Lobbyists' Code of Conduct (2023)
Standards for transparent and ethical lobbying
Contents
Objectives
The objective of this Code is to foster transparent and ethical lobbying of federal officials.
This Code works in concert with the ethical regimes that apply to federal officials.
This Code is required by and complements the Lobbying Act, which recognizes that free and open access to government is in the public interest, that transparent and ethical lobbying is a legitimate activity, that officials and the public should be able to know who is carrying out lobbying activities, and that lobbying registration should not impede access to government.
By complying with the rules of this Code, lobbyists:
- strengthen the ethical culture of lobbying
- avoid placing officials in real or apparent conflict of interest situations
- contribute to public confidence in the integrity of federal government institutions and decision making
Application
An individual must comply with this Code if the Lobbying Act requires them to do so. In this Code, such individuals are referred to as lobbyists.
This Code was published in the Canada Gazette and came into force on July 1, 2023.
Scope
This Code applies to lobbying activities and the interactions lobbyists have with officials that they lobby or expect to lobby.
Compliance
Non-compliance with any rule in this Code may result in an investigation by the Commissioner of Lobbying. This can lead to a public investigation report to Parliament.
Expectations
These expectations are intended to guide lobbyists in complying with the rules in this Code.
Transparency
Ethical lobbying requires a commitment to openness. Conducting transparent lobbying ensures that officials understand the purpose of the lobbying activities and on whose behalf they are carried out.
Respect for government institutions
Canada’s parliamentary democracy and its institutions serve Canadians. Understanding and respecting that officials have a duty to serve the public interest over private interests is vital to ethical lobbying.
It is therefore essential that lobbyists avoid placing officials in real or apparent conflict of interest situations, including where an official could reasonably be seen to have a sense of obligation towards a lobbyist.
Integrity, honesty and professionalism
Ethical lobbying is conducted with integrity, honesty and professionalism. Being trustworthy and respectful supports informed decision making by officials and, in turn, public confidence in federal government institutions.
It is therefore essential that lobbyists uphold the letter and spirit of the Lobbying Act, its regulations and this Code.
Rules
If the Lobbying Act requires you to comply with this Code, you must follow these rules:
Disclosure
1.1
When you lobby — including the use of grassroots appeals to persuade the public to communicate with officials — identify your client or employer and the purpose of your communication.
1.2
When you lobby on behalf of a client, inform your client that you have, and that they may have, obligations under the Lobbying Act, its regulations and this Code.
1.3
When you lobby as part of your employment, inform your employer (as represented by the registrant) about your lobbying activities in order to support accurate registration and reporting in the Registry of Lobbyists.
1.4
If you are the registrant for an employer, inform employees who lobby for the employer about their obligations under this Code.
Trustworthiness
2.1
When you lobby — including the use of grassroots appeals to persuade the public to communicate with officials — act in good faith and take reasonable steps to not mislead with any information you share.
2.2
Do not use or share information obtained from an official in confidence, except if you have the official’s informed consent.
Gifts and hospitality
3.1
Never provide any gift — directly or indirectly — to an official that you lobby or expect to lobby, other than a low‑value gift that is a token of appreciation or promotional item.
3.2
Never provide any hospitality — directly or indirectly — to an official that you lobby or expect to lobby, other than low‑value hospitality for consumption during an in‑person gathering (meeting, lobby day, event, reception, etc.).
3.3
Do not exceed the value of the annual limit for allowed gifts and hospitality that you can provide to the same official within a calendar year.
Exemptions (rules 3.1, 3.2, 3.3)
The Commissioner may grant an exemption to the gift and hospitality rules (3.1, 3.2, 3.3) by considering any factors that the Commissioner deems relevant, including:
- by how much the low value and/or annual limit amounts are exceeded
- the combined value of gifts and hospitality already provided and/or planned to be provided to the official within the same calendar year
- local market prices
- if the gift or hospitality is related to the exercise of a power, duty or function of the official
- dietary requirements or restrictions for hospitality
The Commissioner may adjust the low value and/or annual limit amounts when granting an exemption and may impose conditions, including a cooling off period during which the lobbyist may not lobby the official.
