Privacy Notice
Last Updated: May 1, 2025
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is committed to protecting the privacy of individuals whose Personal Data it processes in carrying out of its mandate and mission. The IMF has adopted core privacy principles for its operations, aligned with global privacy standards.
This Privacy Notice outlines how the IMF processes and safeguards Personal Data in accordance with these principles and related IMF internal rules and practices. For the purposes of this notice, “Personal Data” means information relating to an identified or identifiable individual.
- What Personal Data does the IMF collect and for what purposes?
- Principles Governing IMF’s Personal Data Processing
- How long does the IMF retain your Personal Data?
- Who has access to your Personal Data?
- How does the IMF protect your Personal Data?
- What are your rights in relation to your Personal Data?
- How to lodge a complaint?
- How to submit an appeal?
- How to contact us?
- Updates to this Privacy Notice
What Personal Data does the IMF collect and for what purposes?
The nature of Personal Data collected by the IMF depends on your relationship with the organization. The IMF may process:
- Contact Information (e.g., name, email, address, phone number),
- Online Information (e.g., cookies, IP address when visiting IMF websites),
- Contractual Information (e.g., details related to services provided to the IMF), and
- Other relevant information necessary for the IMF’s activities.
The IMF collects and processes Personal Data only for legitimate purposes when that is necessary to carry out its mandate or when there is another basis mentioned below.
Principles Governing IMF’s Personal Data Processing
Legitimacy, Fairness, and Transparency: The IMF shall process Personal Data fairly, transparently and only when there is one of the following legitimate bases:
- When individuals provide consent for processing of their Personal Data.
- When processing is necessary to perform a contract with the IMF or to take pre-contractual steps.
- When processing is necessary to comply with IMF policies, procedures, rules or with other legal obligations of the IMF.
- When processing is necessary to protect an individual’s vital interests.
- When processing is necessary for the IMF to carry out its mandate.
Purpose Limitation and Data Minimization: Personal Data shall be collected for specific, legitimate purposes and shall not be further processed in ways incompatible with those purposes. Further processing for archiving, research or statistical purposes shall not be considered incompatible with the original purpose. Personal Data collection shall be limited to what is necessary for the purposes of processing.
Accuracy: Personal Data shall be recorded as accurately as possible and updated as necessary.
Storage Limitation: Personal Data shall be retained in a form that permits identification of individuals for no longer than is necessary to fulfill its intended purpose and longer only if that is consistent with the applicable retention rules.
Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability: Personal Data shall be protected by appropriate technical or organizational safeguards against unauthorized processing and accidental loss, destruction or damage.
How long does the IMF retain your Personal Data?
Personal Data is retained only for as long as necessary to fulfil the intended purpose(s) or as required by internal policy requirements. The IMF determines appropriate periods for retaining Personal Data depending on the purpose of processing and in accordance with its wider retention rules.
What are your rights in relation to your Personal Data?
Individuals whose Personal Data is processed by the IMF have certain rights, subject to the limitations and conditions outlined in the IMF’s internal rules. These rights include:
- Right to Information: You have the right to obtain information about the processing of your Personal Data by the IMF through this Privacy Notice and any additional notices that may apply to the specific processing.
- Right to Access: You have the right to obtain confirmation of whether your Personal Data is being processed, access your Personal Data, and obtain further details about its processing.
- Right to Rectification: You have the right to request correction of your Personal Data that you believe is inaccurate or incomplete.
- Right to Objection: You have the right to object to the processing of your Personal Data at any time if the processing is based on the necessity for the IMF to fulfill its mandate and you have specific grounds related to your particular situation.
Individuals’ rights can be limited at IMF’s discretion if their Personal Data is processed for the purpose of or in connection with: any informal or formal processes related to IMF’s dispute resolution system; inquiries, confidential advice and guidance or investigations by the IMF’s ethics offices or committees; investigations in relation to cyber security incidents by IMF’s Chief Information Security Officer; any disciplinary process; the provision of confidential feedback on work performance or performance in selection processes; prevention and detection of criminal activities; participation by the IMF in legal proceedings; and/or research or statistical purposes to the extent that the exercise of your rights would prevent or seriously impair the achievement of these purposes. Also, the scope of the right to information and right to rectification will depend on IMF’s balancing of various considerations including costs and resources.
How to exercise your rights?
To exercise your rights to access, rectification, or objection, please complete this form in English and send it to the IMF Data Privacy Function via email at IMFDataPrivacy@IMF.org or submit it by mail or hand delivery to:
International Monetary Fund
Attention: Data Privacy Function
700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20431
United States of America
How to lodge a complaint?
If you believe that that the processing of your Personal Data by the IMF has violated any of your rights mentioned above or any other terms of this Privacy Notice, you can submit a complaint to the IMF's Data Privacy Function. Your complaint has to be submitted within 120 calendar days of either:
- The date you were notified of the Data Privacy Function’s decision regarding your request for access, rectification or objection, or
- The date you became aware of the alleged violation, whichever is earlier.
How to submit a complaint?
To submit your complaint, please complete this form in English and send it via email at IMFDataPrivacy@IMF.org or submit it by mail or hand delivery to:
International Monetary Fund
Attention: Data Privacy Function
700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20431
United States of America
Please note that the Data Privacy Function does not accept or respond to access requests, rectification requests, objections or complaints submitted by individuals whose identity cannot be verified or that are incomplete, overly broad or unclear, repetitive, frivolous, excessive or clearly unfounded; and does not award any compensation, costs, fees or other monetary remedies in relation to complaints submitted to it.
How to submit an appeal?
If you are not satisfied with the decision of the Data Privacy Function regarding your complaint, within 30 calendar days of being notified of that decision you have the right to submit an appeal to the IMF Data Privacy Appeals Committee.
To submit your appeal, please complete this form in English and send it via email at IMFDataPrivacyAppeal@imf.org or submit it by mail or hand delivery to:
International Monetary Fund
Attention: Data Privacy Appeals Committee
700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20431
United States of America
Please note that the Data Privacy Appeals Committee does not accept or respond to appeals submitted by individuals whose identity cannot be verified or that are incomplete, overly broad or unclear, repetitive, frivolous, excessive or clearly unfounded; and does not award any compensation, costs, fees or other monetary remedies in relation to appeals submitted to it.
How to contact us?
If you have questions regarding this Privacy Notice, please contact the IMF Data Privacy Function at IMFDataPrivacy@IMF.org