Registration and Beyond: Changes in Effect From January 2021

From January 2021 all local organisations/businesses/sole-traders (and all other entities established in the Bailiwick) who are doing anything with personal data are legally required to register with the Office of the Data Protection Authority (ODPA), and pay an annual fee.

The fee paid is based on how many full-time equivalent employees you have:

• £2,000/year for organisations with 50 or more FTE staff
  or
• £50/year for all other organisations
• £0/year for registered charities and not-for-profit organisations

This may not be on your radar as some businesses have previously been exempt from registration – however, these exemptions ended on 31 December 2020. The ODPA is now reaching out to all corners of its regulated community in Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Herm to make sure everyone knows what is changing and why, and most importantly the steps to take to comply with the new requirements.

Simply registering with the ODPA does not make you compliant with the law, treating people’s data correctly and with care is of the highest importance - mentioned in our Cyber Security and Data Protection talk during Global Entrepreneurship Week last year. You can read the key takeaways from that event here.

In light of these changes, the ODPA is now taking registrations from organisations during January-February 2021 and offering support in understanding and engaging positively with their legal duties under the local data protection law.

Meeting these duties benefits organisations directly as it helps build trust and confidence with their customers, service users, staff and any other people whose data they use. And ultimately it helps avoid data harms that can damage people’s lives, careers, and reputations.

In this podcast by Data Protection TeaBreak you can hear Emma Martins explaining the 2021 changes to registration. In this podcast, the Bailiwick of Guernsey’s Data Protection Commissioner Emma Martins explains to Kirsty Bougourd what is changing with registration and how it’s really just the first step in a journey towards looking after personal data well. Emma runs through what has and hasn’t changed in terms of registration and payment and also discusses why it’s vital for anyone using personal data in their work to register. This includes small businesses and sole traders that may only hold or use limited personal data.

Please take a look through the resources below to understand what you need to do about the changes to ODPA registration from 2021:

• Everything you need to know about: ODPA Registration & Levy Regime (from January 2021)
  this is a detailed document, please read carefully and contact us if you have any follow up questions. 
• Guidance Note: Registration with an ODPA Levy Collection Agent
  this document gives specific guidance for organisations wishing to become an ODPA Levy Collection Agent (LCA), or register with one.
  includes a template for ‘Certificate of Exemption’ on page 6.
• Template: Levy Collection Agent (LCA) ‘Certificate of Exemption’
  if you are interested in becoming an ODPA LCA and are looking for a Certificate of Exemption template please see page 6 of this document for the template itself and guidance on how to use it. 
• Guidance Note: Established in the Bailiwick
  this document will help you determine whether you are ‘established’ in the Bailiwick of Guernsey for the purposes of the Law, and therefore if you have to register or not. 
• Legislation: The Data Protection (General Provisions) (Bailiwick of Guernsey) (Amendment No.2) Regulations, 2020
  the changes to ODPA registration are the result of this statutory instrument approved by the Committee for Home Affairs on 14 September 2020
• Exception: Personal / Household activities 
  This page provides some context on the exception for what members of the public do in their personal lives that involves personal data.
• Video: Registration and beyond: video explainer
  This video gives you a quick overview of our brand new 2021 registration process to guide you through a couple of areas you may not be familiar with. 
• Event: Registration and beyond: how to feel good about data protection (Wed 13 Jan 2021 8:00 – 9:00)

Still confused? If you’ve been through the resources above and have some follow-up questions:

• Please do not hesitate to contact the ODPA by phone or email here.
• The ODPA's offers a face to face discussion opportunity at their weekly drop-in sessions.
• The ODPA released The Feel-Good Guide to Data Protection last year, this guide is easy to follow and a great introduction to help get your organisation/business up to speed.