Canada Elections Act (S.C. 2000, c. 9)

Marginal note:Certain transfers prohibited

• 365 (1) No registered party and no electoral district association of a registered party shall provide goods or services or transfer funds to a nomination contestant or a leadership contestant, unless the goods or services are offered equally to all contestants.

• Definition of directed contribution

  (2) In this section, directed contribution means an amount that is all or part of a contribution made to a registered party and that the contributor requests in writing be transferred to a particular leadership contestant.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3) Subsection (1) does not apply to a directed contribution that is transferred by the registered party to the leadership contestant mentioned in the request if the party provides, with the amount transferred, a statement in the prescribed form setting out the name and address of the contributor, the amount and date of the contribution, the amount of the directed contribution, the amount that the party is transferring and the date of the transfer.

• Marginal note:Presumption

  (4) The amount of a directed contribution that is to be transferred to a leadership contestant is deemed to be a contribution made by the contributor to the contestant.

Marginal note:Issuance of receipts

• 366 (1) Any person who is authorized to accept contributions on behalf of a registered party, a registered association, a nomination contestant, a candidate or a leadership contestant shall issue a receipt — of which the person shall keep a copy — for each contribution of more than $20 that they accept.

• Marginal note:Record keeping

  (2) If anonymous contributions of $20 or less per person are collected in response to a general solicitation at a meeting or fundraising event related to the affairs of a registered party, a registered association, a nomination contestant, a candidate or a leadership contestant, the person authorized to accept those contributions shall record the following:

  • (a) a description of the function at which the contributions were collected;

  • (b) the date of the function;

  • (c) the approximate number of people at the function; and

  • (d) the total amount of the anonymous contributions received.

Marginal note:Contribution limits

• 367 (1) Subject to subsection 373(4), no individual shall make contributions that exceed

  • (a) $1,500 in total in any calendar year to a particular registered party;

  • (b) $1,500 in total in any calendar year to the registered associations, nomination contestants and candidates of a particular registered party;

  • (c) $1,500 in total to a candidate for a particular election who is not the candidate of a registered party; and

  • (d) $1,500 in total in any calendar year to the leadership contestants in a particular leadership contest.

• Marginal note:Increase to contribution limits

  (1.1) The contribution limits set out in subsection (1) increase by $25 on January 1 in each year.

• Marginal note:Testamentary dispositions

  (2) A contribution may be made by way of a testamentary disposition if the contribution is made only in one calendar year and does not cause the contributor to exceed the relevant limit under subsection (1), taking into account any contributions that the contributor made before their death.

• Marginal note:Non-conforming testamentary dispositions read down

  (3) A testamentary disposition that provides for a contribution that would cause the contributor to exceed the relevant limit under subsection (1) shall be read as if the contribution is for the highest amount that would not cause the contributor to exceed that limit, and a testamentary disposition that provides for a contribution to be made in more than one calendar year after the year in which this subsection comes into force shall be read as if the contribution is to be made only in the first of those calendar years.

• Marginal note:Attribution of certain contributions

  (4) For the purposes of subsection (1), a contribution to a person who presents themselves as seeking the endorsement of a particular registered party is to be treated as a contribution referred to in paragraph (1)(b) to a candidate of that party and a contribution to a person who presents themselves as seeking to be a candidate not endorsed by any registered party is to be treated as a contribution referred to in paragraph (1)(c).

• Marginal note:Exception — nomination contestant’s contributions to own campaign

  (5) Contributions that do not exceed $1,000 in total by a nomination contestant out of their own funds to their own campaign as a nomination contestant do not count towards the nomination contestant’s contributions for the purposes of paragraph (1)(b).

• Marginal note:Contributions — candidates and leadership contestants

  (6) Subject to subsection (7), no candidate in a particular election and no leadership contestant in a particular leadership contest shall make a contribution out of their own funds to their own campaign.

• Marginal note:Exception — certain contributions to own campaign

  (7) The following contributions are permitted:

  • (a) contributions that do not exceed $5,000 in total by a candidate for a particular election out of their own funds to their own campaign; and

  • (b) contributions that do not exceed $25,000 in total by a leadership contestant in a particular leadership contest out of their own funds to their own campaign.

  For greater certainty, contributions made by a candidate under subsection (1) to a registered party or a registered association that later transfers funds to the candidate for the purpose of their campaign do not have the effect of reducing the amount that the candidate may contribute under this subsection.

• Marginal note:Contributions under subsection (1) not affected

  (8) Contributions made under subsection (7) do not have the effect of reducing the amounts that the candidate or leadership contestant, as the case may be, may contribute under subsection (1) to other candidates or to other leadership contestants, as the case may be.

