Before you can vote.
You can register up to two years before you reach voting age: from 16 in England and Northern Ireland, from 14 in Scotland and Wales. Register again if you change your name, address or nationality.
✶ Register · show ID · vote
Your vote,
step by step.
Who can vote depends on the election, your age, your nationality and where you live. Register once, bring accepted photo ID where it is needed, or vote by post or proxy. Start with what's on your ballot.
At your address
What's on
your ballot.
Eligibility
Who can vote
in what.
Everyone must be registered and not legally excluded from voting. The age is your age on polling day.
| Election | Age | Nationality | Where you live |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK general election and by-elections | 18+ | British, Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizens. | Resident at a UK address, or registered as an overseas voter. |
| Local elections in England and Northern Ireland | 18+ | British or Irish citizens; and, with permission to enter or stay (or not needing it), Commonwealth citizens, citizens of Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain, and other EU citizens who have had permission to enter or stay without a break since 31 December 2020. | Registered at an address in the area. Not for overseas voters. |
| Local elections in Scotland | 16+ | British or Irish citizens, and citizens of any other country with permission to enter or stay in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man (or not needing it). | Registered at an address in the area. Not for overseas voters. |
| Local elections in Wales | 16+ | British, Irish or EU citizens, and citizens of any other country with permission to enter or stay (or not needing it). | Registered at an address in the area. Not for overseas voters. |
| Scottish Parliament | 16+ | British or Irish citizens, and citizens of any other country with permission to enter or stay in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man (or not needing it). | Registered at an address in Scotland. |
| Senedd Cymru | 16+ | British, Irish or EU citizens, and citizens of any other country with permission to enter or stay (or not needing it). | Living in Wales. |
| Northern Ireland Assembly | 18+ | British or Irish citizens; and, with permission to enter or stay (or not needing it), Commonwealth citizens, citizens of Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain, and other EU citizens who have had permission to enter or stay without a break since 31 December 2020. | Registered at an address in the area. |
| Mayor of London and London Assembly | 18+ | British or Irish citizens; and, with permission to enter or stay (or not needing it), Commonwealth citizens, citizens of Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain, and other EU citizens who have had permission to enter or stay without a break since 31 December 2020. | Resident in Greater London. |
| Police and Crime Commissioners (England and Wales, not London) | 18+ | British or Irish citizens; and, with permission to enter or stay (or not needing it), Commonwealth citizens, citizens of Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain, and other EU citizens who have had permission to enter or stay without a break since 31 December 2020. | Resident in England or Wales, outside London. |
From gov.uk's guide to elections (last updated October 2024). Votes at 16 for Holyrood and Scottish councils come from the Scottish Elections (Reduction of Voting Age) Act 2015; for the Senedd, from section 10 of the Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020.
Before polling day
Get on
the register.
Every summer.
From July each year, electoral registration offices check every household's details. If an officer asks you to register and you qualify but don't, you could be fined up to £1,000. There is no canvass in Northern Ireland.
Students and second homes.
You can sometimes register at two addresses — a student's home and term-time address, say — and may be able to vote in both areas' local elections. You can only vote once in any one election.
The open register.
The full register is used for elections, campaigning, credit checks and jury summoning. A second, "open" version can be bought by anyone; you can opt out of it, or register anonymously if your safety is at risk.
- gov.uk/register-to-vote ↗ Register to vote Online, in about five minutes. You'll be asked for your National Insurance number, but you can still register without one. You normally only register once.
- Voter Authority Certificate ↗ Get free voter ID No accepted photo ID? Apply for a Voter Authority Certificate online or through your council.
- gov.uk/how-to-vote ↗ Apply for a postal vote For a single election, a set period, or up to three years in England, Scotland and Wales.
- Voting by proxy ↗ Apply for a proxy vote Someone you trust votes for you at your polling station.
- The electoral register ↗ Check you're registered Ask your council's electoral registration office (England, Scotland, Wales) or use Am I Registered in Northern Ireland.
