Voting in Belgium in the European Parliamentary elections
The Belgian deadline for registering an intention to vote in the European Parliamentary elections is 28th February. If you are a British resident in Belgium you can have your say, provided you take action by the deadline.
The deadline in Belgium for registering to vote in the European Parliamentary elections of 25th of May 2014 is 28 February 2014. If you are a British resident in Belgium, you can have your say, provided you take action by the deadline.
Voting in Belgium
The Belgium government has provided information on the interior ministry website that residents may find useful, which is available in Dutch, French and English.
In order to vote in Belgium, you must be registered in the population register or in the Aliens’ register for the municipality where you live in Belgium. This condition must be fulfilled by 1st March 2014.
You need to be registered on the electoral list for the municipality where you have your main residence. In order to do so you must complete an application to be included on this list (C/1 form). You can obtain one of these at your main residence’s municipal council offices or print it from the Federal elections web site. You need to drop off the completed form at the Council House or you can send it by post, fax or email by 28 February 2014 at the latest.
The municipal council will examine your request on the basis of the information you gave on this form. If you are approved by the municipal executives you will receive an official notification from the municipality.
Voting is compulsory in Belgium. As soon as your registration on the electoral list has been approved you will be held legally responsible for going to the polls on 25 May 2014. From then on you will no longer be able to take part in the European Parliament elections in your home state.
Voting in the UK
Alternatively, if you have been registered to vote in the UK within the last 15 years, you are eligible to vote in the UK as long as you are on the electoral register there. British expatriates can print off a registration form and post it to the UK local authority where they were last registered to vote, in time for it to be received by Wednesday 7 May. More information can be found on the UK Electoral Commission website.
When registering as a voter for the European Parliament elections, you will also have to declare that you will only vote once. In a European Parliament election, you can only vote in one country.