21Political donations by foreign donors not to be accepted in certain circumstances

21 Political donations by foreign donors not to be accepted in certain circumstances

(1)  A person (the gift recipient) contravenes this subsection if –

(a) the gift recipient is –

(i) a registered party, Member, candidate or associated entity; or

(ii) an agent of a person referred to in subparagraph (i) ; and

(b) a gift is made to, or for the benefit of, the gift recipient during a financial year; and

(c) the gift is made by, or on behalf of, a person (the donor); and

(d) the donor is a foreign donor; and

(e) at the time when the gift is made, the amount or value of the gift is equal to $1 000 or more; and

(f) acceptable action has not been taken in relation to the gift before the end of the period of 6 weeks after the gift is made.

(2)  Subsection (1) does not apply to a gift recipient, in relation to a gift made by a donor, if the gift recipient establishes that –

(a) before the end of the period of 6 weeks after the gift was made, the donor stated in writing to the gift recipient that the donor was not a foreign donor; and

(b) for a gift whose amount or value was, at the time when the gift was made, equal to $100 or more – before the end of the period of 6 weeks after the gift was made –

(i) the gift recipient obtained in accordance with section 20 appropriate donor information establishing that the donor was not a foreign donor; or

(ii) the gift recipient took reasonable steps to verify that the donor was not a foreign donor; and

(c) in any case – the gift recipient, at no time during that period of 6 weeks, knew, or ought to have known, that the donor was a foreign donor.

(3)  Subsection (1) does not apply to a gift recipient in relation to a gift if the gift recipient establishes that the gift was made in a private capacity to the gift recipient for the gift recipient’s own personal use.