Registering to vote

You normally only need to register to vote once. You don't need to register for every election. You need to register again if you change your name, address or nationality.

The easiest way to register to vote is online. You will need to provide your:

  • address
  • date of birth
  • National Insurance number

You can get more information about finding your National Insurance number on GOV.UK.

Register to vote on GOV.UK

If you can't register online, you can print paper forms from GOV.UK.

You need to register differently if you:

Who can register

You can register to vote if you're:

  • aged 16 or over (but you can only vote after you turn 18)
  • living at an address in the Borough of West Lancashire
  • are either:
    • a British citizen
    • an Irish citizen
    • 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 citizen of either: 
    • a Commonwealth member country (The Commonwealth website)
    • Denmark, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal or Spain 
    • another EU country (GOV.UK), if you have had permission to enter or stay - or not needed permission - since 31 December 2020, and this has continued without a break

When you need to register differently

British citizens living overseas

If you are a British citizen currently living outside the UK, you may be eligible to be registered as an overseas elector. This enables you to vote in UK parliamentary elections. 

You are eligible to register as an overseas elector if you are living abroad and you either: 

  • were registered to vote in the UK before you left the UK
  • were previously a resident in the UK, or were not old enough to be on the electoral register before you left the UK

You must apply to register as an overseas elector in respect of the address where you were last registered to vote in the UK. If you were never on the electoral register, then you should register with the last address at which you were a resident.

If you are eligible, you can apply to register as on overseas elector on GOV.UK.

Once registered as an overseas elector, you need to:

  • renew your registration every three years (we will contact you when need to renew)
  • vote by post or vote by proxy (someone voting on your behalf)

We advise you to apply for a proxy vote as an overseas elector, rather than a postal vote. This is because parliamentary elections can be called at short notice and we cannot guarantee you will receive a postal vote in enough time to return it to us by the 10pm deadline on polling day. 

People with no fixed address

If you do not have a permanent or fixed address, you can still register to vote. For example, if you are:

  • homeless
  • living on a boat that does not have a permanent mooring
  • a person remanded on custody
  • a patient in a mental hospital
  • part of the travelling community
  • a merchant seaman

To register, you will need to download and complete an electoral registration form:

You then need to return your completed form either:

Elections Team: Council Offices, 52 Derby Street, Ormskirk, L39 2DF

 

After you've registered

We will send you a confirmation letter to tell you when you will be added to your current address in the electoral register.

If some details on your application are incomplete or unclear, we will write to you to request further information before we can add you to the electoral register.

Enquiries

If you have any questions about registering to vote: