Canada moves to ban crypto donations in political financing, citing need to block foreign interference

The Canadian government is pushing legislation that would impose a blanket ban on virtual assets (cryptocurrencies) as political donations.

According to The Block on the 29th (local time), Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon introduced the “Fair and Free Elections Act (Bill C-25)” and proposed banning virtual-asset donations across the federal political system.

The bill classifies virtual assets as a hard-to-trace payment method and would exclude them from permissible political-donation methods alongside money orders and prepaid cards. The scope would cover political parties, riding associations, candidates, party leaders and leadership contestants, and even third-party organizations that run election advertising.

MacKinnon said the amendments “reflect the findings of investigations into foreign interference in federal election processes and democratic institutions, as well as recommendations from electoral authorities.”

Canada previously allowed virtual-asset donations by classifying them as “non-monetary contributions” under 2019 administrative guidance. In practice, however, such cases were rare, and no related donation records were disclosed in the 2021 and 2025 general elections. Crypto donations were also excluded from tax credits, limiting incentives to donate, according to the assessment.

Initially, policymakers weighed tighter regulation. In a 2022 report, Canada’s Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault recommended that all virtual-asset donations be subject to reporting and receipting requirements regardless of amount. At the time, the rules had a loophole: virtual-asset donations received from non-professional sellers of up to C$200 were treated as having “zero value” and were therefore outside the regulatory perimeter.

After November 2024, however, the stance shifted. According to CBC, Elections Canada argued for an outright ban, citing the fundamentally difficult task of identifying donors due to the quasi-anonymous nature of virtual assets.

The bill marks a second attempt. A previous proposal with the same provisions, “Bill C-65,” was introduced but automatically lapsed when the parliamentary session ended in January 2025. Bill C-25 has now cleared first reading, and must still pass additional readings, committee review, Senate approval and royal assent before it can take effect.

If enacted, penalties would also be significantly strengthened. If a recipient accepts a virtual-asset donation in violation of the ban, it must be returned, disposed of, or liquidated and remitted to the public treasury within 30 days. Administrative fines could be imposed at up to twice the amount of the donation. The cap on individual fines would be raised from C$1,500 to C$25,000, and the cap for organizations from C$5,000 to C$100,000.