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Raise money honestly
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Alberta stands fully covered: its own filings and guidance stand in the books beside the federal ones.
Charitable fundraising follows the rules of the place: register where registration is asked, and hold a licence for any lottery.
An organization that solicits contributions in Alberta for charitable purposes registers under the Charitable Fund-raising Act before it solicits from individuals, unless the year’s solicitations are meant to raise less than $25,000; one that reaches $25,000 registers within forty-five days, and prepares the Act’s financial information returns for a year in which it solicits. Asking its own members stands outside the Act. Binds: Alberta organizations that solicit contributions for charitable purposes (Charitable Fund-raising Act, RSA 2000, c C-9).
The law’s own words
“No charitable organization may make a solicitation to an individual unless the charitable organization is registered.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 12(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“Regardless of a charitable organization’s intent, if a charitable organization in its financial year raises, as a result of solicitations, gross contributions of $25 000 or more from individuals in Alberta or individuals and others in Alberta, the charitable organization must be registered within 45 days after the gross contributions reach $25 000.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 12(4) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“If solicitations are made by or on behalf of a charitable organization in a financial year, the charitable organization must prepare for that financial year financial information returns as specified by the regulations that meet the requirements of the regulations.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 8 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“This Act does not apply to a solicitation made by a charitable organization to a person or to a member of a person’s family if the person is a member of the organization when the solicitation is made”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 3 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“charitable organization” means (i) any incorporated or unincorporated organization that is formed for a charitable purpose, or (ii) a person who makes solicitations for contributions to be used for a charitable purpose and who is not connected to any incorporated or unincorporated organization that is formed for the charitable purpose for which the solicitation is made”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 1(1)(b) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“This Act does not apply to … (c) a solicitation made in respect of a gaming activity that is authorized by a licence under the Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 3 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“This Part applies to (a) solicitations made by a fund-raising business on behalf of a charitable organization, (b) solicitations made by a charitable organization using a fund-raising business, and (c) solicitations made by a charitable organization intending to raise $25 000 or more in gross contributions from persons in Alberta as a result of solicitations made during a financial year.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 4(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“Regardless of a charitable organization’s intent, if a charitable organization in its financial year raises, as a result of solicitations, gross contributions of $25 000 or more from persons in Alberta, this Part applies to solicitations made by the charitable organization from the time it reaches $25 000 in gross contributions until the end of that financial year.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 4(2) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A person making solicitations by telephone may make them only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 5 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A person who makes a solicitation in person must, before accepting a contribution, provide the person who is being solicited with (a) the information required by the regulations in the manner and form required by the regulations, and (b) an adequate opportunity to review the information.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 6(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A charitable organization or fund-raising business that makes solicitations must maintain (a) complete and accurate financial records of its operations in Alberta for at least 3 years after the solicitations are made, (b) records regarding the solicitations made in Alberta for at least 3 years after the solicitations are made, and (c) other records and documents described in the regulations for the period described in the regulations.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 7 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A person who makes a solicitation must disclose the following to the person who is being solicited: (a) the name of the charitable organization for which the contributions are being solicited; (b) the charitable purpose for which the contributions are being solicited; (c) the cost of fund-raising and how much the fund-raising business, if applicable, will receive … (d) a contact name and telephone number for the organization or the fund-raising business, if applicable.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 9(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A person who makes a solicitation must give a receipt to a person making a monetary contribution if the person making the contribution requests a receipt.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 10(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“This section does not apply to a solicitation that involves a direct or indirect request to buy a good or service.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 10(2) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“Every fund-raising business and every employee of a fund-raising business who receives contributions on behalf of a charitable organization holds the contributions in trust for the charitable organization.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 11(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“The trustee has no power to invest monetary contributions received on behalf of a charitable organization and must, within 3 days after receiving the monetary contributions, not including Saturdays and holidays, deposit the money, without making any deductions, into an account held in a bank, trust corporation, credit union or treasury branch in Canada … The account must be in the name of the charitable organization that is the beneficiary and be under the sole control of the charitable organization.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 11(2), 11(3) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“No charitable organization may use a fund-raising business (a) to make solicitations on its behalf, or (b) to manage or be responsible for solicitations made by or on behalf of the charitable organization unless the charitable organization is registered.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 13 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A charitable organization must inform the director of any change in the information provided under section 14 within 30 days after the change.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 18(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“No fund-raising business may make a solicitation on behalf of a charitable organization or manage or be responsible for solicitations made by or on behalf of a charitable organization unless the fund-raising business is licensed.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 21 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A donor list, being a list of names of and other information about persons who have given a contribution to a charitable organization that is compiled by a fund-raising business, (a) is the property of the charitable organization, and (b) is under the exclusive control of the charitable organization.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 28(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“No fund-raising business that compiles a donor list for a charitable organization may use or deal with the donor list except with the written permission of the charitable organization.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 28(2) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“Where a fund-raising agreement between a charitable organization and a fund-raising business expires, is terminated or otherwise ceases to be in effect, any donor list to which that agreement relates and that is in the possession of or otherwise under the management of the fund-raising business must be turned over to the charitable organization.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 28(3) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“No charitable organization may use a fund-raising business to make solicitations on its behalf or to manage or be responsible for solicitations made by or on behalf of the charitable organization unless the charitable organization and the fund-raising business have entered into a fund-raising agreement that meets the requirements of section 30 and the agreement is in force.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 29(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A fund-raising agreement must be in writing and must include (a) all the terms and conditions between the parties respecting the fund-raising, including the duties and responsibilities of both parties; (b) the estimated amount of contributions to be received and an estimate of expenses and costs; (c) the methods of soliciting contributions to be used …”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 30 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“A fund-raising agreement must establish the remuneration of the fund-raising business, and the remuneration must be (a) a specific amount of money, (b) a specified percentage of gross contributions, or (c) a combination of a specific amount of money and a specified percentage of gross contributions.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 30 · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“The principals, directors, managers and employees of a charitable organization whose main responsibility is to make solicitations for the charitable organization or to manage or be responsible for solicitations made by the charitable organization must comply with the standards of practice.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 32(1) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
“If a charitable organization has an employee described in subsection (1), the principals, directors and managers of the charitable organization must take reasonable steps to ensure that the employee complies with the standards of practice.”
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 32(2) · Read it at King’s Printer for Alberta · Verified 2026-11-11
Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), section 4(2)
“Regardless of a charitable organization’s intent, if a charitable organization in its financial year raises, as a result of solicitations, gross contributions of $25 000 or more from persons in Alberta, this Part applies to solicitations made by the charitable organization from the time it reaches $25 000 in gross contributions until the end of that financial year.”
Source: Charitable Fund-raising Act (Alberta), s. 4(2) · Checked 2026-11-11