What Canadian galleries pay artists: the CARFAC fee schedule
The CARFAC-RAAV minimum fee schedule explained: who it binds, the 2026 exhibition and talk fees, how to invoice, and what to do when a gallery will not pay.
The short version
In Canada, a publicly funded gallery that exhibits your work, and is not selling it, should pay you an exhibition fee. The benchmark is the CARFAC-RAAV Minimum Recommended Fee Schedule, published by the two organizations that represent professional visual and media artists: CARFAC nationally and RAAV in Quebec. It sets minimum amounts for exhibitions, reproductions and services such as artist talks and installation. The figures below are from the 2026 schedule, which applies to exhibitions and services that take place in 2026.
Where the fees come from
The schedule grew out of rates that artists Jack Chambers and Tony Urquhart set out in 1968, the year CARFAC was founded. In 1975 the Canada Council made paying exhibition fees to living Canadian artists a condition of its grants to public galleries. In 1988 the Copyright Act gained an exhibition right: artists are entitled to be paid when a work made after 7 June 1988 is shown publicly other than for sale or hire. CARFAC members vote on the schedule, and it rises each year with the cost of living.
Who has to pay
Most of the schedule is a set of recommended minimums, not law. It becomes binding in three ways:
- Status of the Artist agreements. Under the federal Status of the Artist Act, CARFAC and RAAV can bargain collectively with federal producers, meaning federal government institutions and certain broadcasters. CARFAC says only agreements negotiated under the Act are binding. The National Gallery of Canada has paid negotiated mandatory minimums since 2015. In Quebec, RAAV negotiated mandatory minimums in 2025 with the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, the Musée de la civilisation, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec.
- Funding conditions. The Canada Council asks arts organizations to show a history of paying professional fees and royalties to artists according to the standards of their practice and region, and CARFAC notes that many arts councils require public galleries to pay artist fees as a condition of funding.
- Your contract. Once a gallery agrees in writing to pay a fee, the agreement binds it.
Commercial galleries showing work for sale do not owe exhibition fees, though they still need your permission to reproduce your work in their own advertising.
How galleries are sorted
Exhibition fees depend on the size of the presenting organization. Its category is set by its operating budget, meaning total revenues averaged over the last three years. If the gallery belongs to a larger body, such as a city or a university, only the gallery’s own revenues count, and capital funds are excluded.
- Category I: operating budget under $500,000. Most artist-run centres fall here.
- Category II: $500,001 to $1,000,000.
- Category III: over $1,000,000.
Separate international categories cover biennials and exhibitions held under a federal agency abroad.
The 2026 figures
| Line | Category I under $500,000 | Category II $500,001 to $1,000,000 | Category III over $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo exhibition | $2,574 | $3,432 | $4,208 |
| Retrospective (solo covering more than 10 years of production) | $2,960 | $3,948 | $4,838 |
| Project or small exhibition (one room or single space) | $2,189 | $2,918 | $3,577 |
| Group exhibition, 2 artists | $1,802 | $2,402 | $2,945 |
| Group exhibition, 3 artists | $1,288 | $1,716 | $2,104 |
| Group exhibition, 6 to 10 artists | $515 | $686 | $841 |
| Solo exhibition, 4 to 6 months (flat rate option) | $4,000 | $5,500 | $6,500 |
| Permanent collection display, per installation | $248 | $341 | $371 |
Per artist, for an exhibition of up to three months unless the line says otherwise; the category is set by the gallery's operating budget. Minimums for 2026, in Canadian dollars, before GST, HST or PST; the codes are the schedule's section numbers. Source: CARFAC-RAAV, Section 1: exhibition and screening royalties.
Group fees are a share of the solo fee: 70% each for two artists, 50% for three, 30% for four, 25% for five, 20% for six to ten, falling to 10% for 51 or more. A single work, or a show in a window or foyer, earns 20% of the solo fee. A touring show pays the full fee at every venue.
| Line | 2026 minimum |
|---|---|
| Professional services | |
| Artist talk or presentation, one artist, under 4 hours | $541 flat rate per half day |
| Artist talk or presentation, one artist, over 4 hours | $757 flat rate per day |
| Panel or group presentation, under 4 hours | $391 flat rate per artist per half day |
| Panel or group presentation, over 4 hours | $689 flat rate per artist per day |
| Consultation, under 4 hours | $391 flat rate per half day |
| Consultation, over 4 hours | $689 flat rate per day |
| Selection panel (arts council style, with preparation), under 4 hours | $391 flat rate per half day |
| Selection panel (arts council style, with preparation), over 4 hours | $689 flat rate per day |
| Selection panel at an artist-run centre or community organization, no preparation | $186 flat rate per half day |
| Installation of own work, under 4 hours | $281 per half day |
| Installation of own work, over 4 hours | $557 per day |
| Preparation work outside the presenter's premises, up to 8 hours | $400 flat rate |
| Writing (artist statement, catalogue text) | $0.50 to $1 per word |
| Exhibition in other public places (not for sale) | |
| Solo exhibition in a non-art venue such as a library or community centre | $600 per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| Two-artist exhibition in a non-art venue | $400 per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| Three-artist exhibition in a non-art venue | $300 per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| Exhibition of 4 or more artists in a non-art venue | $200 per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| Exhibition with art for sale in a non-art venue | |
| 1 to 4 works, none sold | $200 flat fee per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| 5 to 9 works, none sold | $350 flat fee per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| 10 or more works, none sold | $500 flat fee per artist, exhibition up to 3 months |
| Reproduction, non-commercial | |
| Image promoting an exhibition where CARFAC-RAAV fees were paid (invitation, website, poster) | $25 per work per support |
| Unlimited print and digital reproductions promoting a paid exhibition | $500 flat fee |
| Image on social media | $25 per work per platform |
| Image on a museum website, not tied to a paid exhibition | $50 per work |
| Front or back cover of a book or catalogue offered for sale | $352 per image |
The same amount whatever the size of the presenting organization. Minimums for 2026, in Canadian dollars, before GST, HST or PST; the codes are the schedule's section numbers. Source: CARFAC-RAAV, Section 4: artist professional services; CARFAC-RAAV, Section 1: exhibition and screening royalties; CARFAC-RAAV, Section 2: reproduction royalties, non-commercial.
