Associated entities
Associated entities of candidates
Under the Local Government Electoral Act 2011, a candidate and its associated entity are treated as one entity. An associated entity of a candidate is any entity which:
- is controlled by a candidate
- operates wholly or to a significant extent for the benefit of a candidate
- operates for the dominant purpose of promoting a candidate.
For any gifts or loans made and electoral expenditure incurred, associated entities are required to meet the same real-time and summary return financial disclosure obligations as their candidate. Electoral expenditure incurred by an associated entity counts towards its candidate’s expenditure cap.
Associated entities must use the dedicated campaign bank account of their candidate for a local government election. An associated entity’s record keeping requirements are the same as its candidates.
More information for candidates and their associated entities about gifts and loans, incurring electoral expenditure, financial disclosure, compliance, and record keeping can be found by using the tabs above. The below fact sheet provides a more detailed funding and disclosure overview for associated entities, as well as information about what is not an associated entity of a candidate.
Links to further information: