Charitable Tax Receipts for Canadian Nonprofits

What is a charitable tax receipt?

A charitable tax receipt is an official document that a registered Canadian charity issues to a donor to confirm their gift. The receipt allows the donor to claim a tax credit on their personal or corporate income tax return. For the charity, issuing accurate receipts is not optional — it is a legal obligation under the Income Tax Act, enforced by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

The stakes are real. Charities that issue receipts incorrectly — overstating the eligible amount, missing required fields, or receipting gifts that do not qualify — risk penalties, suspension of receipting privileges, or revocation of their registered status. For event-based fundraising, where the line between a donation and a purchase blurs quickly, getting this right matters more than most organizers realize.

This guide covers what must appear on a charitable tax receipt, when you are required to issue one, and how common event scenarios — auctions, raffles, table purchases, and paddle raises — change the calculation.

When must a receipt be issued?

Under CRA guidelines, a registered charity must issue a charitable tax receipt for any monetary gift over $20. For gifts of $20 or less, the charity is not required to issue a receipt, but must do so if the donor requests one.

Not every payment to a charity qualifies as a gift. The CRA defines a gift as a voluntary transfer of property where the donor receives no material benefit in return — or where any benefit received (called an "advantage") is significantly less than the amount paid. This distinction is critical for event fundraising, where donors often receive something in exchange for their payment.

A few situations where a receipt should not be issued:

• The donor receives goods or services equal to or greater than the amount paid (no gift component exists)
• The payment is for a raffle ticket (this is a purchase, not a donation — more on this below)
• The payment is a membership fee that entitles the member to specific benefits worth more than 80% of the amount paid
• The transfer is not voluntary (e.g., a court-ordered payment)

What must appear on a charitable tax receipt

The CRA specifies mandatory fields that every official donation receipt must include. Missing any of these makes the receipt non-compliant, and the donor may be unable to claim their tax credit.

Every receipt must contain:

• Charity name — the full legal name as registered with the CRA
• CRA registration number — the 15-character business number (BN) assigned to the charity
• Charity address — the registered address of the organization
• Receipt serial number — a unique number that lets the charity track and audit each receipt
• Location where the receipt was issued — the city and province
• Date the donation was received — not the date the receipt was printed or mailed
• Date the receipt was issued — if different from the donation date
• Donor's full name — as it should appear on their tax return
• Donor's address — current mailing address
• Amount of the gift — the total amount paid by the donor
• Eligible amount of the gift — the amount that qualifies for the tax credit (total amount minus the value of any advantage received)
• Description and fair market value of any advantage — if the donor received goods, services, or other benefits in return for their payment, describe them and state their fair market value
• Description of property received — for gifts-in-kind (non-cash gifts), a description of the donated property
• Appraised value — for gifts-in-kind, the appraised fair market value and the name and address of the appraiser (if applicable)
• Statement that the receipt is an official receipt for income tax purposes
• Website address of the CRA — canada.ca/charities-giving

For most cash donations at events, the key fields are the total amount, the eligible amount, and the description of any advantage. The gap between total and eligible is where event-specific scenarios get complicated.

Event scenarios: what is receiptable and what is not

Fundraising events create situations where donors pay money and receive something in return. The CRA requires charities to calculate the "advantage" — the fair market value of whatever the donor received — and subtract it from the total payment. Only the difference is the eligible amount on the receipt.

Auction items

When a donor wins an auction item, the receipt calculation depends on whether the winning bid exceeds the item's fair market value (FMV).

• If the winning bid is equal to or less than the FMV, no receipt is issued — the donor paid market price or less for the item, so there is no gift component
• If the winning bid exceeds the FMV, the charity issues a receipt for the difference — winning bid minus FMV equals the eligible amount

Example: A guest bids $800 on a weekend getaway with an FMV of $500. The eligible amount for the tax receipt is $300. The receipt must describe the advantage ("weekend getaway package") and state its FMV ($500).

This means your auction catalog needs an accurate FMV for every item — not a guess, not the retail price with markup, but the actual fair market value. Overestimating FMV reduces the donor's eligible amount; underestimating it creates compliance risk. For silent auctions with dozens of items, tracking FMV and calculating the eligible amount for each winner is one of the most time-consuming parts of post-event administration.

Raffle tickets

Raffle tickets are not donations. A raffle ticket is a purchase — the buyer pays money to enter a draw for a prize. Because the buyer receives a chance to win something of value, the full amount is considered an advantage, and no charitable tax receipt can be issued for raffle ticket purchases.

This is one of the most commonly misunderstood rules at Canadian fundraising events. Organizers sometimes bundle a raffle ticket into a "donation package" and receipt the full amount. This is non-compliant. The CRA is clear: raffle ticket revenue is not a gift and cannot be receipted.

Raffle operations in Canada also carry separate regulatory requirements — provincial licensing, dedicated financial accounts, and specific reporting obligations — which we cover in the next section.

Table purchases and dinner tickets

When a donor buys a table or ticket to a fundraising dinner, gala, or event, the charity must determine the FMV of the meal, entertainment, and other tangible benefits included in the ticket price. The eligible amount is the ticket price minus that FMV.

Example: A gala ticket costs $250. The FMV of the dinner, drinks, and entertainment is $100. The eligible amount for the tax receipt is $150. The receipt states the advantage ("dinner and entertainment") and its FMV ($100).

For table purchases, the same calculation applies per seat. A table of 10 at $2,500 has a per-seat cost of $250, and the FMV of the meal benefit applies to each seat. The eligible amount is the total table cost minus the total FMV of all seats' benefits.

