How to Register
Who can Register?
You can register if you are 16 or over (but
you cannot vote until you are 18)
A British, Irish Republic or Commonwealth
citizen, a citizen of a European Union country living in the UK or
a citizen of the Channel Islands or Isle of Man living in the UK.
Find out if your
nationality qualifies.
You need to register at the address you are
living at unless you are living overseas, in the Armed Forces
or a Crown Servant. If you are a British citizen resident overseas
or in the Armed Services or are a Crown Servant serving overseas,
find out about registering to vote and voting by visiting the
Electoral Commission
website.
How to Apply
During the Autumn
Each year, during the Autumn, we send Voter
Registration Forms to each property. This is known as the
Annual
Canvass. The forms are preprinted with the names of those
people who are currently registered at that address. If any
of the names have changed or your name is missing, you should
correct the form and send it back by post. Every property is
required to respond and the details we receive are used to produce
the new Register of Electors published by 1st December.
The Rest of the Year
You can be added to the Register during the rest of the year by
completing a Household Registration
Form. This is called Rolling
Registration and the Register is updated on a monthly basis
from December through to August. This is ideal if you have
missed the opportunity to register during the Annual Canvass.
Large print forms and forms in other languages are available to
download from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk.
Find out the
monthly updates publication dates and when you need to return
the form by.
The Full and Edited Register – What are they?
There are two versions of the electoral
register, the full register and the edited register.
The full register is used for
elections, the prevention and detection of crime and checking
applications for credit. It lists the names of everyone who is
entitled to vote in the Ashford Borough Council area.
The edited register is
available for general sale and can be used for any purpose
including commercial activities such as marketing.
Your details will appear on the full register
but you can choose not have your name showing on the edited
register.
What Happens Next?
We will write to you to acknowledge receipt of
your application, usually on the day it is received. Provided there
are no objections then your name will be added to the register for
the beginning of the following month.
We will also inform your previous local
authority that you are now registered in this area, provided that
you have given us details of your previous address.
Find out
more about how to vote
This webpage was updated on
8/2/2011