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Welcome to the FOIA Wiki!

This is a free and collaborative resource on the United States federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The FOIA Wiki is provided by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, with contributions from The FOIA Project at TRAC, MuckRock, The National Security Archive, FOIA Mapper, Open the Government, and users like you.

New to FOIA?
Read the FOIA Basics page to get started

→ Need information about an agency? Visit the Agencies Landing Page for regulations, statistics, record systems, lawsuits, and tips.

→ Interested in how advocates, journalists, litigators and organizations work together on FOIA? Read and contribute to the FOIA Collaboration Guide.

→ Want to get involved with the FOIA Wiki? See the help wanted category to find pages that need contributions. Read the FOIA Wiki Policies before making changes.

→ Are you looking for information about state public records laws? See the Reporters Committee's Open Government Guide.

Table of Contents

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• Introduction
• FOIA Basics
• Text of the FOIA
• Legislative History
• Agency FOIA Regulations
• Executive Branch Guidance
  • History
  • Current Guidance
  • OGIS Guidance
  • OIP Guidance
• Affirmative Disclosures
  • (a)(1) requirements
  • (a)(2) requirements
  • Enforcement of affirmative disclosures
• Entities Subject to FOIA
• Records Subject to FOIA
  • Defining agency records
  • Agency records vs. Congressional records
  • Agency records vs. personal records
• Making a FOIA Request
  • Identity of the requester
  • Procedural requirements
  • Contents of a request/specificity
  • Sample requests and templates
  • Submitting the request
• Fees and Fee Categories
  • Types of fees
  • News media requesters
  • Educational & scientific requesters
  • Commercial Requesters
  • Other Requesters
• Fee Waivers
• Expedited Processing

• Pre-determination agency actions
  • Accepting requests
  • Multitrack processing
  • Searching for records
  • Sufficiency of an agency's search
  • Consultations/Referrals
• Pre-determination communications
  • Acknowledgements
  • Estimated date of completion
  • Requests for information from the requester
  • "Still interested" letters
  • Public liaisons and FOIA officers
• Determinations
  • Agency deadlines and extensions
  • Required Contents
• Releasing Records
  • Timing
  • Duty to segregate
  • Format of Records
• Administrative Appeals
  • Timing of an administrative appeal
  • What can be appealed?
  • Contents of an administrative appeal
  • Timing of the agency response
  • New issues raised on appeal
  • Sample administrative appeals
• Office of Government Information Services
  • Mediation
  • Compliance Reviews
  • Recommendations/Other
• Requester options for agency delay/non-responsiveness

• Exemptions from disclosure
  • Foreseeable Harm Standard
  • Exemption 1 (classification)
  • Exemption 2 (internal rules)
  • Exemption 3 (prohibited by other statutes)
  • Exemption 4 (trade secrets & commercial info)
    • Trade Secrets
    • Commercial or Financial Information
  • Exemption 5 (discovery privileges)
    • Threshold Requirement
    • Deliberative Process Privilege
    • Work Product Privilege
    • Attorney-Client Privilege
    • Other Privileges
  • Exemption 6 (personal privacy)
    • Threshold Requirement
    • Privacy Interest
    • Public Interest
  • Exemption 7 (law enforcement)
    • Threshold Requirement
    • Exemption 7(A)
    • Exemption 7(B)
    • Exemption 7(C)
    • Exemption 7(D)
    • Exemption 7(E)
    • Exemption 7(F)
  • Exemption 8 (regulation of financial institutions)
  • Exemption 9 (wells)
• § 552(c) Exclusions
• Glomar Responses
• Waiver and Prior Disclosure
• Discretionary Disclosure

• Specific Subject Matters
  • Algorithms and Computer Code
  • Immigration Records
• Litigation
  • Standing
  • Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
  • Jurisdiction and Venue
  • Statute of Limitations
  • Complaints
  • Service and Answers
  • Preliminary Injunctions
  • Motions to Dismiss
  • Open America Stays
  • Release of Records in Litigation
  • Discovery
  • Vaughn Indices
  • Agency Declarations
  • In Camera Inspection
  • Standard of Review
  • Motions for Summary Judgment
  • Trial
  • Relief and Remedies
  • Costs and Attorney Fees
• Appellate Practice
• Reverse FOIA Lawsuits
• Agency Reporting Requirements
• FOIA and the Privacy Act
• FOIA and the Administrative Procedure Act
• Mandatory Declassification Review
• Government Shutdowns and FOIA
• COVID-19 and FOIA
• Major Supreme Court FOIA Cases
• Additional Resources

• Index of all FOIA Wiki articles