The Office of the Data Protection Authority (ODPA) has announced that any party which is currently exempt from the legal requirement to register with the ODPA will now continue to be exempt until January 2021.

Every controller and processor of data (including businesses, charities, organisations and in some circumstances individuals) must comply with the Data Protection (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law 2017 (DP Law). However, certain exemptions mean that there is currently no need for some data controllers or processors to register with the ODPA.

In broad terms, these exemptions apply to parties which:

  • process data only for accounts and record keeping for core business purposes, for staff administration or to market their own goods or services;
  • process data only under instructions from another entity (processors); or
  • have charity or not-for-profit status.

Any local entity (eg, small business or sole trader) which currently meets the exemption criteria under the DP Law need not register with the ODPA until the beginning of 2021, extending the deadline for registration from 31 December 2019, which was itself extended in October 2019.

According to the ODPA, the extensions have been granted because it has taken longer than expected for the states of Guernsey and the ODPA to reach an agreement on the method of funding the ODPA.

Unless further extended, from 1 January 2021 all exemptions to register with the ODPA under the DP Law will end and all previously exempt local entities that process or control personal data will legally have to register with the ODPA for the first time and pay a small annual fee that will contribute to the ODPA's operational activity. While the ODPA has not confirmed what the annual fee will be, it has indicated that it will be low (between £25 to £50 per year, per entity).

Bailiwick Data Protection Commissioner Emma Martins previously commented on the extension as follows:

For the past year we have been working hard to try to reach agreement with the States of Guernsey on how the ODPA's operational activities are funded. Above all else, we want to ensure that we agree on a fair, low-cost, low-admin model that allows local businesses to concentrate their efforts on running their businesses well, rather than filling in bureaucratic forms. We continue to pursue that goal.

For further information on this topic please contact Tim Clipstone or Michelle Watson Bunn at Ogier by telephone (+44 1534 514 000) or email ([email protected] or [email protected]). The Ogier website can be accessed at www.ogier.com.