Register to vote

Who can vote

Age

You can register to vote from the age of 16. However, you must be 18 or over to vote in elections

Residence

You must live in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea when you apply to register to vote.

If you live at more than one address, you may be able to register to vote at both addresses.

For example, this may apply if you:

  • own and live in two homes
  • are a student with a term-time and home address

Find out more about voting if you have a second home or if you're a student.

We consider applications to register to vote from your second home on a case-by-case basis. We'll look at factors such as how much time you spend at each address. 

You must have moved to an address before you can register to vote there.

Different registration rules apply to some people who do not meet the standard residence requirements. These are known as special category electors.

For example, this includes some people who:

  • live overseas
  • are members of the armed forces
  • do not have a permanent address

Find out more about special category electors

Nationality

To qualify to vote, you must be a British, Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of a qualifying European Union member state.

European Union citizens

Visit Voting and candidacy rights of EU citizens.

Commonwealth citizens

The definition of a Commonwealth citizen includes citizens of British Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories.

Commonwealth citizens must be resident in the UK and either have leave to enter or remain in the UK or not require such leave.

Commonwealth citizens are entitled to register as parliamentary and local government electors if:

  • they do not require permission to enter or stay in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man
  • they do require permission to enter or stay in the UK but have been granted such permission or are treated as having been granted such permission
  • any type of permission to enter or stay is acceptable, whether indefinite, time limited or conditional

They must also fulfil the age and residence requirements for registration and not be subject to any other legal incapacity.

Citizens of Commonwealth countries other than the United Kingdom are not eligible to register as overseas electors. 

Commonwealth countries
  • Antigua and Barbuda
  • Australia
  • Bahamas, The
  • Bangladesh
  • Barbados
  • Belize
  • Botswana
  • Brunei Darussalam
  • Cameroon
  • Canada
  • Cyprus
  • Dominica
  • Fiji
  • Gabon
  • Gambia, The
  • Ghana
  • Grenada
  • Guyana
  • India
  • 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

Citizens of Commonwealth countries that have been suspended from the Commonwealth retain their voting rights. Their voting rights would only be affected if their country was also deleted from the list of Commonwealth countries in the British Nationality Act 1981 through an Act of the UK Parliament.  

Commonwealth citizens temporarily in the UK and pending removal

The Home Office have advised that Commonwealth citizens who are temporarily in the UK pending removal, are not in the UK legally whilst arrangements for their removal are being made. As these citizens do not have permission to enter or stay, they are not eligible to register to vote.

British Overseas Territories

British Overseas Territories citizens have the same status as Commonwealth citizens. They are entitled to register as electors in respect of all elections, if they also fulfil the age and residence requirements for such registration and are not subject to any other legal incapacity.

British Overseas Territories
  • Anguilla
  • Bermuda
  • British Antarctic Territory
  • British Indian Ocean Territory
  • British Virgin Islands
  • Cayman Islands
  • Falkland Islands
  • Gibraltar
  • Montserrat
  • Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
  • South George and the South Sandwich Islands
  • Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Cyprus
  • St Helena, Ascencion and Tristan da Cunha
  • Turks and Caicos Islands

British Crown Dependencies

The British Crown Dependencies are:

  • Isle of Man
  • Channel Islands including Jersey, Guernsey, Sark, Alderney, Herm and the other inhabited Channel Islands.

Citizens of the British Crown Dependencies who are resident in the UK are Commonwealth citizens for the purposes of electoral registration. Unlike Commonwealth citizens, they may register as overseas electors.

Hong Kong citizens

Only previous residents of Hong Kong who hold a British Overseas Territories, British Nationals (Overseas) or British Overseas passport meet the nationality criterion for all elections in the UK.

Any previous resident of Hong Kong who only has a Chinese Special Administrative Region passport is Chinese and may not register as a qualifying Commonwealth citizen. They may, however, be eligible to register as a qualifying foreign citizen in Scotland and Wales.

Last updated: 31 July 2026