Who can currently vote?

British, Irish, and Commonwealth citizens can vote in all elections.

In England and Northern Ireland, EU citizens can vote in local elections.

In Scotland and Wales, all residents have the right to vote in local and devolved national elections.

Understanding voting rights in the UK can be complicated. This is why we have developed a simple, accessible, and translated tool with Just Register and Citizens UK for you to check your voting rights. 
Click to use our tool and find out more below about EU and Commonwealth citizens’ voting rights.

EU citizens and The Elections Act

The Elections Act is changing the voting rights of EU citizens: 

EU citizens who have entered the UK by December 2020 will automatically continue having the right to vote in local elections in England and Northern Ireland.

EU citizens who entered the UK from 2021 onwards will only have the right to vote in local elections in England and Northern Ireland if their country of origin has secured bilateral voting rights agreements with the UK.

So far, only POLAND, LUXEMBOURG, PORTUGAL, SPAIN, and DENMARK have secured these agreements.

These changes do not affect EU citizens in Scotland and Wales as every resident has the right to vote in local elections and devolved national elections using a residence-based voting rights system implemented in the two nations.

Please note these changes will not be implemented in practice before the local elections of May 2024. Every EU citizen can still register and vote in the May 2024 local elections. Unfortunately, after the May 2024 elections, many EU citizens will lose their right to vote in the UK.

Understanding “Qualifying Commonwealth” rights:

You will have noticed the word “qualifying” when talking about the voting rights of Commonwealth citizens in the UK.

Qualifying Commonwealth citizens must be resident in the UK and either have leave to remain in the UK or not require such leave. Any type of leave to enter or remain is acceptable, whether indefinite, time limited or conditional. You can find more detail on the Electoral Commission’s website.

If you are not sure whether you have leave to remain in the UK, you may be able to find that on:

  • Antigua and Barbuda

  • Australia

  • The Bahamas

  • Bangladesh

  • Barbados

  • Belize

  • Botswana

  • Brunei Darussalam

  • Cameroon

  • Canada

  • Cyprus*

  • Dominica

  • Fiji

  • Gabon

  • The Gambia

  • Ghana

  • Grenada

  • Guyana

  • India

List of Commonwealth countries:

  • Jamaica

  • Kenya

  • Kingdom of Eswatini

  • Kiribati

  • Lesotho

  • Malawi

  • Malaysia

  • Maldives

  • Malta*

  • Mauritius

  • Mozambique

  • Namibia

  • Nauru

  • New Zealand

  • Nigeria

  • Pakistan

  • Papua New Guinea

  • Rwanda

  • Saint Kitts and Nevis

  • Saint Lucia

  • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

  • Samoa

  • Seychelles

  • Sierra Leone

  • Singapore

  • Solomon Islands

  • South Africa

  • Sri Lanka

  • Togo

  • Tonga

  • Trinidad and Tobago

  • Tuvalu

  • Uganda

  • United Kingdom

  • United Republic of Tanzania

  • Vanuatu

  • Zambia

  • Zimbabwe

*Although also EU member states, citizens of Cyprus and Malta are eligible to be registered to vote in respect of all elections held in the UK.

Commonwealth citizens include those of British Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories.

Citizens of Fiji and Zimbabwe retain their voting rights despite Fiji being currently suspended from the Commonwealth and Zimbabwe having withdrawn from the Commonwealth in 2003.