Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918

A person or entity (the donor) contravenes this subsection if:

at a time in a calendar year, the donor makes an annual gift to any of the following (an overall gift cap entity):

a registered political party;

a State branch of a registered political party;

a member of the House of Representatives;

a Senator;

a candidate;

a nominated entity; and

at that time, the gift exceeds the overall gift cap for the calendar year.

The overall gift cap is 32 times the annual gift cap (see section 302B).

An annual gift exceeds the overall gift cap for a calendar year if the amount or value of the gift is more than the overall gift cap for the calendar year.

An annual gift also exceeds the overall gift cap for a calendar year if:

the gift is made:

in the calendar year; and

by a person or entity; and

to an overall gift cap entity; and

the amount or value of the gift, when added to the amount or value of each previous annual gift (if any) made:

in that calendar year; and

by that person or entity; and

to any overall gift cap entity;

Subsection (1) does not apply if:

at the time the annual gift was made, the donor did not know, and could not reasonably have been expected to know, that the gift exceeded the overall gift cap for the calendar year; and

the donor took acceptable donor action in relation to the gift within 6 weeks after the donor became aware that the gift exceeded the overall gift cap for the calendar year.

A person who wishes to rely on this subsection bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in this subsection (see section 96 of the Regulatory Powers Act).

A person or entity is liable to a civil penalty if the person or entity contravenes subsection (1).

200 penalty units;

if there is sufficient evidence for the court to determine the amount or value, or an estimate of the amount or value, by which the gift exceeded the overall gift cap at the time the gift was made—3 times that amount or value.