Guidance for Candidates and Agents at local government elections in England

Permissibility

You must only accept donations over £50 from a permissible source.

As with all types of donations, you have 30 days to carry out permissibility checks and return the donation if it is impermissible.1  The date of receipt is the date you receive the funds from the crowdfunding site.

Money donated via a crowdfunding webpage that is £50 or less is not a donation under the Representation of the People Act 1983 and is not reportable.2

You should ensure that you have sufficient information from the crowdfunding provider and maintain your records in a way that enables you to ascertain if multiple donations have come from the same source.

You must collect sufficient information from every donor to ensure that you can properly check that each donation is from a permissible source. You should be clear on the webpage that this is the reason you are collecting any information. If you are uncertain who the actual donor is, you must not accept the donation. You cannot accept anonymous donations with a value of over £50.

You must also collect sufficient information to comply with reporting requirements.

Cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrencies are digital currencies that operate independently of any central bank or authority.

The same rules apply to donations received in cryptocurrencies as any other donations. Sufficient information must be collected to check permissibility. There must be a means of valuing the donation given in any cryptocurrency.

Last updated: 29 November 2023