CRA Donation Receipt Requirements: The Full Checklist

The CRA’s receipt requirements are codified in section 3501 of the Income Tax Regulations. They are not optional. A receipt missing required elements can be invalidated, and the donor’s tax credit can be reversed years later.

Required elements — every receipt

#	Element
1	”Official receipt for income tax purposes”
2	Charity’s name and address as on file with the CRA
3	Charity’s registration number (BN ending in RR####)
4	A unique serial number
5	The place (city/town) where the receipt was issued
6	The date the donation was received (or the year, if a cumulative receipt)
7	The date the receipt was issued
8	The donor’s full name and address
9	The total amount received or fair market value of the gift
10	The amount and description of any advantage received by the donor
11	The eligible amount of the gift
12	The signature of an individual authorized by the charity, including facsimile where permitted
13	The CRA website address: canada.ca/charities-giving

Additional elements — non-cash gifts

For gifts of property other than cash:

• A brief description of the property
• The fair market value of the property at the time of the gift
• If the gift was appraised, the name and address of the appraiser

Additional elements — split receipting

Where a donor receives an “advantage” (a benefit) in exchange for a gift — most commonly with fundraising events, gala tickets, charity auctions — the receipt must reflect split receipting:

• Total amount of the gift
• Value of the advantage
• Eligible amount of the gift (gift minus advantage)

For example: a $200 gala ticket where the meal/entertainment is worth $80 produces a $120 eligible-amount receipt.

Common errors

• Issuing a receipt for the full ticket price of a fundraising event without subtracting the FMV of the advantage.
• Omitting the unique serial number.
• Missing the CRA website address (a relatively recent requirement that older charity templates often miss).
• Receipting in-kind donations without an FMV determination.
• Issuing a receipt to a corporate donor in the name of an individual.
• Issuing a receipt for sponsorship dollars where the sponsor receives material advertising value (sponsorship is generally not a receiptable gift).

What goes wrong in an audit

In a CRA compliance review, the charity may be asked to produce its receipt log and supporting documentation. A deficient receipt can expose the charity to sanctions and may affect the donor’s claim, depending on the facts and the CRA’s determination.

The fix is upstream: get receipts right at point of issue. A monthly reconciliation between the donor CRM, accounting records, and issued receipts catches errors while they’re still fixable.