Skip to contentInformation for people with disabilityInformation on accessibility
Australian Electoral Commission
Looking for civil and criminal penalty provisions associated with funding and disclosure penalties prior to 1 January 2027? Visit Penalties – financial disclosure
The civil and criminal penalty provisions below are from Part XX of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 as amended and will come into effect on 1 January 2027. Breaches or offences prior to 1 January 2027 are subject to the penalties outlined here.
Civil and criminal penalties associated with funding and disclosure affect political parties, members of the House of Representatives, Senators, significant third parties, associated entities, nominated entities, third parties, candidates and donors.
The tables below set out civil and criminal penalties. The value of a penalty unit is set by section 4AA of the Crimes Act 1914. The value of the penalty unit that applies is determined by the date of the breach or offence.
In addition to the penalties listed below, it is also an offence to provide false or misleading information under sections 137.1 and 137.2 of the Criminal Code Act 1995.
For information of terms relevant to the funding and disclosure scheme, refer to the FAD Glossary.
For information on penalties associated with a referendum, refer to Penalties – referendum disclosure.
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Incurring electoral expenditure, or fundraising to incur electoral expenditure, after becoming required to be registered as a significant third party, and failing to register as a significant third party within 90 days. |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 287F(3) |
Not applicable |
Incurring electoral expenditure, or fundraising to incur electoral expenditure, after becoming required to be registered as an associated entity, and failing to register as an associated entity within 90 days. |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 287H(3) |
Not applicable |
Failure to notify the Electoral Commission within 90 days of changes to information on the Transparency Register |
|
60 penalty units s 287P(2) |
Not applicable |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Failure to comply with federal account obligations |
|
200 penalty units s 292FA(8) |
Not applicable |
Failure to use a permitted federal account |
|
200 penalty units s 292FB |
Not applicable |
Failure to give a notice to the AEC following first relevant use of a federal account |
|
200 penalty units s 292FC(1) |
Not applicable |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Failure to ensure that administrative assistance funding paid to a registered political party is used only to incur administrative expenditure |
|
200 penalty units s 302AG(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to ensure that administrative assistance funding is not used to incur expenditure covered by ss 287AAA(2)(a), (b), (c) or (d) after receiving a notification under s302AG(2) |
|
200 penalty units s 302AG(3) |
Not applicable |
Failure to ensure that administrative assistance funding paid to an individual is used only to incur administrative expenditure |
|
200 penalty units s 302AG(4) |
Not applicable |
Failure to ensure that administrative assistance funding is not used to incur expenditure covered by s 287AAA(2)(a), (b), (c) or (d) after receiving a notification under s 302AG(5) |
|
200 penalty units s 302AG(6) |
Not applicable |
NOTE: Civil penalties below that relate to exceeding an expenditure cap will not apply where acceptable expenditure action is taken under s 302AQA.
For more information on acceptable expenditure action and other exceptions, please refer to the relevant Electoral Expenditure Caps Guideline for your entity type on the AEC website.
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Expenditure caps for registered political party expenditure groups |
|||
Exceeding the Federal expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AMA(4) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the Divisional expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AMB(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the Senate expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AMC(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the by‑election expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AMD(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the Senate‑only election expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AME(3) |
Not applicable |
Failure to notify if expenditure reaches a relevant cap s 302ARA |
Note: the core members of an expenditure group are a registered political party and its:
|
60 penalty units s 302ARA(1) |
Not applicable |
Expenditure caps for Independent House of Representatives candidates or Members |
|||
Exceeding the Independent House of Representatives expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302ANA(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the Independent House of Representatives by‑election cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302ANB(3) |
Not applicable |
Failure to notify if expenditure reaches a relevant cap |
|
60 penalty units s 302ARA(2) |
Not applicable |
Expenditure caps for Independent Senate candidates or Senators |
|||
Exceeding the Independent Senate expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AOA(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the Senate‑only election independent Senate cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302AOB(3) |
Not applicable |
Failure to notify if expenditure reaches a relevant cap s 302ARA |
|
60 penalty units s 302ARA(3) |
Not applicable |
Expenditure caps for significant third parties, associated entities, and third parties (Capped expenditure entity) |
|||
Exceeding the capped entity expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302APA(4) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the capped entity Divisional expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302APB(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the capped entity Senate expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302APC(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the capped entity by‑election expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302APD(3) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the capped entity Senate‑only election expenditure cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302APE(3) |
Not applicable |
Failure to notify if expenditure reaches a relevant cap |
|
60 penalty units s 302ARA(4) |
Not applicable |
NOTE: Civil penalties below that relate to exceeding a gift cap will not apply where an acceptable recipient action or acceptable donor action exception applies.
For more information on acceptable recipient action and acceptable donor action, please refer to the donor and recipient Gift Caps Guidelines on the AEC website.
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Exceeding the annual gift cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302CD(5) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the by-election gift cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302CE(5) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the Senate-only election gift cap |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302CF(5) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the overall gift cap |
Donors only, if gift is made to a:
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302CI(5) |
Not applicable |
Exceeding the State and Territory gift cap |
Donors only, if gift is made to a:
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302CJ(6) |
Not applicable |
NOTE: Criminal offences and civil penalties below that relate to foreign donations will not apply where an acceptable action exception applies.
For more information on acceptable action and other applicable exceptions, please refer to the Donation Disclosure Notice Guidelines for your entity type on the AEC website and s 302B of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918.
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Donations to members of the House of Representatives, Senators, registered political parties, candidates, significant third party, associated entities, and nominated entities by foreign donors |
Gift recipient, who is a:
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302D(3) |
200 penalty units s 302D(2) |
Donations to third parties by foreign donors |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302E(4) |
50 penalty units s 302E(3) |
Receiving a gift from a foreign donor for the intended purpose to incur electoral expenditure. |
Gift recipient, who is a:
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302F(5) |
For contravention of s 302F(1) by a third party:
s 302F(3)
s 302F(3) |
Making a prohibited gift to, or for the benefit of, a member of the House of Representatives, Senator, political entity, significant third party, associated entity, nominated entity, or third party |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302F(5) |
100 penalty units
s 302F(3) |
Knowingly providing a false affirmation or information that a donor is not a foreign donor |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 302G(4) |
100 penalty units s 302G(2) |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Failure to disclose gifts received for a federal purpose exceeding the disclosure threshold, including failure to include details required under s 303B |
Responsible person for a recipient that is a:
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 303A(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to disclose gifts given for a federal purpose exceeding the disclosure threshold, including failure to include details required under s 303F |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 303E(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to disclose other gifts credited to a federal account exceeding the disclosure threshold, including failure to include details required under s 303M |
Responsible person for a recipient that is a:
|
Whichever is higher of:
s 303L(1) |
Not applicable |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Failure to provide an annual return for a registered political party or State branch |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for a Candidate |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310A(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for a member of the House of Representatives or Senator |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310B(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for a significant third party |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310C(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for an associated entity |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310D(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for a nominated entity |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310E(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for a third party |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 310F(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for the previous calendar year when registered as a new significant third party |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
S 310G(2) |
Not applicable |
Failure to provide an annual return for the previous calendar year when registered as a new associated entity |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
S 310H(2) |
Not applicable |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Incurring electoral expenditure, or fundraising amounts for the purposes of incurring electoral expenditure, of $1,000 or more in a calendar year, as a foreign campaigner |
|
Whichever is the higher of:
s 314AJ(1) |
Not applicable |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Compliance |
|||
Failure to comply with a compliance notice |
|
60 penalty units s 314AN(16) |
Fault based offence: The maximum penalty is:
s 314AN(14) Strict liability offence: s 314AN(15) |
Anti-avoidance |
|||
Preventing application of certain obligations through an Anti-avoidance scheme |
|
|
The maximum penalty is:
s 314AS(2) |
Failure to comply with an Anti-avoidance notice |
|
s 314AT(5) |
The maximum penalty is:
s 314AT(4) |
| Breach/offence | Applies to | Maximum civil penalty | Maximum criminal penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
Failure to keep required records |
|
200 penalty units s 317(1) |
Not applicable |
Failure to keep records for certain purposes |
|
200 penalty units s 317(1A) |
Not applicable |
The information in this publication is intended to provide general guidance only. It does not constitute legal, financial, or other professional advice. Persons and entities should seek their own professional advice to find out how the Electoral Act applies to their circumstances. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has made every reasonable effort to provide current and accurate information, but it does not make any guarantees regarding the accuracy, currency, or completeness of that information. Parties who wish to re-publish or otherwise use the information in this publication must check this information for currency and accuracy prior to publication. The official version of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 and other Commonwealth legislation is available on the Federal Register of Legislation. Please refer to www.aec.gov.au to access the AEC’s current publications.
The AEC acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and recognises their continuing connection to land, waters, culture and community. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
