Individual Electoral Registration (IER) was introduced in England and Wales on Tuesday, 10th June 2014. IER is a new method of registering to vote, and instead of using a household form to register to vote, everyone will take individual responsibility for their own registration.

In order to apply, a person will now need to provide their National Insurance Number and date of birth. This will be used to verify that the person making the application is who they say they are, and will, in turn, reduce the risk of fraud and inaccurate entries on the Electoral Register.

With IER, electors are now able to register on-line for the first time. This takes about 5 minutes to complete and you can use the link below.

www.gov.uk/register-to-vote

If you live in England

• You must be aged 16 or over.
• You can register to vote if you’re a British citizen or an Irish citizen. 

You can also register if you have permission to enter or stay in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man - or you do not need permission - and you’re a:

• Commonwealth citizen 
• citizen of Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain 
• citizen of another EU country, if you have had permission to enter or stay - or not needed permission - since 31 December 2020, and this has continued without a break

Citizens of EU countries other than the UK, the Irish Republic, Cyprus and Malta cannot vote in Westminster parliamentary elections.

See the download at the foot of the page for a full list of Commonwealth and European Union countries.

All you have to do is visit www.gov.uk/register-to-vote. If you do not have internet access, you can contact us on 01962 848125.

If you are a student, you may be able to register to vote at both your home and term-time addresses and vote in both local elections. It is a criminal offence to vote twice in a UK election.

Even if you are registered in two areas – at home and at uni – you can only vote once in a national election.

However, if your home and uni addresses are in two different local authority areas, you can vote in local elections in both.

If you have received an application form and want to stay registered at your home address and not your address in Winchester, you can contact us at ereg@winchester.gov.uk

With 'rolling registration' in force, it means that the register is updated every month.  However, applications need to be received several weeks before publication to guarantee inclusion and these dates are shown below.  When you send us the form, we will add you to our list of new applications.  Any elector can then object to your name being added to the register; if this happens, we will write to you.  If your application is not objected to, we will change your details within 2 to 6 weeks of receiving your form and we will write to tell if this has been confirmed. Please note that in the "run-up" to an Election, you will only be able to vote at that Election if your name has been added to the Register of Electors eleven working days before the Election.
An annual canvass still takes place every autumn to ensure the register is up-to-date. A new Register is usually published on 1 December. 

The full register lists the name and address of everyone who is registered to vote. The council holds a copy. Anyone can look at it, but it is a criminal offence to supply or use copies for purposes other than those set down in law. More information is available at www.aboutmyvvote.co.uk  

The main use of the full register is to show who can vote in elections and referendums. Credit reference agencies can use it, but only to check your name and address if you are applying for credit and for other purposes specified in law. It can also be used for law enforcement and Audit Commission data matching for the prevention of fraud.  An example of data sharing is the review of Council Tax Single Persons Discounts which may involve the comparison of data  held in Council Tax with the Electoral Register.  

The full Register can be inspected at the City Council offices via appointment only. If you want to book an appointment at our offices please email customerservice@winchester.gov.uk. 

There is also a Full Register at the County Library for public inspection and you would need to contact Hampshire County Council regarding access to this Register.

The open register is available for general sale and can be used for any purpose. The open register can be bought by any person, company or organisation and can be used for commercial activities such as marketing. If you want to opt out of having your details appear on the open register, you can fill in the form online by clicking here. You can also email ereg@winchester.gov.uk or contact us at the address below.

Electoral Services Unit, Winchester City Council, City Offices, Colebrook Street, Winchester, SO23 9LJ

Helpline: 01962 848 125

e-mail: ereg@winchester.gov.uk