If the FMV of the benefit is less than the lesser of $75 or 10% of the amount paid, the CRA allows the charity to treat the full amount as a gift under the de minimis threshold. This simplifies receipting for events where the benefit is minor relative to the ticket price — a $500 ticket to an event where the tangible benefit is a $30 reception, for example.

Paddle raise and fund-a-need

A paddle raise (also called fund-a-need or special appeal) is the segment of a live event where the auctioneer asks guests to raise their paddles and pledge a specific dollar amount toward the cause. No goods or services are provided in return — the donor is making a straight gift.

Because the donor receives no advantage, the full amount pledged is eligible for a tax receipt, provided the pledge is actually fulfilled (a receipt is issued when the payment is received, not when the paddle goes up). Paddle raises are one of the cleanest scenarios for charitable receipting at events.

Raffle rules in Canada

Running a raffle at a Canadian event involves more than printing tickets. Each province has its own gaming and lottery regulations, and most require the charity to obtain a lottery licence before selling raffle tickets.

Key requirements across most provinces:

• Lottery licence — charities must apply for and receive a licence from their provincial or municipal licensing authority before selling tickets
• Dedicated financial accounts — raffle revenue and expenses must be tracked in a separate trust account, distinct from the charity's general operating funds
• Prize disclosure — the total value of prizes, odds of winning, and draw date must be clearly communicated on the ticket and in any promotional materials
• Reporting — after the draw, the charity must file a financial report with the licensing authority detailing ticket sales, prize payouts, and net proceeds
• Geographic restrictions — some licences limit ticket sales to residents of a specific province or municipality

The administrative burden of running a compliant raffle is significant, especially when the raffle runs alongside an auction or gala with its own receipting requirements. The financial separation between raffle revenue and donation revenue must be airtight — commingling the two creates both regulatory and CRA compliance risk.

momoGood's raffle framework is built to handle these requirements. It keeps raffle revenue in a dedicated financial stream, separate from auction and donation revenue, so your reporting stays clean. The platform manages ticket sales, draw mechanics, winner notification, and the financial reporting your licensing authority requires — without your team manually tracking it in spreadsheets.

How momoGood handles CRA receipts for events

For organizations running events and auctions through momoGood, the platform handles the receipt calculation that trips up most organizers: determining the eligible amount.

When you build your auction catalog in momoGood, you enter the fair market value for each item. When a winning bid exceeds the FMV, the platform automatically calculates the eligible amount (winning bid minus FMV) and generates the receipt with the correct figures — the total amount paid, the FMV of the advantage, and the eligible amount the donor can claim.

For paddle raises and fund-a-need donations where no goods or services are provided, the full amount is receipted as the eligible amount. For table purchases and event tickets, you set the FMV of the meal and entertainment benefit, and the platform subtracts it automatically.

This matters because manual receipt calculation — especially at an event with 40 auction items, 200 guests, and a paddle raise — is where mistakes happen. A volunteer miscalculates the eligible amount on one receipt, and the charity has issued a non-compliant document. Multiply that across dozens of winners, and the exposure adds up. Automated calculation removes that risk.

The platform also maintains the serial numbering, donor information, and receipt records that the CRA requires charities to keep for audit purposes. If the CRA reviews your receipting practices, every receipt is traceable, timestamped, and tied to the specific transaction that generated it.

For details on platform capabilities and pricing, see the events and auctions pricing page.

Common mistakes with tax receipts at Canadian events

These are the errors that show up repeatedly at fundraising events — and each one carries real compliance consequences:

• Receipting raffle ticket purchases. Raffle tickets are not donations. No receipt, period. This is the single most common violation at events that combine auctions with raffles.
• Issuing a receipt for the full auction bid. If a guest bids $600 on an item with an FMV of $600, there is no gift component and no receipt should be issued. The eligible amount is zero. Receipting the full $600 is overstating the gift.
• Missing the advantage description. A receipt that shows the eligible amount without describing the advantage and its FMV is incomplete. The CRA requires both the description and the value of what the donor received.
• Incorrect FMV on auction items. Using inflated retail prices instead of actual fair market value to make the "gift" portion look larger. This is a red flag for the CRA and puts the charity's registration at risk.
• Delayed receipt issuance. While the CRA does not mandate a specific timeline for issuing receipts (other than by February 28 for the prior tax year for individual donors), delays increase the chance of errors and donor complaints. Issue receipts within 30 days of the event.
• Missing required fields. A receipt without the CRA registration number, the serial number, or the donor's address is non-compliant — even if the dollar amounts are correct. Use a template or platform that includes every mandatory field automatically.
• Commingling raffle and donation revenue. Even if receipting is handled correctly, failing to keep raffle revenue in a separate financial account violates provincial gaming regulations. This is an operational error, not a receipting error, but it frequently accompanies receipting mistakes.

A note on compliance

momoGood does not provide tax or legal advice. Consult the CRA and qualified advisors for your specific situation. The CRA's guidance on issuing receipts is published at canada.ca/charities-giving and is the authoritative source for all receipting requirements.

This article is a practical overview for nonprofit event organizers, not a substitute for professional advice. Tax rules change, provincial regulations vary, and your organization's specific circumstances may create obligations not covered here. When in doubt, ask a qualified accountant or lawyer who specializes in Canadian charity law before issuing receipts.

If you have questions about how momoGood's platform handles receipting for your event, reach out to our team.