Voting rights for EU citizens

Changes to voting rights

EU citizens are no longer automatically entitled to register to vote or stand for election.

Two groups of EU citizens will retain their rights:

• 'qualifying EU citizens' - Citizens from EU countries with reciprocal agreements with the UK, currently Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, and Spain (referred to as the EU5).
• 'EU citizens with retained rights' - EU citizens from other EU countries who were legally resident in the UK before 31 December 2020 (referred to as the EU19).

Citizens of the Republic of Ireland, Malta and Cyprus will retain their voting rights in all UK elections while resident in the UK.

What happens now?

The Electoral Registration Officer at Wiltshire Council is required to:

• review the eligibility of EU citizens as part of an Eligibility Confirmation and Review (ECR) process.
• inform 'Qualifying EU citizens' and 'EU citizens with retained rights' of their continued eligibility to remain registered, requiring no action from them.
• update application processes for EU citizens to meet the new eligibility criteria.

We are now (as of September 2024), reviewing the registrations of all EU citizens. For those EU citizens who are currently registered to vote, and where one of the following applies:

• we are able to confirm that you were resident in the UK before 31 December 2020 through checking electoral register records, or
• you qualify to remain on the electoral register as a citizen of Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain

We will send you an email or letter confirming you remain eligible to be registered under the new criteria. You will not need to do anything: you will remain registered and will be able to vote in local elections (but not UK Parliamentary elections).

However, if you are an EU citizen who is currently registered to vote but we are unable to confirm that you are eligible to remain registered through our electoral register records, then we will send you an email or letter to try and find out if you are still eligible to remain registered.
  
If you have received a letter asking you to confirm your eligibility, you will need to either:

• respond via the gov.uk website - details on how to log in will be included in the letter or email you will have received, or
• complete the paper form that will be enclosed with the letter and return it to us using the pre-paid envelope provided

If you confirm to us that you do not meet the eligibility criteria, then your details will be removed from the electoral register. This means that you will no longer be able to vote in local government elections and Police and Crime Commissioner elections. You will receive a further letter confirming this.

If you do not respond to our requests for information about your eligibility, then we will determine that you are no longer eligible to remain registered to vote, and your details will be removed from the electoral register. This means that you will no longer be eligible to vote in local government elections and Police and Crime Commissioner elections. You will receive a further letter confirming this.

If you didn't respond to our requests for information (and your details have been removed from the electoral register) but you do meet the eligibility criteria, then you will need to register to vote again at GOV.UK: Register to vote (opens new window).

Changes to citizenship or nationality

If you have gained new citizenship or changed your nationality since you last registered to vote, you should let us know. The changes to your citizenship or nationality may affect your eligibility to vote in some elections and you might need to register to vote again. You can contact us at elections@wiltshire.gov.uk (opens new window) or call 0300 456 0112. Alternatively, you can submit a new application to register to vote at GOV.UK: Register to vote (opens new window).

Further information

You can find more information on The Electoral Commission: Changes for EU citizens in some UK elections (opens new window) page.