EU Citizens will retain their voting and candidacy rights if they are either:
- A 'Qualifying EU citizen' – These are citizens from countries with reciprocal agreements (bilateral Voting and Candidacy Rights Treaty) who have ‘leave to remain’ in the UK or who do not need ‘leave to remain’ in the UK. These countries are currently Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal and Spain.
- 'EU citizens with retained rights' - EU citizens from any other EU country who have been legally resident in the UK since before the UK left the EU on 31 December 2020.
Citizens from Ireland, Malta, or Cyprus are unaffected by these changes and will retain their voting rights in all UK elections while resident in the UK.
If you’re an EU citizen living in the UK, whether you can vote depends on the type of election and your citizenship. The first scheduled elections these changes will apply to in England are the local elections in May 2025.
More information, including a tool EU citizens can use to find out which elections they can vote in, can be found here.
Changes to EU Citizen’s Voting and Candidacy Rights – Frequently asked questions
Eligibility Confirmation Review (ECR)
Following the changes to EU citizens registration entitlement, the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) is required to conduct a review of all EU citizens on the electoral register called the Eligibility Confirmation Review (ECR).
The purpose of the ECR is to;
- Identify individuals who are eligible to remain registered to vote, and;
- Identify those who are not eligible to remain registered and remove them from the electoral register.
Following the outcome of the review, individuals will be notified as to whether they will remain registered, or if they must be removed from the electoral register.
The ECR is a one-off exercise, and no equivalent action will be required in future.
The ECR must be completed by 31 January 2025 and will consist of two parts, these are:
- The data-based review
- The correspondence-based review
The Data-Based Review
The first stage in the ECR is for the ERO to conduct a data-based review of all EU citizens on the Electoral Register.
The data-based review involves both an automatic and manual data matching process of individuals via the use of any data which the ERO may hold or have access to for the purpose of their registration duties.
This data will be used to identify qualifying EU citizens and EU citizens with retained rights who will receive a letter to confirm they are retained on the register.
Where it is not possible to establish eligibility for electors via the data-based review, a correspondence-based review will take place.
The Correspondence-Based Review
The only individuals who will enter the correspondence-based review are those who are citizens of a country where:
- A bilateral Voting and Candidacy Rights (VCR) treaty is not in place, these include the following countries;
- Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, The Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden
- and their eligibility to remain registered was not confirmed via the data-based review.
The purpose of the correspondence review is to contact individuals directly and request that they confirm whether they are entitled to remain registered under the new criteria for EU voters by answering a historical residency question.
The question needs to be answered and a declaration made.
The Historical Residency Question
Individuals will need to respond either YES or NO to the following question as part of the correspondence-based review:
"Since 31 December 2020 have you continuously had permission to enter or stay in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man, or not needed permission?"
Answer 'Yes' if one or more of the following applied to you on or before 31 December 2020 and has continued without a break:
- settled or pre-settled status under the EU settlement scheme, except if you applied as a joining family member
- indefinite or limited Leave to Enter or Remain in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man
- residents in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man but exempt from immigration controls.
Contact Stages of the Correspondence-Based Review
At least three attempts to contact each individual as part the correspondence-based review will be made. These stages are set out below:
Stage 1 – First Review Notice
This notice will be sent by post.
Stage 2 - Second Review Notice
This notice will be sent by either email or post
Stage 3 – Last Review Notice (Pending Removal)
This notice will be be hand delivered by a member of the Electoral Services team who will make a personal contact attempt to try to gather a response.
During the correspondence-based review, letters will be sent out based on the response to the review to confirm whether an individual will remain registered or be removed from the electoral register. If further information is required, a letter will be sent out to request this.
How to respond
The quickest way to respond is online by following the steps below:
- Go to www.gov.uk/eu-voter-reply .
- Read the information on the screen and click “Start Now”.
- Enter the one-time unique security code provided on the letter sent to you and complete the required information.
Alternatively, you can respond by returning the form you have received via post to Electoral Services, Council Offices, The Picture House, St Catherine's Road, Grantham, NG31 6TT
Changes to candidacy rights
Changes to candidacy rights for EU citizens were effective from 7 May 2024. EU citizens elected before this date can remain in office for their full term.
From 7 May 2024, EU citizens wishing to be candidates must have been legally resident in the UK before 31 December 2020, or be from a qualifying EU country, to be eligible to stand and take up office.
New citizenship or a change to nationality
Obtaining a new citizenship or a change of nationality since a person last registered to vote, may affect eligibility to register to vote and vote in some elections. Please contact Electoral Services for more information.
Electoral Services:
Telephone: 01476 406080, ask for elections
Email: elections@southkesteven.gov.uk