Federal access-to-information exemptions updated: new laws added, one provision expanded

Plain-language summary · AI-assisted · not legal advice

Schedule II of the Access to Information Act, which lists laws whose confidentiality provisions override the general right to access government records, has been updated in several ways. Three new statutes have been added to the exemption list: the Consumer-Driven Banking Act (open banking secrecy provisions), the High Speed-Rail Network Act (specific subsections on confidentiality), and, through related provisions, the Canada Development Investment Corporation Act and the Stablecoin Act. The Aeronautics Act entry has been expanded to cover an additional section. The Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act entry now also covers a new subsection on confidentiality. The Digital Services Tax Act entry has been removed from the list. Practically, this means information held under these laws is now more clearly shielded from—or, in the DST case, no longer shielded from—ATI requests directed at federal institutions.

Who this affects: businesses subject to open banking regulation · aviation industry operators · high-speed rail proponents and contractors · financial intelligence compliance officers · federal access-to-information requesters · government institutions covered by the Act