Where to complain if your issue involves a provincial government body, a health custodian, or a provincial private-sector organization in BC, Alberta, or Quebec.
This page provides legal information, not legal advice. Consult a qualified privacy lawyer or CIPP/C-accredited privacy professional before taking action on access requests, breach response, complaints to a Privacy Commissioner, or Federal Court applications.
Last verified: September 2026
TL;DR
The right commissioner depends on who holds your information. Each province has its own access-and-privacy commissioner (or ombudsman) that handles complaints under local legislation. Start by identifying whether the organization is public, private, or a health custodian.
Which commissioner handles your complaint
Use this quick reference:
Provincial government ministry or public body: FIPPA or equivalent, provincial commissioner.
Municipality: MFIPPA (Ontario), or the equivalent local legislation under provincial commissioners.
Provincial health custodian: PHIPA, HIA, HIPA, or equivalent, provincial commissioner.
Private-sector organization in BC/Alberta/Quebec: PIPA or Law 25, provincial commissioner.
As with PIPEDA, provincial commissioners generally expect the issue to be raised with the organization's privacy officer first, and written records matter. Deadlines are short for access reviews: 30 business days in BC and Ontario, 30 to 60 days in Alberta; PHIPA complaints in Ontario have one year (six months for access or correction refusals).
What to include in your complaint
A strong complaint includes: the name of the organization, dates, the facts of what happened, a summary of what you did to try to resolve it, copies of relevant documents, and your desired outcome.