Right to vote of Germans living abroad

1. General information

Germans living abroad will be permitted to vote in the 7th Direct Elections of the Members of the European Parliament from the Federal Republic of Germany in 2009 provided the following conditions are fulfilled:

Germans living outside the Federal Republic of Germany who are not registered in Germany are entitled to vote in the forthcoming European election provided that
- they are German citizens pursuant to Article 116 of the Basic Constitutional Law,
- they have completed their 18th year of age until the day of the election,
- they have lived in the Federal Republic of Germany for a minimum of three months in a row after 23 May 1949, and
- they are not denied the right to vote.

The exclusion from the right to vote of German citizens residing outside the Member States of the Council of Europe who had departed from the Federal Republic of Germany more than 25 years ago, which was still in force for the last Bundestag and European elections, was deleted by the Act amending the elections and members of parliament law of 17 March 2008 (Federal Law Gazette I, p. 394).

German citizens who have not been living for at least three months in the Federal Republic of Germany after 23 May 1949 are nevertheless entitled to vote if on election day they have had a residence in one of the other Member States of the European Union for a period of at least three months.
Voters residing in another Member State may choose whether they wish to participate in the European election in their Member State of residence or in the Federal Republic of Germany. However, everyone may exercise the right to vote in the European election only once. Germans wishing to participate in the European election in their Member State of residence should contact the competent authorities in their Member State of residence for more detailed information.

Apart from the Federal Republic of Germany, the following countries are at present Member States of the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Hungary and the United Kingdom.

Germans living abroad who comply with the requirements specified above and wish to participate in the European election in Germany need to have their names entered in due time in the register of voters of their last home municipality in Germany. To this end, a written application has to be submitted on a special form, while at the same time, the Germans concerned have to affirm in lieu of an oath that they are entitled to vote.

The application forms for entry in a register of voters for the European election may be obtained
- by download (PDF file) on this website (see below)
- in spring 2009 as printed forms
  - from all embassies and consulates of the Federal Republic of Germany,
  - from the Federal Returning Officer and
  - from all constituency returning officers in Germany.

Together with their own application forms, applicants may obtain forms for family members, friends or colleagues. Firms and associations may request delivery of the required number of application forms for their staff abroad.

German citizens living abroad have to submit their own application for entry in the register of voters together with an affirmation in lieu of an oath that they are entitled to vote. These documents have to be sent to the municipality where they were last registered before leaving the Federal Republic of Germany.

The applications on the above forms must have been received by the competent authority in Germany on the 21st day before the day of the election at the latest, i.e. on 17 May 2009 at the latest. Therefore, the completed application forms should be returned as soon as possible.

After German citizens living abroad and eligible to vote have been entered in the register of voters, they will be provided with the documents required for postal vote (polling card, ballot paper, voting envelope, ballot-letter envelope, and sheet of notes for postal voters) without further request about one month before the day of the election.
The voters will have to return in the sealed official ballot-letter envelope
- the polling card and the affirmation in lieu of an oath and
- the ballot paper in the sealed official voting envelope. The documents will have to be returned to the authority indicated on the ballot-letter envelope in good time for this authority to receive them at the latest by 6 p.m. on the day of the election.
Germans living abroad and wishing to vote in the 7th Direct Elections of the Members of the European Parliament from the Federal Republic of Germany in 2009 should act in due time because of the specific character of the procedure and the possibly long forwarding times for mail. In the foreign press, the German missions abroad will provide information about the opportunity for Germans living abroad to vote in the impending elections. Some German missions also offer a service for delivery of ballot-letter envelopes for postal vote. Please refer to your local German mission for further information. It would also be desirable that relatives and friends living in the Federal Republic of Germany and firms in Germany who employ staff abroad draw the attention of their relatives, friends and staff abroad to the opportunity and formalities of voting in the 2009 European Election.

2. Important information for persons who continue to be registered in Germany

German citizens who continue to be registered in Germany during their stay abroad will ex officio be entered in the register of voters of their municipality. Person entitled to vote who have been entered in a register of voters may exercise their right to vote by postal ballot. To exercise the right of postal ballot, it is necessary to request in writing or orally that the local authority issue a polling card. The requirement to submit this request in writing shall be considered fulfilled also by a telegram, telex, fax, e-mail or other electronic transmission that can be documented. Application by telephone is not permitted.