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Electoral expenditure
Election funding and financial disclosure obligations are regulated by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) under the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (Cth) (Electoral Act).
Under the Electoral Act, a 'third party' or a ‘significant third party' that incurs ‘electoral expenditure’ may be required to lodge an annual return with the AEC.
Our fact sheet covers:
- financial disclosure and registration obligations that may apply to not-for-profit organisations (third parties and significant third parties) under the Electoral Act, and
- how to make a disclosure as a third party or a significant third party
Disclosure of charities’ electoral expenditure on the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission register
Under amendments to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Regulation 2013, since 30 July 2021, the ACNC Commissioner is required to include links on the ACNC register to the part of the AEC's Transparency Register which relates to disclosure of a registered charity’s political electoral expenditure. The Transparency Register includes details of a charity’s political donations used for electoral expenditure.
More information
The Human Rights Law Centre has published a guide for not-for-profit organisations on complying with Commonwealth electoral laws.
The content on this webpage was last updated in November 2023 and is not legal advice. See full disclaimer and copyright notice.
