Recurrent: Ministry of Finance and Public Service (AEAT)

Resolution appealed: R/0471/2022

In exercise of his right of access to information, a citizen submitted a letter to the Spanish Tax Administration Agency, attached to the Ministry of Finance and Public Function, requesting the actions carried out by that Agency after the presentation of a complaint by him. In particular, it requests that the complainant be informed of whether the identity of the complainant has been made available to the complainant and that the official concerned be identified.

The Administration issued a decision denying access, considering that there is a specific legal regime for access to information in tax matters, legally established in a sectoral norm, which is Law 58/2003, of December 17, General Tax, and this in application of the first additional provision of Law 19/2013, of December 9, on Transparency, Access to Public Information and Good Governance.

The Council of Transparency and Good Governance has submitted a complaint pursuant to Article 24 of the LTAIBG. The Council of Transparency and Good Governance considers it partially, considering, on the one hand, that Article 114 of the LGT does not constitute a specific legal regime of the right of access to information that displaces the regulation of the Law of Transparency; on the other hand, that it has not been argued that providing the merely identifying data of the acting official may cause an injury to the fundamental right to the protection of personal data or to privacy; and, finally, that the information requested is of a public nature and is particularly useful for controlling how decisions relating to the archiving are taken. In relation to the rejected party, the response of the AEAT is considered sufficient, ensuring that in no case is the identity of the complainant provided to the person denounced.