About this report

This report, which is tabled under section 20 of the Service Fees Act, the Low‑Materiality Fees Regulations, and subsection 4.2.9 of the Treasury Board Directive on Charging and Special Financial Authorities, contains information about the fees that the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General had the authority to charge in fiscal year 2023–24.

The report covers fees that are subject to the Service Fees Act.

For reporting purposes, fees are categorized by fee-setting mechanism. There are three mechanisms:

1. Act, regulation or fees notice
   • The authority to set these fees is delegated to a department, minister or Governor in Council pursuant to an act of Parliament.
2. Contract
   • Ministers have the inherent authority to enter into contracts, which are usually negotiated between the minister and an individual or organization, and which cover fees and other terms and conditions. In some cases, that authority may also be provided by an act of Parliament.
3. Market rate or auction
   • The authority to set these fees comes from an act of Parliament or regulation, and the minister, department or Governor in Council has no control in determining the fee amount.

For fees set by act, regulation or fees notice, the report provides totals for fee groupings, as well as detailed information for each fee. The Office of the Secretary to the Governor General did not have fees set by contract, market rate or auction.

Remissions

In 2023–24, the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General was not subject to the requirements in section 7 of the Service Fees Act and had no authority to remit, so this report does not include remission amounts.

Overall totals, by fee-setting mechanism

The following table presents the total revenue, cost and remissions for all fees the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General had the authority to charge in 2023–24, by fee-setting mechanism.

Totals, by fee grouping, for fees set by act, regulation or fees notice

A fee grouping is a set of fees relating to a single business line, directorate or program that a department had the authority to charge for those activities.

This section presents, for each fee grouping, the total revenue, cost and remissions for all fees the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General had the authority to charge in 2023–24 that are set by the following:

• Act
• Regulation

Details on each fee set by act, regulation or fees notice

This section provides detailed information on each fee the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General had the authority to charge in 2023–24 and that was set by the following:

• Act
• Regulation

The heraldic prerogative was transferred to Canada by Queen Elizabeth II in 1988.

Upon the adoption of the Canadian Heraldic Authority Fee Order in 1991, Parliament provided the authority to the Canadian Heraldic Authority, under the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General, to collect processing fees from petitioners wishing to obtain a coat of arms. A grant of arms involves negotiations with the client, biographical research, the preparation and approval of designs, the preparation of warrants and Letters Patent, and the services of calligraphers and artists.

The established pricing policy states that the client pays calligraphers and artists directly through standing offer agreements negotiated by the Canadian Heraldic Authority.