Elections Act 2022
Bring
photo ID.
Needed to vote in person at
- UK parliamentary elections, including general elections and by-elections
- Recall of MP petitions in England, Scotland and Wales
- Local elections in England (councils, mayors, the Greater London Authority and parishes)
- Police and Crime Commissioner elections in England and Wales
- Neighbourhood planning and local authority referendums in England
Northern Ireland has different rules. The ID must be the original — not a photocopy or a picture on your phone — and the photo must look like you, but it can have expired. If the name on it differs from the register, bring proof of the change such as a marriage certificate.
No accepted ID? The Voter Authority Certificate is free: a paper document with your photo, from your council or online.
Accepted documents
- UK or Northern Ireland photocard driving licence (full or provisional)
- Driving licence from an EU country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands
- UK passport
- Passport from an EU country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or a Commonwealth country
- PASS card (National Proof of Age Standards Scheme)
- Blue Badge
- Biometric residence permit (BRP)
- Defence Identity Card (MOD form 90)
- HM Armed Forces Veteran Card (MOD form 100)
- National identity card from an EU country, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein
- Northern Ireland Electoral Identity Card
- Voter Authority Certificate
- Anonymous Elector's Document
Accepted travel passes
- Older person's bus pass
- Disabled person's bus pass
- Oyster 60+ card
- Freedom Pass
- Scottish National Entitlement Card (NEC)
- 60 and Over Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
- Disabled Person's Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
- Northern Ireland concessionary travel pass
Step through · Polling day
Inside the polling station.
What happens between the door and the ballot box.
Step 1 of 6 · Before polling day
Poll card
You're sent a poll card just before the election telling you when to vote and at which polling station. You can only vote at the station on your card — but you don't need to take the card with you, and you can still vote if you've lost it.
Step 2 of 6 · Polling day
7am to 10pm
Polling stations are open from 7am to 10pm on polling day.
Step 3 of 6 · Polling station
Name and address
Give your name and address to the staff inside the polling station.
Step 4 of 6 · Most elections in Great Britain
Photo ID
Show your photo ID where it is required — it can have expired, but it must be the original and look like you. A proxy shows their own ID, not yours.
Step 5 of 6 · Polling booth
Ballot paper
You're given a ballot paper listing the people, parties or options. Follow the instructions in the booth and on the paper — it tells you how many candidates you can vote for. Every polling station has a large-print display version.
Step 6 of 6 · Any election
Not online
There is no online voting in any UK election: in person, by post or by proxy.
Other ways to vote
By post,
by proxy, from abroad.
Postal vote
Apply for one election, a set period, or up to three years (England, Scotland and Wales). Mark the ballot in secret, fill in the postal voting statement and seal both in the envelope. Too late to post it? In England and Wales hand it in at your polling station by 10pm, with up to five others'; in Scotland, to the council's returning officer. Lost or damaged packs can be replaced until 5pm on polling day (Northern Ireland has different rules).
Proxy vote
If you'll be away, have a medical issue or disability, can't get there because of work or military service, or are an overseas voter, someone registered and eligible can vote for you. Apply by 5pm six working days before polling day (14 in Northern Ireland). An emergency proxy — illness, work, or lost photo ID — can be requested until 5pm on polling day in Great Britain.
Living abroad
British citizens who have previously lived in the UK can register as overseas voters and vote in UK Parliament elections, by post or proxy (Elections Act 2022, section 14). Overseas voters cannot vote in local elections. If you're registered in Northern Ireland you cannot vote by post from abroad.
Away on polling day
Abroad temporarily? Vote by post or proxy. Postal ballots are sent no earlier than 19 days before the election and must be back by 10pm on polling day; if the election is under two weeks away, apply for a proxy instead.
Deadlines for each upcoming election — registration, postal, proxy and Voter Authority Certificate — are on the calendar.