Candidates and registered third party advertisers must file a financial statement on or before the deadline date.

• All candidates and registered third party advertisers must file an initial financial statement by 2 p.m. on the:
  • last Friday in March following the general election
  • 75 days after voting day in the case of a by-election
• Those who have extended their campaign to erase a deficit must also file a supplementary financial statement by 2 p.m. on the:
  • last Friday in September following the general election
  • 30 days after the expiry of the six-month period following the 45^th day after voting day in the case of a by-election

Candidates and registered third party advertisers must report on all contributions received and all expenses incurred for the campaign period. If they did not spend any money on their campaign, they must file a financial statement reflecting this. If the candidate or registered third party advertiser has raised or spent over $10,000, the financial statement must be audited by a licensed auditor under the Public Accounting Act, 2004.

If a mayor or councillor candidate is participating in the City’s Contribution Rebate Program, their statement must be audited by a licensed auditor under the Public Accounting Act, 2004, no matter how much they raised or spent.

There are limits on the amount a candidate and registered third party advertiser can spend on their campaign. There are two spending limits that cannot be exceeded:

Candidate:

• Expenses subject to the general spending limit
  • Mayoralty candidates: $7,500 plus 85 cents per eligible elector
  • Councillor or Trustee candidates: $5,000 plus 85 cents per eligible elector
• Expenses related to the cost of holding parties and making other expressions of appreciation after the close of voting
• 10 percent of the final general spending limit

Registered third party advertisers:

• Expenses subject to the general spending limit
  • $5,000 plus 5 cents per eligible elector, to a maximum of $25,000
• Expenses related to the cost of holding parties and making other expressions of appreciation after the close of voting
• 10 percent of the final general spending limit

It is the responsibility of the candidate and registered third party advertiser to determine what counts as an expense and whether it is subject to the general spending limit.

The following is a list of expenses that are included in the general spending limit:

• Inventory from previous municipal campaign used in this campaign
• Advertising
• Brochures/flyers
• Signs (including sign deposit)
• Meeting hosted
• Office expenses incurred until voting day
• Phone and/or internet expenses incurred until voting day
• Salaries, benefits, honoraria, professional fees incurred until voting day
• Bank charges incurred until voting day
• Interest charged on loan until voting day
• Other (candidate and registered third party advertiser to determine what other expenses fall within this category)

Candidates and registered third party advertisers are to list any expenses that fall within this category.

The following is a list of expenses that are not included in the general spending limit:

• Audit and accounting fees
• Cost of holding fundraising events or activities
• Office expenses incurred after voting day
• Phone and/or internet expenses incurred after voting day
• Salaries, benefits, honoraria, professional fees incurred after voting day
• Bank charges incurred after voting day
• Interest charged on loan after voting day
• Expenses related to a recount
• Expenses related to controverted election
• Expenses related to a compliance audit
• Expenses related to candidate's or registrant's disability
• Other (candidate and registered third party advertiser to determine what other expenses fall within this category)

The total campaign expenses cover those expenses that fall within the general spending limit, those that are exempt from the general spending limit and expenses relating to voting day parties and other expressions of appreciation. It is the responsibility of the candidate and registered third party advertiser to determine what counts as an expense and how to record it.

The total value of contributions includes donations of monetary and in kind (goods and services).

The amount the candidate or registered third party advertiser has at the end of the campaign.

The City of Toronto has a rebate program for candidates running for Mayor or Councillor. The information contained in this website does not reflect if a person applied for a rebate or how much they would receive.

Note: The Contribution Rebate Program is not available to school board trustee candidates or registered third party advertisers.

If the candidate or registrant has a surplus, they may refund any contributions made to the campaign by the candidate, registrant or their spouse, if applicable. The amount refunded cannot exceed the amount of the surplus.

Any surplus left after all deductions must be paid to the clerk.