Section 74
Right of internal appeal to relevant authority
Part 4 · Appeals Against Decisions · Chapter 1, Internal Appeals Against Decisions of Information Officers of Certain Public Bodies
(1) A requester may lodge an internal appeal against a decision of the information officer of a public body referred to in paragraph (a) of the “public body” in section 1— (a) to refuse a request for access; or (b) taken in terms of section 22, 26(1) or 29(3), in relation to that requester with the relevant authority.
(2) A third party may lodge an internal appeal against a decision of the information officer of a public body referred to in paragraph (a) of the “public body” in section 1 to grant a request for access.
Source: SAFLII, Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (consolidated, updated 11 October 2024), cross-checked verbatim before publishing.
Beyond the text
What this means in practice
- Internal appeal is the first remedy against a national or provincial public body's decision, available to a dissatisfied requester, or to a third party objecting to a grant.
- It runs to the body's 'relevant authority' (e.g. the responsible Minister or MEC), not the information officer who made the decision.
Relevant tool
PopiGuard helps public bodies handle internal appeals correctly, routing, timelines and reasons, before they escalate.