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

Marginal note:Notice of estimated surplus

• 476.92 (1) If the Chief Electoral Officer estimates that a nomination contestant has a surplus of nomination campaign funds, the Chief Electoral Officer shall issue a notice of the estimated amount of the surplus to the contestant’s financial agent.

• Marginal note:Disposal of surplus funds

  (2) The nomination contestant’s financial agent shall dispose of a surplus of nomination campaign funds within 60 days after the day on which they receive the notice of estimated surplus.

• Marginal note:Disposal without notice

  (3) If a nomination contestant has a surplus of nomination campaign funds but their financial agent has not received a notice of estimated surplus, the financial agent shall dispose of the surplus within 60 days after the day on which the Chief Electoral Officer is provided with the contestant’s nomination campaign return.

Marginal note:Method of disposal of surplus

476.93 A nomination contestant’s financial agent shall dispose of surplus nomination campaign funds by transferring them to

• (a) the official agent of the candidate endorsed by the registered party in the electoral district in which the nomination contest was held; or

• (b) the registered association that held the nomination contest or the registered party for whose endorsement the contest was held.

Marginal note:Notice of disposal of surplus

• 476.94 (1) A nomination contestant’s financial agent shall, within seven days after disposing of the contestant’s surplus nomination campaign funds, give the Chief Electoral Officer a notice in the prescribed form of the amount and date of the disposal and to whom the surplus was transferred.

• Marginal note:Publication

  (2) As soon as feasible after the disposal of a nomination contestant’s surplus nomination campaign funds, the Chief Electoral Officer shall publish the notice in any manner that he or she considers appropriate.

DIVISION 5Candidates

SUBDIVISION AOfficial Agent and Auditor

Marginal note:Deeming

477 For the purposes of Division 1 of this Part and this Division, except sections 477.89 to 477.95, a candidate is deemed to have been a candidate from the time they accept a provision of goods or services under section 364, accept a transfer of funds under that section, accept a contribution, borrow money under section 373 or incur an electoral campaign expense within the meaning of subsection 375(1).

Marginal note:Duty to appoint official agent

• 477.1 (1) A candidate shall appoint an official agent before accepting a provision of goods or services under section 364, accepting a transfer of funds under that section, accepting a contribution, borrowing money under section 373 or incurring an electoral campaign expense within the meaning of subsection 375(1).

• Marginal note:Appointment of auditor

  (2) A candidate shall appoint an auditor without delay if

  • (a) they accept contributions of $10,000 or more in total;

  • (b) they incur electoral campaign expenses of $10,000 or more in total; or

  • (c) they receive 10% or more of the valid votes cast in the electoral district in which they are a candidate.

Marginal note:Official agent — ineligibility

477.2 The following persons are ineligible to be an official agent:

• (a) an election officer or a member of the staff of a returning officer;

• (b) a candidate;

• (c) an auditor appointed as required by this Act;

• (d) a person who is not an elector;

• (e) an undischarged bankrupt; and

• (f) a person who does not have full capacity to enter into contracts in the province in which they ordinarily reside.

Marginal note:Auditor — eligibility

• 477.3 (1) Only the following are eligible to be an auditor for a candidate:

  • (a) a person who is a member in good standing of a corporation, association or institute of professional accountants; or

  • (b) a partnership of which every partner is a member in good standing of a corporation, association or institute of professional accountants.

• Marginal note:Auditor — ineligibility

  (2) The following persons are ineligible to be an auditor:

  • (a) an election officer or a member of the staff of a returning officer;

  • (b) the candidate or any other candidate;

  • (c) the official agent of the candidate or any other candidate;

  • (d) the chief agent of a registered party or an eligible party;

  • (e) a registered agent of a registered party;

  • (f) an electoral district agent of a registered association;

  • (g) a leadership contestant and their leadership campaign agent;

  • (h) a nomination contestant and their financial agent; and

  • (i) a financial agent of a registered third party.

Marginal note:If partnership appointed as auditor

477.4 Subject to sections 477.2 and 477.3, a person may be appointed as official agent or auditor for a candidate even if the person is a member of a partnership that has been appointed in accordance with this Act as an auditor for

• (a) a candidate in an electoral district other than the electoral district of the candidate for whom the appointment is being made; or

• (b) a registered party.

