Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act (Chapter 496) establishes the right to the general public to information, which is held by the public authorities to promote transparency and accountability. 

In line with Article 3, the FOI Act, shall not apply to documents containing Personal Data subject to the Data Protection Act, or information which shall not be disclosed due to prohibition by any other law. 

 

Description of the NAB-MALTA’s functions and responsibilities 

The National Accreditation Board – Malta (NAB-MALTA) is the single nationally recognized accreditation body in Malta with the authority to grant accreditation to conformity assessment bodies. This is established by Legal Notice 306 of 2007. The Government of Malta has also established that the NAB-MALTA is the national accreditation body for the purposes of Article 4.1 of Regulation (EC) No. 765/2008. 

 

Description of the NAB-Malta’s structure 

 

Ministry for European Funds, Equality, Reforms, and Social Dialogue

               ↓ 

Permanent Secretary

               ↓ 

National Accreditation Board – Malta 

(NAB – Malta)

General description of the categories of documents which are held by the NAB:
  • Human resources 
  • Financial management 
  • Application forms 
  • Administration 
  • Published documents 
  • Contractual agreements 
  • Non-disclosure agreements 
  • Internal Audits 
  • Management Review 
  • Assessment documents 
  • Internal guidance documents 
  • External technical documents 
  • Policy documents 
  • Regulations and other applicable requirements relating to accreditation 
 

Description of all manuals and similar types of documents that contain policies, principles, rules, or guidelines in accordance with which decisions or recommendations are made in respect of the public: 

  • Internal guidance documents 
  • External technical documents 
  • Policy documents 
  • Regulatory and other applicable requirements relating to accreditation 

A detailed list of Regulations, Policies and Guides may be found in the Publications section on the NAB-Malta website. 

Freedom of Information request 

Applicants shall be considered as eligible to submit FOI request if they meet the following criteria: 

  1.  a resident in Malta and to have been residing in Malta for a period of at least five (5) years and; 
  2. a citizen of Malta, or a citizen of any other member state of the European Union or any other state the citizens of which have a right, in virtue of any treaty between European Union and such state, to be treated in Malta in the same manner as citizens of member states of the European Union.  

 

FOI requests relating to documents or information held by NAB, may be submitted by e-mail to foi.nab@nabmalta.org.mt, or by filling an FOI request online form by accessing the link: https://freedomofinformation.gov.mt/online-form.  

Applications for a FOI request shall include: 

  1. Reference to Identity Card Number or residence permit; 
  2. Contact Details (telephone number and e-mail address); 
  3. The request for access of information or documentation; 
  4. The desired format to receive the information or documentation, if applicable.  

The FOI officers of the NAB-Malta may be contacted by e-mail on foi.nab@nabmalta.org.mt or by telephone on +23952725. 

Payment of fee 

The NAB-MALTA may charge a fee to an applicant requesting access to a document or information, in accordance with the FOI Act. Any applicable fee may be requested to cover the costs and shall be charged in accordance with the Legal Notice for the Fees Charged by Public Authorities for Access to Documents Regulations, 2010 (LN 158/2010). 

Payment of applicable fees shall be made by bank transfer. Payment details will be provided by the NAB-Malta, upon submission of FOI request. 

Internal Complaints Procedure 

An applicant whose request for information is refused, or who is otherwise not satisfied with the information provided, its format or the extension of the deadline for the submission of the notification indicating whether a request would be met or not, may address a complaint to the Authority. 

The complaint should be addressed to the Authority’s FOI Officer, who shall bring the complaint to the attention of the officer responsible. The officer responsible shall reply to the applicant within 10 working days from the receipt of the complaint. The applicant shall also be informed that he or she may appeal the decision or otherwise address a complaint to the Information and Data Protection Commissioner in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (Cap. 496 of the Laws of Malta). 

The officer responsible shall inform the applicant of the decision taken with respect to his or her complaint, and in the event of confirmation of a decision not to release the pertinent information, shall explain the reasons thereof. Whenever the applicant’s complaint is related to the format of the information provided or to an extension of the deadline for the submission of the notification indicating whether a request would be met or not by the Authority, and the original decision is upheld, the applicant shall be given an explanation as to why his or her complaint cannot be positively addressed. 

An applicant may also make use of the Internal Complaints Procedure to report failure to meet deadlines or to send notifications. In those cases where the request for information can be met but has not been met within the deadlines specified by the Act, the officer responsible shall waive any applicable fees for the submission of information.