How to Register to Vote in Canada
Register to vote in federal elections: check the National Register of Electors, register online, by mail or at the polls, and prove identity and address.
How to Register as a Lobbyist in Canada
Federal lobbyist registration: consultant and in-house routes, 10-day and 2-month deadlines, and monthly communication reports due by the 15th.
Applies in: CA
This guide covers registration as a lobbyist at the federal level only, under the Lobbying Act, in the Registry of Lobbyists maintained by the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada. It describes registration mechanics. It takes no position on any registrant, any lobbying subject, or any policy outcome, and it does not describe provincial or municipal lobbyist registries, which have their own rules. The Registry is a searchable public database of registered lobbying, and the Office states its purpose plainly: transparency about who lobbies federal officials, about what, and for whom.
Step 1: Work out whether registration is required
Three questions from the Office decide whether registration may be needed. Are you paid to lobby? A person must be paid to communicate with the federal government to be a lobbyist under the Lobbying Act. Volunteers and citizens acting on their own behalf do not need to register, and other levels of government, including Aboriginal governments, are exempt. Are you communicating with a federal public office holder? Lobbying any federal official is subject to the Act, and almost all federal employees, officers, and executives, members of the Armed Forces and RCMP, staff of parliamentarians, and all designated officials are in scope. Are you communicating about changing the state of play? That covers legislation, regulations, policies, and programs, and the awarding of grants, contributions, and other financial benefits. For consultant lobbyists, communicating about the awarding of a federal contract also counts, as does arranging a meeting between a public office holder and another person.
Communications that are not regulated include a request limited to asking for information, asking an official how a law or regulation is enforced, interpreted, or applied, and making a public submission to a parliamentary committee or in public record proceedings before a board, commission, or tribunal. A job title containing the word lobbyist is not required, and lobbying need not appear in a job description, for registration to be required. If the answers are unclear, the Office gives its telephone number, 613-957-2760, and its website for questions. Use it before deciding no registration is needed, because the threshold and the definitions turn on the Office interpretation in force.
Step 2: Identify the lobbyist type and the threshold
Consultant lobbyists are individuals, including external board members, who lobby on behalf of a client, and must register individually for each client. In-house lobbyists are employees who lobby on behalf of their employer, and must be registered by the employer in a single registration once collective lobbying reaches the threshold. The employer registration is filed by the most senior paid officer.
The in-house threshold is 8 or more hours collectively in a consecutive 4-week period, counting research, preparation, meetings, correspondence, and social media. It excludes employees of a corporation or organization that does not meet the threshold, citizens communicating solely on their own behalf, officials from other levels of government, and volunteers doing advocacy that is not for the benefit of their employer or client. The 8-hour threshold took effect on January 19, 2026, under an interpretation bulletin issued in July 2025, lowering the earlier 32-hour measure. Consultant lobbyists have no threshold: registration is triggered as soon as they agree to any lobbying activity, even if they do not lobby right away.
A separate restriction applies after leaving a designated position. A designated official is restricted from lobbying for 5 years once the person stops performing the duties of the designated position. During that period, a former designated official cannot lobby for a client for money or anything of value, lobby on behalf of an organization that employs the person, or lobby on behalf of a corporation that employs the person if lobbying is a significant part of the work. Check that restriction with the Office before registering any activity by a former designated official.
Step 3: Create one account and submit the registration
Create an account before submitting a registration. The Office states an applicant can have only one account, and that the Office can help retrieve an old username and password. An email is sent asking the applicant to activate and confirm the account. Log in, click Create New Registration from the dashboard, fill in the required information, and submit.
A registration is required within 10 calendar days from the date of agreeing, verbally or in writing, to lobby on behalf of a client as a consultant lobbyist or as a chairperson or member of a board of directors, or within 2 months from the date lobbying activities represent a significant part of duties for in-house lobbyists. The registration needs any government funding received in the last financial year and the current financial year, and information on any parent company and beneficiaries. Gather those figures before starting the form, or contact the Office for guidance if they are not readily available. No registration fee is stated on the Office pages, and none is stated in this guide.
