Postal vote re-applications 2025 - 2026

If your postal vote is due to expire in January 2026, we may have contacted you by email this year to remind you to re-apply in advance.

Renewing your postal vote

The Elections Act 2022 introduced new rules for postal votes. From 31 October 2023:

• All postal vote applications must contain your name, address, date of birth, National Insurance number and signature
• When you apply to vote by post your identity is checked against information held by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP). If this check fails, you will be asked to provide additional evidence of your identity.
• Postal votes are now valid for a maximum of three years

If you applied for a permanent postal vote before 31 October 2023, your postal vote will expire on 31 January 2026. To continue voting by post you will need to make a new application.

We have contacted all residents who provided an email address to encourage early re-application. Residents who have not re-applied online or who have not provided an email address will receive a letter in August or September with instructions on how to apply.

You can re-apply for your postal vote at any time, either online by visiting Gov.uk or using a paper application form.

We have 38,000 postal voters who need to make a new application before 31 January 2026. We have started the re-application process early to give everyone plenty of time to renew their postal vote if they wish to continue voting by post.