Marginal note:Consent

477.41 A candidate shall obtain from the official agent or auditor, on appointment, their signed consent to act in that capacity.

Marginal note:Replacement of official agent or auditor

477.42 In the event of the death, incapacity, resignation or ineligibility of an official agent or an auditor, or the revocation of the appointment of one, the candidate shall without delay appoint a replacement.

Marginal note:Only one official agent and auditor

477.43 A candidate shall have no more than one official agent and one auditor at a time.

Marginal note:Prohibition — official agents

• 477.44 (1) No person who is ineligible to be an official agent of a candidate shall act in that capacity.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — auditor

  (2) No person who is ineligible to be an auditor of a candidate shall act in that capacity.

SUBDIVISION BFinancial Administration of Candidates

Powers, Duties and Functions of Official Agent

Marginal note:Duty of official agent

477.45 A candidate’s official agent is responsible for administering the candidate’s financial transactions for their electoral campaign and for reporting on those transactions in accordance with this Act.

Marginal note:Bank account

• 477.46 (1) A candidate’s official agent shall open, for the sole purpose of the candidate’s electoral campaign, a separate bank account in a Canadian financial institution as defined in section 2 of the Bank Act, or in an authorized foreign bank as defined in that section that is not subject to the restrictions and requirements referred to in subsection 524(2) of that Act.

• Marginal note:Account holder name

  (2) The account shall name the account holder as follows: “(name of official agent), official agent”.

• Marginal note:Deposits into account

  (3) All of a candidate’s financial transactions in relation to the candidate’s electoral campaign that involve the receipt of money are to be deposited to the account unless the transaction involves the receipt of the candidate’s own funds and those funds are used to pay a litigation expense or a personal expense.

• Marginal note:Payments from account

  (3.1) All of a candidate’s financial transactions in relation to the candidate’s electoral campaign that involve the payment of money are to be paid from the account unless the transaction involves the payment out of the candidate’s own funds of a litigation expense or a personal expense.

• Marginal note:Closure of bank account

  (4) After the election or the withdrawal or death of a candidate, the candidate’s official agent shall close the account once all unpaid claims and surplus electoral funds have been dealt with in accordance with this Act.

• Marginal note:Final statement of bank account

  (5) The official agent shall, on closing the account, provide the Chief Electoral Officer with the final statement of the account.

Marginal note:Prohibition — accepting contributions, borrowing

• 477.47 (1) No person or entity, other than the candidate’s official agent, shall accept contributions to a candidate’s electoral campaign or borrow money on the candidate’s behalf under section 373.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — issuing tax receipts

  (2) No person or entity, other than the candidate’s official agent, shall provide official receipts to contributors of monetary contributions to a candidate for the purpose of subsection 127(3) of the Income Tax Act.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — accepting or providing goods, services or funds

  (3) No person or entity, other than the candidate’s official agent, shall, on behalf of a candidate,

  • (a) accept a provision of goods or services, or a transfer of funds, if the provision or transfer is permitted under section 364; or

  • (b) provide goods or services, or transfer funds, if the provision or transfer is permitted under that section.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — paying electoral expenses

  (4) No person or entity, other than a candidate’s official agent, shall pay the candidate’s electoral campaign expenses except for

  • (a) a litigation expense;

  • (b) travel and living expenses;

  • (c) a personal expense; or

  • (d) a petty expense referred to in section 381.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — incurring electoral expenses

  (5) No person or entity, other than a candidate, their official agent or a person authorized under paragraph 477.55(c) to enter into contracts, shall incur expenses in relation to the candidate’s electoral campaign.

• Marginal note:Election expenses incurred by candidate

  (5.1) Despite subsection (5), a candidate shall, before incurring election expenses, obtain the written authorization of their official agent to incur those expenses, and shall incur them only in accordance with that authorization.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — paying candidate’s personal expenses, etc.

  (6) No person or entity, other than a candidate or their official agent, shall pay the candidate’s expenses referred to in any of paragraphs (4)(a) to (c).

• Marginal note:Exception

  (7) Subsection (4) or (5), as the case may be, does not apply to a registered agent of a registered party who pays or incurs expenses in relation to the electoral campaign of the leader of the registered party.

