Information about eligible nationalities, residence and age.
Age
Everyone eligible over the age of 18 can vote and must register. People aged 16 or 17 can register so they can vote immediately after their 18th birthday.
Residence
People can register only for the address where they are living. If you change your address you can now re-register as soon as you move. Special rules apply for students and people with more than one home.
Nationality
Only British, Commonwealth, Irish and European Union citizens are allowed to vote.
See the list of countries below whose citizens are allowed to vote in this country. If you are the citizen of a country not listed below you cannot vote – even if you are allowed to live in this country.
Commonwealth countries
Although also EU member states, citizens of Cyprus and Malta are eligible to be registered to vote in all elections held in the UK.
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Commonwealth countries (A to F)
- Anguilla
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Australia
- The Bahamas
- Bangladesh
- Barbados
- Belize
- Bermuda
- Botswana
- British Antarctic Territory
- British Indian Ocean Territory
- British Virgin Islands
- Brunei
- Canada
- Cameroon
- Cayman Islands
- The Channel Islands (including Jersey, Guernsey, Sark, Alderney, Herm and the other inhabited Channel Islands)
- Cyprus
- Dominica
- Eswatini
- Falkland Islands
- Fiji
-
Commonwealth countries (G to O)
- Gabon
- The Gambia
- Ghana
- Gibraltar
- Grenada
- Guyana
- India
- Isle of Man
- Jamaica
- Kenya
- Kiribati
- Lesotho
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Malta
- Mauritius
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nauru
- New Zealand
- Nigeria
-
Commonwealth countries (P to Z)
- Pakistan
- Papua New Guinea
- Pitcairn Island
- Rwanda
- St Christopher and Nevis
- St Helena and dependencies (Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha)
- St Lucia
- St Vincent and the Grenadines
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Singapore
- Solomon Islands
- South Africa
- South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
- Sovereign base areas on Cyprus
- Sri Lanka
- Tanzania
- Togo
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Turks and Caicos Islands
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- Vanuatu
- Western Samoa
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
European Union countries
Citizens of the European Union (who are not Commonwealth citizens or citizens of the Republic of Ireland) can vote in European and local elections in the UK.
They are not able to to vote in UK Parliamentary general elections.
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- The Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
Hong Kong
At the ‘handover’ to China, some Hong Kong residents became British Citizens or British Nationals (overseas) and can register to vote. Those who became citizens of the People's Republic of China cannot register.