Registering with the Data Protection Authority is a legal requirement for all entities (inclusive of small businesses and sole traders) that process personal data and are established in the Bailiwick.
The registration fee enables the DPA to fulfil its legal and political requirements to operate independently of the States of Guernsey. Independence is a necessary condition for the DPA’s effective regulatory oversight.
Being able to demonstrate this independence played a critical role in the Bailiwick renewing its ‘adequacy’ status with the European Commission. This status allows the free flow of data between the islands and the EU, which is a key driver for Bailiwick’s current and future economic success.
Ensuring our jurisdiction has a properly resourced and effective data protection regulator safeguards islanders’ rights, supports businesses’ lawful handling of personal information, and serves to underpin the Bailiwick’s digital strategy.
Who needs to Register?
To make it as clear as possible who must register, the ODPA have set out the following three criteria:
- You are established in the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
- You are working with personal data (i.e. any information that may identify individual people, such as your staff members, your clients, your business contacts, your service users, your tenants etc.)
- The activity you are performing is not part of your personal/household affairs.
What do the registration fees pay for?
Towards protecting and promoting data rights, the Bailiwick benefits from free advice and guidance on matters related to the protection of people’s data via: drop-ins, study visits, events, schools’ outreach programmes and other educational activities.
The DPA is a ‘horizontal’ regulator whose wide regulatory mandate covers the public, private and charitable sectors. It therefore needs to leverage its limited resources to support, respond to, and enforce across all sectors.
To give an indication of the breadth of activity the DPA’s team is responsible for, in 2023 alone it contributed 33 events for the local community, educated 1,128 children via its schools’ outreach programme, handled 56 complaints from members of the public against local controllers, processed 151 personal data breaches and published 12 new guidance notes to help organisations comply with the law.
Why have fees increased?
In 2024, the Committee for Home Affairs approved an increase of the registration fees payable to the DPA from January 2025. Fees had remained the same since 2021 despite rising inflation alongside increased demand for education, outreach and enforcement activities.
Registered charities and not-for-profit organisations will continue to pay nothing for their registration. Fees for organisations with fewer than 50 full-time equivalent staff (including landlords and sole traders) have increased by £10, from £50 to £60 annually.
The fee for organisations with 50 or more full-time staff has increased from £2,000 to £2,400 pounds per year. The largest contributor of fees remains the States of Guernsey; however, its fee contribution has reduced by £50,000 to £250,000.
These fee increases fall below the inflationary rate between 2021 and 2024.