Failure to respect the conditions of an exemption granted by the Commissioner constitutes non compliance with the related rule (3.1, 3.2 and/or 3.3, as applicable).
Low-value amount
Low-value is currently $40 and the annual limit is currently $200.
Sense of obligation
4.1
Never lobby an official where the official could reasonably be seen to have a sense of obligation towards you because you have a close relationship with the official.
4.2
Never lobby an official or their associates where the official could reasonably be seen to have a sense of obligation towards you because of political work — paid or unpaid — you are doing or have done for the benefit of the official, unless the cooling-off period has expired.
Reduction or determination of the cooling‑off period
The Commissioner may reduce or, where applicable, determine a cooling off period following political work (rule 4.2) by considering any factors that the Commissioner deems relevant, including:
- the nature of the political work performed and/or its importance to the official
- the degree of interaction with the official
- the duration and/or the amount of time spent performing the political work
Failure to respect a cooling-off period set by the Commissioner constitutes non compliance with rule 4.2.
4.3
Never lobby an official where the official could reasonably be seen to have a sense of obligation towards you in circumstances beyond the scope of other rules in this Code.
Definitions
Terms referred to in the rules are defined as follows:
General
client
Any person, group, corporation or organization that pays or promises to pay money or anything of value to a consultant lobbyist.
employer
A corporation or organization that employs one or more individuals who lobby on its behalf (in‑house lobbyists).
grassroots appeal
A communication technique by which lobbying can be conducted as defined in paragraph 5(2)(j) and referred to in paragraph 7(3)(k) of the Lobbying Act.
lobby or lobbying
Communicating as described in paragraphs 5(1)(a) or 7(1)(a) of the Lobbying Act or arranging a meeting as described in paragraph 5(1)(b).
official
Any 'public office holder' as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Lobbying Act.
registrant for an employer
The employee holding the most senior paid office of a corporation or organization who is responsible for registering lobbying carried out by employees — defined in subsection 7(6) of the Lobbying Act as the ‘officer responsible for filing returns’.
Gifts and hospitality
annual limit
The maximum combined value of low‑value gifts and low‑value hospitality that can be provided to the same official within a calendar year.
The annual limit for all allowed gifts and hospitality, combined, is $200 in 2023 dollars*
gift
Anything of value provided for free, without charge, at a reduced rate, or at less than market value, with no obligation to repay.
Examples:
- door prize
- entertainment activity
- gift certificate, voucher
- money, loan, credit
- parking
- product
- promotional item
- property or use of property
- service
- ticket, pass or access to an event
- token of appreciation
- travel, including sponsored travel, an excursion, transportation
The term ‘gift’ does not include:
- hospitality as defined in this Code
- customary expressions of a lobbyist’s Indigenous cultural tradition or practice
hospitality
Food or beverage provided for consumption during an in‑person gathering (meeting, lobby day, event, reception, etc.).
indirectly
Where:
- a person or entity provides a gift or hospitality to an official at the lobbyist's suggestion or request
- the lobbyist provides a gift or hospitality to an official on behalf of another person or entity
low-value
The maximum value of a gift or instance of hospitality that can be provided to an official, assessed using the market price without discount for anything that has been donated or subsidized.
Low‑value for an allowed gift or instance of hospitality is $40 in 2023 dollars*, before taxes and any shipping costs.
Low‑value for hospitality also excludes gratuities and catering, rental or service charges.
The value of an instance of hospitality is determined on a per‑person basis by dividing the total cost of the food and/or beverage by the number of all individuals reasonably expected to attend the gathering.
