Royal Patronage and Title "Royal"

Royal Patronage

Royal patronage is granted by a royal member who will either support the organization by volunteering their time for service or make charitable donations, in order to help bring recognition to the group's achievements and to the contributions of different sectors of public life.

Requests are sent to the Office of the Governor General which seeks formal advice from the State Ceremonial and Protocol Directorate of Canadian Heritage before referring an application to Buckingham Palace for consideration.

Criteria for Royal Patronage

The following criteria are applied by the Department of Canadian Heritage in preparing the advice to the Governor General on royal patronage. The organization must:

• provide services on a national, or at least regional basis;
• have been in existence for at least five years;
• have an active program which it pursues every year;
• be solvent; and
• have aims and objectives that will earn the approval of the person from whom patronage is requested.

Requests should be sent to:

Office of the Governor General
1 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A1

See the list of Canadian organizations which have received royal patronage.

Title “Royal”

The title “Royal” is a sign of honour and distinction. The granting of this distinction is a prerogative of the Sovereign. It is very sparingly granted and strict standards are applied.

Requests should be sent to the Office of the Governor General where an initial assessment will be made before they are forwarded to the Department of Canadian Heritage for further consideration. The Department evaluates each request, using the criteria set forth below before submitting an official recommendation to Rideau Hall for follow-up.

Criteria for the Title “Royal”

The following criteria are applied by the Department of Canadian Heritage in studying requests and preparing the advice to the Governor General. An organization seeking the use of the title “royal” must:

• be of pre-eminence in their field;
• be of long standing (at least 25 years old);
• be in a secure financial position;
• be registered as a non-profit organization under the Income Tax Act;
• have an artistic, scientific or philanthropic mandate (please note that, today, the title “royal” is only granted to sporting organizations on an exceptional basis); and
• provide services on at least a regional basis.

Requests should be sent to:

Office of the Governor General
1 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A1

See the list of civilian organizations with the title “royal”.