottish timetable is statutory at both request and review stage.
Authorities must respond promptly and within 20 working days. If you are dissatisfied, you normally ask the authority for a review no later than 40 working days after its response (or the expiry of the original response period where there was no response). The authority then has up to 20 working days to conduct the review.
Scottish public-authority information requests use FOISA, not the UK FOIA 2000 regime.
The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 applies to Scottish public authorities within its scope. Environmental information is handled under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004. The Scottish Information Commissioner, rather than the UK ICO, handles appeals under these regimes.
Official sources
Check the rules behind this guide
- Scottish Information Commissioner
- legislation.gov.uk - FOISA 2002
- Scottish Information Commissioner: Asking for a review ↗
- Scottish Information Commissioner: Appeal ↗
These are official or primary sources for this topic. Rules, scheme terms and deadlines can change, so check the live source before relying on a formal time limit or procedure.