The Archives Access Guidelines of the Fiscal Information Agency of the Ministry of Finance

                 The Fiscal Information Agency of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of China, September 9, 2013

                                                                                                                                               Letter No. 1020004196

1.For the convenience of the public, for-profit enterprises and institutions to apply for access of archival data, these Guidelines are established in accordance with Article 46 of the Administrative Procedure Act, Article 18 of the Freedom of Government Information Law, Articles 17 to 21 of the Archives Act, and Chapter 21 of the Government Agency Archive Management Operations Manual.

2.The general public, for-profit undertakings, agencies, or their authorized agents or appointees may apply to access information from the Fiscal Information Agency (hereinafter “FIA”) in accordance with these Guidelines.

3.Application scope of archives access: The “archives” referred to in these Guidelines shall mean written or non-written documents and records, including their attachments, which are kept in files and managed by the FIA. The access of archives shall be handled in accordance with Article 18 of the Archives Act, Article 18 of the Freedom of Government Information Law, Article 46 of the Administrative Procedure Act, and other relevant regulations.

4.Application method:

   1.To apply to access the archives of the FIA, an application form clearly stating the following information and attached with copies of relevant documents shall be submitted to the FIA.

        A.The full name, date of birth, telephone number, residential address, and identification number of the applicant; or the full title information where the applicant is an enterprise or institution with an administrator or representative, as well the name, date of birth, telephone number, and residential address of the manager or representative.

        B.If the applicant has authorized an agent, the agent shall provide his/her full name, date of birth, telephone number, residential address, and identification number. If the representative is a legal attorney, the application form shall describe the relationship; otherwise, the agency shall present the letter of attorney.

        C.The application items.

        D.The file name, subject, or the abstract.

        E.The file identification number.

        F.Application purpose.

        G.Please provide the reason if it is a necessary to use the original file.

        H.Application date.

   2.Relevant documents to be submitted:

        A.The applicant who is an individual shall provide the personal indentification document for examination.

        B.The applicant which is a for-profit institution or corporation shall provide the copies of related registration certificate, or the copies of company (commercial) registration certificate.

        C.The applicant who is authorized or delegated shall provide a letter of attorney with original copy and the identification document; the documents must be stamped. If the application case is related to personal or privacy data, please provide documents certifying relationship between applicant and agent.

          The aforementioned application form and relevant documents may be delivered in person or by mail.

5.Acceptance and verification process:

   1.The receiving unit of the FIA will give each application document a registration number upon receiving the application form, and then deliver the case to the case handling unit for verification.

   2.The case handling unit which processes the application for archive access shall verify the contents of the application form, submit the application to the file managing unit in accordance with regulations, draft the notification document of the verification result and submit this notification document to the supervisor of the FIA for approval. The acceptance or denial of the application shall be determined within 15 days from which the application form was received; if the application form requires correction, the deadline of determination shall be reset from the day when the applicant completes the correction.

   3.The application processing time may be extended if a determination cannot be made in time; the applicant will be notified, and this extension will be no longer than 15 days.

   4.Where the application fails to adhere to procedure or there is lacking documents, the applicant shall be notified and must complete the correction within 7 days. Where corrections cannot be made or are not corrected within the prescribed time period, the FIA will deny the application for these reasons.

   5.The applicant shall be notified of the verification result in writing, and the archive management personnel shall also be informed. If the application has been approved, the notification shall clearly state the approved number of files; purpose; method, time, and location of access; matters of attention and charge standards; and a reminder of documents to be submitted. If the application has been denied, the notification shall clearly state the reasons.

6.Access of archives:

   1.When the applicant comes to the FIA to access the files, he/she shall present the approval notice and photo ID. Upon completing the entrance registration procedure, the applicant may enter the specified location for archive access. When accessing original copies, the applicant shall be accompanied by a staff member.

   2.The duplicate file shall be used for applications of reading, transcribing, or copying in principle. Applications to store electronic files shall use images and duplicate files in principle.

   3.If the archive in question is partially limited, the FIA will only provide the accessible part of the file.

7.Applicants entering the access area shall pay attention to the following matters:

   1.No food, drink, smoking, and making any loud noise.

   2.Please keep the place clean.

   3.Instruments which may damage archives are prohibited, such as pens and writing brushes.

   4.Transcription is limited to the use of pencil, laptop or portable media.

   5.Personal items are not allowed.

   6.Unauthorized access to power supplies and connections to the network of the FIA is prohibited.

   7.The equipment provided by the FIA for accessing archives shall be carefully maintained to avoid any damage.

The use of the laptop computer or portable media in the provisions of Subparagraph 4 of the preceding paragraph is only allowed with permission. The use shall comply with the related information security policies of the FIA. Portable media shall be scanned by the FIA for viruses before use.

In the case that the applicant needs to temporarily leave the access area, the archives shall be left in the care of the staff member; in the case of accessing the image system, the applicant shall log out of the system if he/she needs to leave temporarily.

8.The applicant accessing the archives shall keep the file intact. The following acts are prohibited:

   1.Add, alter, replace, extract, annotate or deface the file.

   2.Disassemble the file or documents which has been assembled.

   3.Destroy or change the contents of a file by any other means.

If the applicant violates the provisions of Article 7 or those of the preceding paragraph while accessing the archives, the FIA may suspend access and record the behavior. If the behavior pertains to criminal liability, the FIA can turn the case to the prosecutorial office for investigation.

9.Returning the archives:

   1.When finished, the applicant shall return the file to the staff member and verify the integrity of the file on the spot. Upon verification, the staff member shall log that the file has been returned on the application receipt and give a carbon copy to the applicant.

   2.The applicant shall return the file on the same day. If the applicant cannot complete the use, the staff member shall log the use situation on the application receipt and return the file to its place.

   3.The staff member shall return the file with the application receipt to the file administrator to return the file to its place in accordance with regulations.

10.Access time and location:

   1.Time: Weekdays 9:00-11:30, 14:00-16:30. The service is closed on weekends, national holidays, or other rest days.

   2.Location: The Archives Office of the Main Secretary's Office is located on the fourth floor of the FIA building.

11.Fees and payment: The FIA follows the “The Fee Charging Standard of File Reading, Transcribing, and Copy” which is legislated by the National Archives Administration for file access fees. The FIA shall provide receipts for payment.

Related Links:
Website of the National Archives Administration of the National Development Council