Freedom of Information
Central Correspondence Team
Central Operations
PO Box 3468
Sheffield
S3 8WA
Matthew Rice
Email:
Email: request-713230-
xxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
www.gov.uk/ukvi
FOI Reference: 61709
12 January 2021
Dear Mr Rice
Thank you for your enquiry of 16 December 2020, in which you requested
information regarding requests for personal information (Subject Access Request –
SAR). Your enquiries have been handled as a request for information under the
Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Information Requested
I would like to request information relating to the use of Schedule 2 Part 1 Para 4
(Immigration) of the Data Protection Act 2018 in relation to requests for personal
data.
Specifically, I would like to know:
1 - How many times the exemption has been used by the Home Office between
January 2020 and 1 December 2020?
2 - The number of times the use of this exemption has been appealed by the
requester in the same timeline?
3 - The number of times those appeals have been resulted in overturning the
exercise of the exemption?
4 - Confirmation of the content of the letter received by individuals accompanying
any request for personal data when Schedule 2 Part 1 Para 4.
UK Visas and Immigration is an operational command of the Home Office
Response
Specifically, I would like to know:
1 - How many times the exemption has been used by the Home Office between
January 2020 and 1 December 2020.
19305 SARs were dispatched between January 20 and 1 December 20, and of those
14027 (72.6%) had Immigration Exemption applied.
2 - The number of times the use of this exemption has been appealed by the
requester in the same timeline.
We do not keep specific MI relating to the number of times the use of the immigration
exemption is appealed.
3 - The number of times those appeals have been resulted in overturning the
exercise of the exemption?
As above;
4 - Confirmation of the content of the letter received by individuals accompanying
any request for personal data when Schedule 2 Part 1 Para 4.
UKVI find this question confusing. Could you please provide clarification of exactly
what information you seek?
If you are dissatisfied with this response you may request an independent internal
review of our handling of your request by submitting a complaint within two months
to
xxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx, quoting reference
61709. If you ask for an
internal review, it would be helpful if you could say why you are dissatisfied with the
response.
As part of any internal review the Department’s handling of your information request
would be reassessed by staff who were not involved in providing you with this
response. If you were to remain dissatisfied after an internal review, you would have
a right of complaint to the Information Commissioner as established by section 50 of
the FOI Act.
Yours sincerely
C. Walls
Central Operations Team
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