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You're not a political party, candidate or electoral district association, but you'd like to take part in a federal election by promoting or opposing a political party or a candidate? You can do that as a third party! This module explains the registration requirements for by-elections and non-fixed-date general elections.
What is a non-fixed-date general election? It is a general election held earlier than four years after the last one.
To register as a third party, you must be:
- an individual who is a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident or lives in Canada,
- a corporation that carries on regular business in Canada, or
- a group, as long as a person responsible for the group is a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident or lives in Canada.
Foreign third parties can't spend money or use their resources to influence Canadian elections.
Registered third parties can incur expenses for regulated activities to promote or oppose a political entity. For example, as a registered third party, you can carry out partisan activities or conduct election advertising to promote a candidate who supports your views. You'll learn more about regulated activities in another module.
Let's take a closer look at third party registration requirements.
You must register as a third party immediately after you conduct one or more regulated activities in the election period with combined expenses totalling $500 or more. The election period starts on the day the election is called and ends on election day, when the polls close. You can't register before the general election or by-election is called.
How do you register as a third party? You'll need to submit a registration form to Elections Canada with some basic information about your third party and key contacts. But before that, you must appoint a financial agent and you must also appoint an auditor immediately if you have incurred expenses totalling $10,000 or more for regulated activities conducted during the election period.
Elections Canada reviews your application and, once it is accepted, you are a registered third party. You will be added to our online registry, which lists names and partial addresses from third party registration forms.
Please consult the Political Financing Handbook for Third Parties on the Elections Canada website for details about third party activities, prohibitions and reporting obligations.