Access to Information and Privacy
Axcess1 British Columbia
Access to Information and Privacy management, built around FIPPA
Built around your law — not around generic case management.
Built around your law — not around generic case management
Many case-management products ask a public body to adapt its process to the software. Axcess1 is configured around the legislation, the procedures, the vocabulary and the reporting obligations of each jurisdiction. An organization chooses its Act once; every screen, deadline, letter and report then follows it.
Generic case management
The organization adapts to the software.
Axcess1
The software follows the legislation and the way government works.
Legislation supported
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (RSBC 1996, c 165)
| What the Act requires | As configured in Axcess1 |
|---|---|
| Who it applies to | Ministries, agencies, boards and commissions listed in Schedule 2, governing bodies of professions in Schedule 3, and local public bodies: municipalities, regional districts, improvement districts, library and police boards, health care, social services and educational bodies (Schedule 1). |
| Time limit to respond | 30 working days (s. 7(1)). The due date is calculated when the request is entered, with the holidays of the jurisdiction. |
| Extensions | Up to 30 working days. Up to 30 days if the request lacks detail, many records are involved, or consultation with a third party or other public body is needed; longer with the applicant's consent (s. 10(1.1)) or the Commissioner's permission (s. 10(2)). Applicant must be told the reason and expected date (s. 10(3)). (s. 10(1)) |
| No answer in time | Treated as a refusal (s. 53(3)); overdue requests are flagged. |
| Third-party notice | Notice under s. 23; 20 days for the third party to respond; 20 days to seek review of the decision |
| Transfer to another body | s. 11, within 20 days |
| Decision and reasons | The decision letter gives the reasons, the provision relied on and the right of review (s. 8(1)(c)). |
| Fees | $10 application fee for general requests; no fees for the applicant's own personal information (s. 75(3)); first 3 hours of search free; written estimate required before service fees. |
| Review and complaints | Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia; 30 days to ask for a review (s. 53(2)) |
| Privacy breaches | Notification is mandatory; the incident register applies this jurisdiction's threshold, notices and time limits. |
Loaded for this Act
- 70 provisions (exemptions, exceptions and exclusions) ready to cite on a redaction, each with its section number.
- Request types: General information request (FIPPA s. 5); Own personal information (FIPPA s. 5); Correction of personal information (FIPPA s. 29).
- Statutory steps on the timeline: Extension under s. 10(1) (up to 30 days; complaint right under s. 42(2)(b)); Extension with the applicant's consent under s. 10(1.1) (period consented to); Extension with the Commissioner's permission under s. 10(2) (period set by the Commissioner); Third-party notice under s. 23 (20 days to respond; decision within 30 days under s. 24); Notice of decision to applicant and third party under s. 24 (third party has 20 days to seek review); Request transferred to another public body under s. 11 (within 20 days of receipt); Application to the Commissioner to disregard a request under s. 43 (time does not run, s. 7(3)); Fee estimate issued under s. 75(4) (time does not run until fees resolved, s. 7(4))….
Checked against the published text on 2026-10-01. BC Laws — Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, RSBC 1996 c 165 (current to September 22, 2026) · BC Laws — Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Regulation, B.C. Reg. 155/2012 (current to September 22, 2026) · BC Laws — Interpretation Act, RSBC 1996 c 238, s. 29 ("holiday")
Legislation-to-feature matrix
| Legislative requirement | Axcess1 support |
|---|---|
| Statutory deadline | 30 working days (s. 7(1)): calculated automatically for each request; overdue and upcoming requests on the dashboard. |
| Extensions and holds | Recorded as events that move the due date, each tied to its section of the Act. |
| Exemptions and exclusions | The provisions of FIPPA in the redaction editor, each with its section number. |
| Third parties and consultations | Notices, consultation packages and their due dates tracked on the request. |
| Fees | Fee notices and payments recorded on the request. |
| Reviews, appeals and complaints | Recorded on the request timeline with their dates and outcome. |
| Redaction | Done by the analyst in the built-in editor; optional AI suggestions that the analyst accepts or rejects. |
| Decision letters | Generated from templates for this Act, with the provisions cited. |
| Release | A release package built from the reviewed records; redactions are permanent in the released file. |
| Annual statistics | Annual access statistics for the period, with each figure traceable to its requests. |
| Audit trail | Every action on a request is recorded with the user and the time. |
From request to release
1Receive and validate
The request is entered with its type, requester and date received; a number is issued from your own numbering pattern.
2Calculate the deadline
The due date follows the Act: 30 working days (s. 7(1)). Holds and extensions move it and are recorded.
3Assign and search
The request is assigned to an officer; the units holding records are tasked and their answers tracked.
4Collect and review
Records are uploaded (PDF, Office files, scans with text recognition) and reviewed page by page.
5Apply the provisions and redact
The analyst marks a passage and picks the provision of this Act; the released copy shows the section relied on.
6Consult
Consultation packages are produced per party, with their due dates.
7Approve
The response goes to the approver's inbox for review and signature.
8Release
The release package and the decision letter are generated from the request.
9Report
Requests, processing times, decisions and provisions invoked are counted for the period you choose.
Agentic AI across the lifecycle
AI is switched off until your administrator turns it on, one capability at a time. AI assists. Authorized officials decide.
Intake agent
Proposes a new request from a message, the portal or a drop folder; an officer confirms it.
Document intelligence
Summarizes and classifies the records and finds the people and organizations named in them.
Responsiveness agent
Suggests which records answer the request.
Exemption assist
Proposes provisions of FIPPA with reasons; redaction candidates appear in the editor.
Consultation agent
Suggests who should be consulted and on which pages.
Quality assurance agent
Checks a package a second time before release.
Deadline watch
Lists the requests at risk of running late.
Copilot
Answers questions about a request, citing the records it used.
Migration
Case history, requesters and documents are brought over from the system you use today, so you do not start from an empty database.
Deployment
Hosted by SoftSim in Canada, on your own private cloud or servers, or standalone on a PC or Mac.
Security
Each organization's records are separate, access is controlled by role and every action is recorded. Run on your own servers, your records never leave your premises.
Try it free for 30 days
One licence, the full product, no obligation. Or see it first in a 30-minute demonstration.
Find Axcess1 for your jurisdiction
Canada
United States
United Kingdom
Ireland
Australia
New Zealand
Axcess1 supports configurable workflows designed around the applicable legislation. Government organizations remain responsible for legal interpretation and statutory decisions. Summaries of the legislation are paraphrases prepared from the published text; they are not legal advice.