Marginal note:Prohibition — circumventing limits

• 368 (1) No person or entity shall

  • (a) circumvent, or attempt to circumvent, the prohibition under subsection 363(1) or 367(6) or a limit set out in subsection 367(1) or (7) or section 371; or

  • (b) act in collusion with another person or entity for that purpose.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — concealing source of contribution

  (2) No person or entity shall

  • (a) conceal, or attempt to conceal, the identity of the source of a contribution governed by this Act; or

  • (b) act in collusion with another person or entity for that purpose.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — accepting excessive contributions

  (3) No person who is permitted to accept contributions under this Act shall accept a contribution that exceeds a limit under this Act.

• Marginal note:Prohibited agreements

  (4) No person or entity shall enter into an agreement for the provision for payment of goods or services, directly or indirectly, to a registered party or a candidate that includes a term that any individual will make a contribution, directly or indirectly, to a registered party, a registered association, a nomination contestant, a candidate or a leadership contestant.

368.1 [Repealed, 2014, c. 12, s. 86]

Marginal note:Prohibition — soliciting or accepting contribution

• 369 (1) No person or entity shall solicit or accept a contribution on behalf of a registered party, a registered association or a candidate if the person or entity makes a representation to the contributor or potential contributor that part or all of the contribution would be transferred to a person or entity other than the registered party or a candidate, a leadership contestant or an electoral district association.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — collusion

  (2) No person or entity shall act in collusion with another person or entity for the purpose of circumventing the prohibition under subsection (1).

Marginal note:Prohibition — making indirect contributions

• 370 (1) No individual shall make a contribution to a registered party, a registered association, a nomination contestant, a candidate or a leadership contestant that comes from money, property or the services of any person or entity that was provided to that individual for that purpose.

• Marginal note:Exception — candidates and leadership contestants

  (2) Despite subsection (1), a candidate or a leadership contestant may make a contribution under subsection 367(7) that comes from money provided by way of a loan to the candidate or leadership contestant made in writing by a financial institution as defined in section 2 of the Bank Act at a fair market rate of interest, as long as no security is given for the loan except property of the candidate or leadership contestant, as the case may be.

Marginal note:Limit on cash contributions

371 No individual shall, in respect of each contribution made under this Division, contribute cash in an amount that exceeds $20.

Marginal note:Return of contributions

372 If a registered party, a registered association, a nomination contestant, a candidate or a leadership contestant receives a contribution made in contravention of subsection 367(1) or (6) or 368(4) or section 370 or 371, the chief agent of the registered party, the financial agent of the registered association, the official agent of the candidate or the financial agent of the nomination contestant or leadership contestant, as the case may be, shall, within 30 days after becoming aware of the contravention, return the contribution unused to the contributor or, if that is not possible, pay the amount of it — or, in the case of a non-monetary contribution, an amount of money equal to its commercial value — to the Chief Electoral Officer, who shall forward that amount to the Receiver General.

Loans, Guarantees and Suretyships

Marginal note:Ineligible lenders and guarantors

• 373 (1) Except as permitted under this section, no person or entity shall

  • (a) make a loan to a registered party or a registered association;

  • (b) make a loan to a nomination contestant, a candidate or a leadership contestant in relation to the contestant’s or candidate’s campaign; or

  • (c) guarantee a loan referred to in paragraph (a) or (b).

• Marginal note:Ineligible borrowers

  (2) Except if the loan is permitted under this section, no registered agent of a registered party and no financial agent of a registered association shall borrow money on behalf of the party or association, and no official agent of a candidate and no financial agent of a nomination contestant or of a leadership contestant shall borrow money for the purposes of the candidate’s or contestant’s campaign.

• Marginal note:Exception — financial institutions

  (3) A financial institution as defined in section 2 of the Bank Act may in writing make a loan referred to in subsection (1) at a fair market rate of interest.

• Marginal note:Exception — individuals

  (4) An individual who is a Canadian citizen or is a permanent resident as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act may in writing make a loan referred to in subsection (1) or guarantee such a loan. However, the total of the following amounts shall not at any time exceed the individual’s relevant contribution limit set out in paragraphs 367(1)(a) to (d), subsection 367(5) and paragraphs 367(7)(a) and (b):

  • (a) the amounts of the individual’s contributions,

  • (b) the amounts of the individual’s loans made in the relevant contribution period, not including any amount that has been repaid in the calendar year in which the loan was made, and

  • (c) the amounts guaranteed by the individual in the relevant contribution period, not including any amount for which the individual has ceased to be liable in the calendar year in which the guarantee was given.

• Marginal note:Exception — certain loans

  (5) A loan may be made in writing

  • (a) by a registered party to a registered association of the party or a candidate endorsed by the party; or

  • (b) by a registered association to the registered party with which it is affiliated, another registered association of the party or a candidate endorsed by the party.

• Marginal note:Exception — certain guarantees and suretyships

  (6) A registered party or registered association may in writing guarantee a loan made in writing to a party, association or candidate to which it itself is permitted to make a loan under subsection (5).