Low‑value for hospitality:
- cannot be circumvented by allocating food and beverage costs to venue rental fees, facility fees, catering or service charges, event management expenses, or similar expenses
- is not determined by the quantity of food and beverage consumed by an official, and there is no requirement to track what an official consumes while attending a gathering
promotional item
A gift that typically has corporate branding or messaging used in the marketing of a product, service or entity.
token of appreciation
A gift provided as an expression of gratitude to an official for serving in an official capacity such as a speaker, presenter, panelist, moderator or for performing a ceremonial role.
* Note about the low-value and annual limit amounts
On a yearly basis, the Commissioner may take inflation into account in adjusting the low value and annual limit amounts. In doing so, the amounts will be calculated relative to 2023 prices based on Statistics Canada’s consumer price index.
Close relationships
close relationship
A close bond — based on personal affection, on mutual trust or loyalty, or on professional, business or financial interdependence — that extends beyond simply being acquainted.
Examples:
- close family relationships, such as close family by blood, birth, marriage, adoption or common law, or any relative or other person permanently residing in the same household
- close personal relationships, such as close or best friends, or intimate or romantic partners (excludes people known only through broad social circles or networks)
- close working relationships, such as prominent or longstanding professional relationships developed by working closely together (having worked for the same entity, employer or client does not, on its own, qualify as having a close relationship)
- close business relationships, such as owning or closely collaborating in a business or in a consortium of businesses
- close financial relationships, such as sharing ownership in property or co‑managing shared investments
Political work
associate
In relation to ministers (including ministers of state), includes:
- their staff
- any parliamentary secretary in the performance of their function of assisting that minister, as well as the staff of any such parliamentary secretary
In relation to members of the House of Commons or the Senate, includes their staff but excludes their fellow parliamentarians.
cooling-off period
The amount of time that must pass before lobbying an official or their associates when political work — paid or unpaid — has been done for the benefit of that official. This period is calculated from the day after the political work ended.
The applicable cooling‑off periods are set out in the definition of ‘political work’.
political work
Paid or unpaid work of a political or partisan nature during or between election periods for the benefit of an official. This includes any role, function or task performed:
- when the official was a nomination contestant, leadership contestant or election candidate
- for the official’s political party, including any affiliated electoral district association
Political work includes:
- leadership or senior political roles performed for the official or their political party
Cooling-off period: 24 months, unless a reduction is granted by the Commissioner
Examples:
- serving as a designated spokesperson
- serving as a campaign manager
- serving in a senior position in a leadership or election campaign
- serving on the executive of an electoral district association
- preparing a candidate or official for an appearance, including speeches and debates
- organizing political fundraising
- organizing political or campaign events
- directing or coordinating political research or data analysis
- developing or coordinating political messaging or advertising
- other political roles, functions or tasks
a) involving frequent and/or extensive interaction with the official (around or more than either 3 times or 8 hours per week worked)
— or —
b) performed on a full-time or near-full-time basis for the official or their political party (around or more than 24 hours per week worked)
Cooling-off period: 12 months, unless a reduction is granted by the Commissioner
Examples:
- canvassing
- fundraising, including soliciting or gathering donations
- distributing or disseminating campaign materials
- coordinating campaign office logistics
- performing political research or data analytics tasks
- carrying out political or campaign event logistics
- engaging in fundraising that could reasonably be seen to be significant to the official
Cooling-off period: 12 months or less, determined by the Commissioner on a case-by-case basis
Political work does not include other forms of political participation, such as:
- attending a fundraising or campaign event
- personally displaying election signs or posting digital campaign material during an election period
- expressing personal political opinions
- making a political contribution in accordance with election law
- being a member of a political party at any level of government in Canada
Sense of obligation
sense of obligation
Means a feeling of owing something (or feeling beholden) to another person.
Examples may include situations where:
- the lobbyist, or the lobbyist’s client or employer
- employed the official before they became an official
- employed or continues to employ a close family member of the official
- engaged in partisan activities for the benefit of the official (beyond the scope of political work as defined in this Code)
- provided gifts or hospitality exceeding the annual limit set in this Code to the official before they became an official
- the lobbyist’s client or employer provided gifts or hospitality exceeding the annual limit set in this Code to the official
- Date modified: