Public Record Gaps
When a public record should exist but cannot be found
Proactive disclosure duties, retention schedules, 'information not held', neither confirm nor deny, and the rules on archives and destruction of records.
Updated 6 November 2026
Data tools
Disclosure duties12A sourced directory of laws that make public bodies publish records without a request, in the UK, India, the United States and the European Union.Retention rules18A sourced directory of laws and schedules that govern how long public records are kept, when they move to archives and when destruction is unlawful.FOI statistics19Official figures on freedom of information requests received, released, refused and not held, from the US, UK, Australian and Canadian governments.Disclosure duties
- How to request a missing public record
The official steps to ask for a record that is not published: describe it precisely, use the right law, note the deadline and use review and appeal routes.
- Proactive disclosure duties compared
What public bodies must publish without a request under UK FOI section 19, India RTI section 4, US FOIA reading room rules and EU Regulation 1049/2001.
Retention and archives
- Archive transfer rules compared
How long governments keep records before transfer or public opening: the UK 20-year rule, the US 30-year transfer rule, Australia, India and the EU.
- Records retention schedules explained
How retention and disposal schedules decide which government records are kept, transferred or destroyed in the US, UK, Australia and India.
- Unlawful destruction of public records: the rules
Offences and reporting duties for destroying, altering or hiding public records in the UK, US, Canada, India and Australia, with the penalties set in law.
When records are not found
- Information not held: what the reply means
What a public body means when it says it does not hold information, how searches are judged, and how rules differ in the UK, US, Canada, Ireland and EU.
- Neither confirm nor deny: how the response works
Why a public body may refuse to say whether it holds a record, which UK exemptions allow it, and how Canada and the US handle the same question.
- Why public records go missing
The lawful and unlawful reasons a public record cannot be produced: never created, lawfully destroyed, held elsewhere, overwritten or lost.