Writing fees are given as a range: the schedule says most artists writing freelance charge 50 cents to $1 per word.
About the schedule year: all amounts are 2026 minimums in Canadian dollars, before GST, HST or PST. Use the schedule for the year in which the exhibition or service happens. The 2027 schedule is already posted; its solo exhibition fees are $2,677, $3,569 and $4,376 for Categories I to III. Fees do not cover shipping, insurance, production costs, equipment, travel or per diems, which are negotiated separately.
How to invoice
- Agree first. Get a written agreement that names the fee, the schedule section and category it follows, and when it will be paid.
- Send a clear invoice. Include your name and address, invoice number and date, the gallery’s name, the exhibition title and dates, and one line per fee (for example, “Solo exhibition fee, Category I, 2026 schedule, A.1.1.1: $2,574”).
- Add tax only if you are registered. You must register for GST/HST once your taxable revenues pass $30,000 in a calendar quarter or over four consecutive quarters; below that, registering is optional.
- State the terms. The schedule says licence invoices should be paid within 30 days of receipt.
- Keep copies of the agreement, invoice and payment for your taxes.
When a gallery will not pay
- Ask before you sign. Ask which budget category the gallery is in and what it intends to pay. Many disputes start with an assumption.
- Point to the standard. Name the schedule line and, for a publicly funded gallery, its funder’s expectations. Many organizations pay once asked.
- Separate fees from expenses. A gallery covering your shipping or production is not paying your fee; the schedule treats them as different things.
- Get advice. CARFAC’s national and regional offices, and RAAV in Quebec, advise artists, and CARFAC has a consultation request form for fee questions. Artists affiliated with Copyright Visual Arts can have it license their work, and it asks for more than the minimums.
- Unauthorized use. If your work was exhibited or reproduced without your permission, the schedule says you may invoice retroactively, and a penalty may apply.
- Unpaid invoices. Send a reminder, then a formal demand letter. Small claims court is the last step for an agreed fee that goes unpaid.
Sometimes the right answer is to decline. A publicly funded gallery that refuses to pay any fee is telling you how it values artists. For context on other gallery models, see types of art galleries explained, and for sales terms see commission rates and consignment agreements.
A note for US readers: US law has no exhibition right, so fees are voluntary. The non-profit W.A.G.E. runs a certification program for institutions that commit to paying artist fees.
Frequently asked questions
- Are CARFAC fees mandatory?
They are recommended minimums, but they become binding through Status of the Artist agreements, such as the one with the National Gallery of Canada, and through your own written contract. Many public funders also expect the galleries they support to pay them.
- Does a commercial gallery have to pay me an exhibition fee?
No. The exhibition right applies when work is shown other than for sale or hire, so a commercial show of work for sale does not trigger it.
- How do I know which category a gallery is in?
Ask. The category depends on the gallery’s operating budget averaged over three years, and a gallery that follows the schedule will tell you which category it uses.
- Are the fees per artist or per show?
Per artist. In a group show each artist is paid a share of the solo fee, based on the number of artists.
Sources
- Introduction, CARFAC-RAAV Minimum Recommended Fee Schedule. Read 2026-10-19.
- Section 1: 2026 Exhibition and Screening Royalty Schedule, CARFAC-RAAV. Read 2026-10-19.
- Section 2: 2026 Reproduction Royalty Schedule, Non-commercial, CARFAC-RAAV. Read 2026-10-19.
- Section 4: 2026 Artist Professional Services Fee Schedule, CARFAC-RAAV. Read 2026-10-19.
- Section 1: 2027 Exhibition and Screening Royalty Schedule, CARFAC-RAAV. Read 2026-10-19.
- CARFAC-RAAV Minimum Recommended Fee Schedule, CARFAC. Read 2026-10-19.
- Agreements, CARFAC. Read 2026-10-19.
- Our history, CARFAC Maritimes. Read 2026-10-19.
- Status of the Artist Act, S.C. 1992, c. 33, Justice Laws Website. Read 2026-10-19.
- Profile eligibility criteria, Canada Council for the Arts. Read 2026-10-19.
- General Information for GST/HST Registrants (RC4022), Canada Revenue Agency. Read 2026-10-19.
- W.A.G.E., Working Artists and the Greater Economy. Read 2026-10-19.