Donate to a provincial political party in Ontario
Only individuals who live in Ontario may donate
Only be made by individuals normally resident in Ontario can donate, using their own money, to:
- Candidates
- Political parties
- Constituency associations
- Leadership and nomination contestants
Contributions to parties, constituency associations, nomination contestants, candidates and leadership contestants registered under this Act may be made only by persons individually. 2016, c. 22, s. 10 (1).
Section 16 of the Election Finances Act
Individuals and corporations can donate unlimited funds to third parties
There are no contribution limits to third parties and they are not eligible for tax receipts.
Contributions to third parties may be made by:
- individuals normally resident in Ontario using their own funds;
- corporations carrying on business in Ontario that are not registered charities; or
- trade unions.
Political contributions to third parties are made available to the public in an online database. Anonymous contributions are not allowed.
Examples of third party advertisers in Ontario provincial elections
Examples of provincial third party advertisers (search Ontario advertisers or see their financial statements) include:
- Ontario Proud
- Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE Ontario)
- Ontario Medical Association
- Canadian Union of Postal Workers
- Ontario College of Family Physicians
- Environmental Defence Canada
- Ontario Home Builders’ Association
- Police Association of Ontario
- Ontario Real Estate Association
- Fair Vote Canada
Refundable tax credits
For every dollar you donate, you will receive up to $0.75 back in refundable tax credits. If the donation is between:
- $0 to $486.62 – 75% back in tax credits
- $486.62 and $1,622.08 – $364.97, plus 50% of any amount over $486.62
- Over $1,622.08 – $932.7 plus 33.33% of any amount over $1,622.08
- Maximum tax credit is $1,622.08
| Donation | Tax Credit | Net Cost |
|---|---|---|
| $50.00 | $37.50 | $12.50 |
| $100.00 | $75.00 | $25.00 |
| $250.00 | $187.50 | $62.50 |
| $500.00 | $371.66 | $128.34 |
| $1,500.00 | $871.66 | $628.34 |
| $3,375.00 | $1,516.94 | $1,858.06 |
Donating privately
Donations totaling less than $200 to a registered provincial political party or candidate in Ontario in a calendar year can be done privately, so you do not have to worry about family/friends/employers finding out. Your name must be recorded, but it is not reported to Elections Canada.
Donations totaling over $200 are recorded and submitted to Elections Ontario and the donor’s name and amount are made available to the public in the Elections Ontario – Political Contributions database
- $1 to $25 – Cash contributions cannot exceed $25.
- $25 to $200 – Contributor’s name and amount must be recorded, but not reported to Elections Ontario.
- Over $200 – Contributor’s name, address and amount are recorded and submitted to Elections Ontario and the name and amount are made publicly available.
Anonymous contributions are not allowed (Section 17 (2)) and all contributions accepted by a registered candidate’s campaign must have a
receipt issued.
Taking donations to federal political parties into account as well, you can donate another $200 privately and get 75% back in non-refundable tax credits, meaning for $100 out-of-pocket, you can privately get $400 worth of sway in elections at two levels of government.
Donation limits
In 2024, maximum donation allowed by Elections Ontario per donor, per year is:
- $3,375 to each registered political party
- $3,375 to all constituency associations for a party and all nomination contestants for that party
In an election year, there is an additional $3,375 in donations allowed in total to a candidates (or spread across candidates).
The limit is indexed to inflation based on the Consumer Price Index for Ontario.
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