Licensing
Eligibility
The Criminal Code
(Canada) requires that groups participating in charitable
gaming must be charitable or religious in nature and that
the proceeds from charitable gaming be directed to charitable
or religious purposes. The province’s Gaming and Liquor
Act, the Gaming and Liquor Regulation, and its gaming policies
establish the requirements to conduct gaming activities; this
includes which groups may be eligible for gaming licenses
and how they may use the gaming proceeds.
Groups that are eligible for charitable gaming licences in
Alberta must:
- Actively deliver a program or service that provides benefit
to a significant segment of the community; the programs
or services must be reasonably available to all members
of the general public who qualify and wish to participate
in that program or use that service.
- Use the proceeds from its gaming activities for a charitable
or religious purpose.
Structure of eligible
groups
Only non-profit
groups are eligible for charitable gaming licences. In this
regard, eligible groups must:
- Have a broad-based volunteer membership,
- Have an executive democratically chosen from its volunteer
base,
- Have unpaid members, directors or officers,
- Have programs which benefit a large segment of the community,
not the individual members’ self interest,
- Have volunteers who are responsible for establishing,
maintaining control of and delivering the group’s
programs,
- Be incorporated (except for raffles with a total ticket
value of $10,000 or less).
Eligible groups
must have actively delivered a charitable program to the community
for at least one year before applying for a gaming licence.
For casino applicants, an active record of program delivery
for the previous 24 months is required. In locations where
there is no casino waiting list, casino licences will be considered
after 12 months of proven program delivery. For bingo applicants
and applicants for a raffle with a total ticket value more
than $100,000, an active record of program delivery for the
previous 12 months is required.
The aim of this requirement is to ensure eligible groups have
pre-existing support in the community and do not rely upon
gaming funds for program delivery. Gaming proceeds are intended
to supplement the volunteer activities of eligible charities
rather than serve as a primary source of support.
For more information, refer to the Charitable
Gaming Policies Handbook.
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