477.48 [Repealed, 2018, c. 31, s. 291]

Election Expenses Limit

Marginal note:Maximum election expenses allowed

• 477.49 (1) The election expenses limit that is allowed for a candidate’s election expenses in an electoral district is the product of the base amount for an electoral district determined under section 477.5 and the inflation adjustment factor referred to in section 384 on the day on which the writ is issued.

• Marginal note:Maximum expenses: postponement of polling day

  (2) If the Governor in Council orders the postponement of polling day under subsection 59(4) for an electoral district along with the corresponding extension of the election period, then the election expenses limit calculated under subsection (1) for a candidate in that electoral district is increased by adding to it the product of

  • (a) the election expenses limit calculated under subsection (1) divided by the number of days in the election period before it was extended, and

  • (b) the number of days by which the election period is extended.

Marginal note:Base amount of candidate’s election expenses

• 477.5 (1) The base amount of a candidate’s election expenses in an electoral district is the higher of

  • (a) the amount calculated, on the basis of the preliminary lists of electors for the electoral district, in accordance with subsections (3) to (6), and

  • (b) the amount calculated, on the basis of the revised lists of electors for the electoral district, in accordance with subsections (7) to (10).

• Marginal note:Death of candidate of registered party

  (2) If a candidate for an electoral district whose nomination was endorsed by a registered party dies within the period beginning at 2:00 p.m. on the fifth day before the closing day for nominations and ending on polling day, the base amount for that electoral district is increased by 50%.

• Marginal note:Calculation using preliminary lists of electors

  (3) The amount referred to in paragraph (1)(a) is the aggregate of the following amounts, based on the number of the electors on the preliminary lists of electors:

  • (a) $2.1735 for each of the first 15,000 electors,

  • (b) $1.092 for each of the next 10,000 electors, and

  • (c) $0.546 for each of the remaining electors.

• Marginal note:Fewer electors than average — general election

  (4) If the number of electors on the preliminary lists of electors for the electoral district is less than the average number of electors on all preliminary lists of electors in a general election, then, in making a calculation under subsection (3), the number of electors is deemed to be halfway between the number on the preliminary lists of electors for the electoral district and that average number.

• Marginal note:Fewer electors than average — by-election

  (5) In the case of a by-election, if the number of electors on the preliminary lists of electors for the electoral district is less than the average number of electors on all revised lists of electors in the immediately preceding general election, then, in making a calculation under subsection (3), the number of electors is deemed to be halfway between the number on the preliminary lists of electors for the electoral district and that average number.

• Marginal note:Districts with lower population density

  (6) If the number of electors per square kilometre, calculated on the basis of the preliminary lists of electors for the electoral district, is less than 10, the amount calculated under subsection (3) is increased by the lesser of $0.31 per square kilometre and 25% of the amount calculated under subsection (3).

• Marginal note:Calculation using revised list of electors

  (7) The amount referred to in paragraph (1)(b) is the aggregate of the following amounts, based on the number of the electors on the revised lists of electors:

  • (a) $2.1735 for each of the first 15,000 electors,

  • (b) $1.092 for each of the next 10,000 electors, and

  • (c) $0.546 for each of the remaining electors.

• Marginal note:Fewer electors than average — general election

  (8) If the number of electors on the revised lists of electors for the electoral district is less than the average number of electors on all revised lists of electors in a general election, then, in making a calculation under subsection (7), the number of electors is deemed to be halfway between the number on the revised lists of electors for the electoral district and that average number.

• Marginal note:Fewer electors than average — by-election

  (9) In the case of a by-election, if the number of electors on the revised lists of electors for the electoral district is less than the average number of electors on all revised lists of electors in the immediately preceding general election, then, in making a calculation under subsection (7), the number of electors is deemed to be halfway between the number on the revised lists of electors for the electoral district and that average number.

• Marginal note:Districts with lower population density

  (10) If the number of electors per square kilometre, calculated on the basis of the revised lists of electors for the electoral district, is less than 10, the amount calculated under subsection (7) is increased by the lesser of $0.31 per square kilometre and 25% of the amount calculated under subsection (7).