All regulated lobbyists must apply the Lobbyists' Code of Conduct in their lobbying and in interactions with officials they lobby or expect to lobby. The Code sets standards of behaviour alongside the ethical regimes that apply to federal officials, and compliance with it is presented by the Office as strengthening the ethical culture of lobbying, avoiding placing officials in real or apparent conflict of interest situations, and contributing to public confidence in federal institutions. Read the Code before the first communication, not after it.
Step 4: Answer corrections, then file communication reports
The Office reviews each registration after submission. If corrections are required, the registration is returned in the account, and corrections must be submitted within 10 calendar days. If no changes are required, the registration is accepted and published in the Registry of Lobbyists.
After registration, file communication reports where required. If there was an oral and arranged communication with a designated public office holder about a regulated matter, submit a communication report no later than the 15th day of the month following the communication. If the government institution lobbied, the subject matter, or related details are not listed in the registration, update the registration before submitting the communication report. Designated public office holders include all parliamentarians in the Senate and House of Commons, including the Prime Minister, ministers, and ministers of state; ministerial staff; most senior executives, including deputy ministers, chief executive officers, and associate and assistant deputies; and additional positions set by regulation. Most arranged and spoken lobbying communications with a designated official must be filed in the Registry.
Step 5: Keep the registration current
Keep the registration up to date. Submit updates, such as a new lobbied federal institution, new subject matter, or employee changes, no later than the 15th day of the month after the change occurred. If no updates or communication reports have been filed for five months, submit a return before the first day of the sixth month to confirm the registration remains accurate and active.
Non-compliance carries stated consequences. Registrants must respect the disclosure requirements and timelines set by the Lobbying Act and its regulations, and failure to file information or to file on time is an offence. Concerns that federal lobbying requirements are not being respected can result in compliance measures, including monitoring and investigation. Anyone convicted of an offence may be subject to penalties including fines, imprisonment, or a lobbying ban, and any finding of non-compliance with the Lobbyists' Code of Conduct is reported to Parliament. Note the 10-day, 15th-day, 2-month, and sixth-month dates from the start, because the deadlines in this guide are the ones the Office publishes, and late filings are the compliance risk the Office names first.
Figures cut: no registration fee, penalty amount, or processing time is stated, because none was verified on an Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying page. The older 20 percent and 32-hour threshold wordings appear in older Office bulletins, and this guide states them only as superseded, with the current 8-hour threshold as the operative figure. No provincial or municipal registration rule is stated, because no provincial or municipal registry page could be verified.
Related guides:
- How to Incorporate Federally vs Provincially in Canada — incorporation routes, for readers setting up the corporation or organization that will hold the registration.
- How to Start Offering Professional Services to the Government of Canada Through the ePortal in Canada — selling professional services to the federal government, a separate process from lobbying registration.
- How to Start Requesting Government Records Through the ATIP Request Service in Canada — access to information requests, a separate route for obtaining government records.
- How to Register a Business in Ontario — Ontario business registration, for readers whose organization or client base sits in Ontario.
Federal lobbyist registration, in five moves
- Work out whether registration is requiredRegistration turns on being paid to communicate with a federal public office holder about a regulated matter. Consultant lobbyists register for each client; in-house registration turns on the collective 8-hour threshold.
- Create one Registry accountOne account only. Activate and confirm it through the email the Registry sends, and ask the Office for help retrieving an old username and password rather than opening a second account.
- Submit the registration inside the deadlineConsultant lobbyists and board chairpersons and members register within 10 calendar days of agreeing to lobby. In-house lobbyists register within 2 months of lobbying reaching a significant part of duties.
- Answer corrections within 10 calendar daysThe Office reviews each registration and returns it in the account if corrections are needed. Accepted registrations are published in the Registry of Lobbyists.
