From January 2024, there will be changes for British citizens living overseas. There will no longer be a 15 year limit on voting rights, and the registration period will change. 

Changes

The 15 year limit on voting rights for British citizens living overseas will be removed, and the registration period for these voters will be extended from one year to three. This means that overseas voters will only need to register to vote every three years. 

Any British citizen living abroad who has previously lived in, or been registered to vote in the UK, will have the right to vote at UK Parliamentary elections. These voters will be registered at the constituency where they were last registered to vote, or where they lived if they were not registered to vote before. 

Anyone who is registered to vote in the UK can make donations to political parties and campaigners. Extending voting rights to more British citizens living overseas will mean these new voters will also be allowed to donate to political parties and campaigners in the UK.

Our role

To support electoral administrators, we will update our guidance to reflect this change.

We will also update the design of paper application forms for British citizens overseas to register to vote, to reflect new rules and requirements and ensure they are as clear and simple to complete as possible.

We will extend the reach of our voter registration campaigns to ensure new voters overseas will be aware of this change.

We will also talk to political parties and campaigners about the overseas voting rights changes.