Political Financing Handbook for Leadership Contestants and Financial Agents (EC 20195) – February 2016 – Archived Content )
This document is Elections Canada's archived guideline OGI 2015-06 and is no longer in effect.
An updated version of this document is available in Tools for Leadership Contestants.
Tables and Reminders
The tables and reminders in this section are quick reference tools for the use of leadership contestants, financial agents and leadership campaign agents.
This section contains the following:
- Important deadlines for the leadership contestant's campaign
- Contribution, loan and loan guarantee limits summary
- Transfers – types and rules
- Reporting requirements for the leadership contestant's campaign
- Important reminders for leadership contestants, financial agents and leadership campaign agents
- Filing deadline extensions
Important deadlines for the leadership contestant's campaign
Text version of "Important deadlines for the leadership contestant's campaign
- Must be appointed before contributions, transfers or loans are accepted or leadership campaign expenses are incurred.
- Must be appointed before registering as a leadership contestant.
- Required before contributions, transfers or loans are accepted or leadership campaign expenses are incurred.
- Directed contributions may not be received by the contestant's campaign until the leadership contestant's registration has been confirmed.
- Required if contributions totalling more than $10,000 are accepted or leadership campaign expenses totalling more than $10,000 are incurred (note that transfers to affiliated political entities are not leadership campaign expenses). If the threshold is reached after the first reporting period, one interim campaign return must be submitted for the whole period.
- Required if contributions totalling $5,000 or more are accepted, or leadership campaign expenses totalling $5,000 or more are incurred (note that transfers to affiliated political entities are not leadership campaign expenses).
- Required if the campaign has unpaid claims and loans.
Note: Funds provided specifically to pay for expenses incurred outside the contest period are not subject to the controls on contributions and loans in the Canada Elections Act.
Contributions, loans and loan guarantees limits
Political entity | 2016 annual limit | Limit per election called between Jan. 1, 2016 and Dec. 31, 2016 |
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To each registered party | $1,525* | n/a |
In total to all the registered associations, nomination contestants and candidates of each registered party | $1,525* | n/a |
In total to all leadership contestants in a particular contest | $1,525* | n/a |
To each independent candidate | n/a | $1,525* |
Notes:
- The contribution limits apply to: total contributions, the unpaid balance of loans made during the contribution period and the amount of any loan guarantees made during the contribution period that an individual is still liable for. The sum of these three amounts cannot at any time exceed the contribution limit.
- A nomination contestant is permitted to give an additional $1,000 in total per contest in contributions, loans and loan guarantees to his or her own campaign.
- A candidate is permitted to give a total of $5,000 in contributions, loans and loan guarantees to his or her campaign.
- A candidate is also permitted to give an additional $1,525 in total per year in contributions, loans and loan guarantees to other candidates, registered associations and nomination contestants of each party. (This includes contributions to the registered association in the candidate's electoral district and contributions to the candidate's own nomination campaign.)
- A leadership contestant is permitted to give a total of $25,000 in contributions, loans and loan guarantees to his or her campaign.
- A leadership contestant is also permitted to give an additional $1,525 in total per year in contributions, loans and loan guarantees to other leadership contestants.
* The limits, increase by $25 on January 1st in each subsequent year.
Note: Funds provided specifically to pay for expenses incurred outside the contest period are not subject to the controls on contributions and loans in the Canada Elections Act.
Transfers – types and rules
This table shows the allowable monetary and non-monetary transfers between related registered political entities.
FROM | TO | |||||||||
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Nomination Contestant | Leadership Contestant | Candidate | Registered Electoral District Association | Registered Party | ||||||
Monetary | Non- monetary | Monetary | Non- monetary | Monetary | Non- monetary | Monetary | Non- monetary | Monetary | Non- monetary | |
Nomination Contestant | No | No | No | No | Yes1 | No | Yes2 | No | Yes | No |
Leadership Contestant | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Candidate | Yes3 | Yes3 | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Registered Electoral District Association | No | Yes4 | No | Yes4 | Yes7 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Registered Party | No | Yes4 | No5 | Yes4 | Yes7 | Yes | Yes6 | Yes6 | N/A | N/A |
1 A nomination contestant may transfer funds (but not property or services) to a candidate of the same party in the electoral district in which the nomination contest was held.
2 A nomination contestant can only transfer funds to the registered electoral district association that held the nomination contest.
3 Candidates may transfer property, services and funds to their own nomination contestant campaign for the same election.
4 Non-monetary transfers must be offered equally to all contestants.
5 Directed contributions are the only exception: they may be transferred to the leadership contestant.
6 Registered parties may transfer property, services and funds to electoral district associations, whether registered or not.
7 Monetary transfers other than trust funds are allowed. After election day, monetary transfers are allowed only to pay claims and loans related to the candidate's campaign.
Note: Independent candidates may not send or accept transfers of funds, property or services to or from other political entities.
Reporting requirements for the leadership contestant's campaign
Text version of "Reporting requirements for the leadership contestant's campaign" diagram
- Required if contributions totalling more than $10,000 are accepted or leadership campaign expenses totalling more than $10,000 are incurred during the reporting period (note that transfers to affiliated political entities are not leadership campaign expenses). If the threshold is reached after the first reporting period, one campaign return must be submitted for the whole period.
- Applies to leadership contestants whose campaigns have accepted contributions totalling $5,000 or more, or incurred leadership campaign expenses totalling $5,000 or more (note that transfers to affiliated political entities are not leadership campaign expenses).
- If a claim or loan is paid any time after the campaign return is filed, the financial agent must send an updated campaign return to Elections Canada within 30 days.
- Required if the campaign has unpaid claims and loans.
Note: The auditor needs to have sufficient time to properly audit the Leadership Contestant's Campaign Return before the deadline. Therefore it is advisable to give the completed return to the auditor well before the deadline of six months after contest day.
Note: When sending any original documents by mail, please ensure that you keep a copy for your records.
Important reminders for leadership contestants, financial agents and leadership campaign agents
Note: Funds provided specifically to pay for expenses incurred outside the contest period are not subject to the controls on contributions and loans in the Canada Elections Act.
DO | DON'T |
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*Exceptions: A person authorized by the financial agent or a leadership campaign agent can pay expenses out of petty cash. The leadership contestant can pay the leadership contestant's personal expenses. |
DO | DON'T |
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Filing deadline extensions
Document to submit | Extension from Elections Canada | Additional extension from Elections Canada | Extension from a judge |
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Leadership Contestant's Interim Campaign Return | No | No | No |
Leadership Contestant's Campaign Return | Yes | No | Yes |
Updated Leadership Contestant's Campaign Return after a final payment of a claim or loan within 36 months after contest day | Yes | No | Yes |
Leadership Contestant's Statement of Unpaid Claims and Loans 18 or 36 Months After the End of the Leadership Contest | Yes | No | Yes |
Updated Leadership Contestant's Campaign Return after payment of a claim or loan later than 36 months after contest day | Yes | No | Yes |
Corrected or revised Leadership Contestant's Campaign Return requested by the leadership contestant or the financial agent | Yes | Yes | No |
Corrected or revised Leadership Contestant's Campaign Return requested by Elections Canada | No | No | No* |
* Corrections or revisions requested by Elections Canada are not eligible for extensions and must be filed within the specified period. However, the financial agent or the leadership contestant can apply to a judge to be relieved of the obligation of complying with the request.