- File communication reports and keep the registration currentOral and arranged communications with a designated public office holder about a regulated matter are reported by the 15th day of the following month, and registration updates are due by the 15th day of the month after the change.
Questions people ask
What counts as lobbying at the federal level, and what does not?
Regulated lobbying is paid communication with a federal public office holder about a regulated matter, including legislation, regulations, policies, or programs, and the awarding of a grant, contribution, or other financial benefit. For consultant lobbyists, arranging a meeting between a public office holder and another person and communicating about the awarding of a federal contract are also lobbying. A request limited to asking for information is not regulated. The same applies to asking how a law is enforced, interpreted, or applied, and to a public submission to a parliamentary committee or in public record proceedings. Volunteers and citizens acting on their own behalf do not need to register.
What is the difference between a consultant lobbyist and an in-house lobbyist?
A consultant lobbyist is an individual, including an external board member, who lobbies on behalf of a client, and must register individually for each client in the Registry of Lobbyists. An in-house lobbyist is an employee who lobbies on behalf of an employer, and must be registered by the employer in a single registration once collective lobbying reaches the in-house registration threshold. For corporations, the registration lists all senior officers who lobby and all employees who meet the threshold test; for organizations, it lists every employee who lobbies. The most senior paid officer files the in-house registration.
What is the in-house registration threshold now?
The threshold is 8 or more hours collectively in a consecutive 4-week period, counting research, preparation, meetings, correspondence, and social media. It took effect on January 19, 2026, under an interpretation bulletin issued in July 2025, replacing the earlier 32-hour measure. Consultant lobbyists are unaffected by the change: they register any undertaking to lobby on behalf of a client. An older bulletin described the test as 20 percent of duties, or one day per week. That wording is superseded by the 8-hour threshold on the current Office pages. Confirm the current threshold with the Office before deciding no registration is needed, since the Office can revise its interpretation.
How soon must I register, and what information is needed?
A registration is required within 10 calendar days from the date of agreeing, verbally or in writing, to lobby on behalf of a client as a consultant lobbyist or as a chairperson or member of a board of directors. In-house lobbyists have 2 months from the date lobbying reaches the threshold. The registration asks for any government funding received in the last financial year and the current financial year, and information on any parent company and beneficiaries. If that information is not readily available, contact the Office for guidance before submitting.
When are communication reports due, and what must they cover?
If there was an oral and arranged communication with a designated public office holder about a regulated matter, submit a communication report no later than the 15th day of the month following the communication. Update the registration first if the government institution, subject matter, or related details are not already listed in it. Designated public office holders include parliamentarians, ministerial staff, and most senior executives. Additional positions set by regulation are also designated.
How do I keep a registration current, and what happens if I do not comply?
Submit updates no later than the 15th day of the month after the change occurred. A new lobbied institution, a new subject matter, or an employee change are all updates. If nothing has been filed for five months, submit a return before the first day of the sixth month to confirm the registration remains accurate and active. Corrections to a registration returned by the Office must be submitted within 10 calendar days. Failure to file information, or to file on time, is an offence under the Lobbying Act. A conviction may bring fines, imprisonment, or a lobbying ban.
Sources
- Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada, How to register and report your lobbying activities — the single-account rule, the 10 calendar day and 2 month registration deadlines, the government funding and parent company information, the 10 calendar day correction period, the 15th day communication report deadline, the 15th day update deadline, and the five-month and sixth-month return rule.
- Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada, Lobbying at the federal level — at a glance — the consultant and in-house definitions, the 8-hour collective threshold, the exclusions, the non-regulated communications, the designated official list, the 5-year restriction, the Code of Conduct, the Registry description, and the non-compliance consequences.
- Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada, Transparency matters: Know your obligations — the three registration questions, the paid-lobbying test, the volunteer and citizen exclusions, the contract and meeting-arranging rules for consultant lobbyists, and the Office telephone number.