The Act provides an exemption from registration for some organisations.
Exemptions are provided for the following:
- Organisations that only carry out processing to keep, in accordance with law, a register that is intended to provide information to the public;
- Organisations that only process manual data (unless the data has been prescribed by the Commissioner as requiring registration);
- Organisations that are not established or conducted for profit and that are processing data related to their members and supporters and their activities.
- Data controllers who only process data relating to personnel administration;
- Candidates for and holders of elective political office who only process personal data for electoral activities or for the purpose of providing advice or assistance;
- Educational establishments in relation to functions related to the provision of education;
- Solicitors and barristers who only process personal data for legal professional purposes;
- A wide exemption is available for normal commercial activity which by definition requires the processing of personal data, e.g. keeping details of customers and suppliers (this exemption does not include health professionals who process personal data relating to physical or mental health);
- Companies that only process personal data relating to shareholders, directors or other officers of the company with a view to compliance with the Companies Acts;
- Data controllers who only process personal data with a view to the publication of journalistic, literary or artistic material;
- Data processors who process personal data on behalf of data controllers where the processing of the data would fall under one or more of the above categories.