Register to vote

Register to vote, change how you vote, or remove yourself from the electoral register.

You can use the online service to register to vote or to:

  • update your details on the electoral register
  • change how you vote, for example in person or by post
  • change whether you're on the open register

It takes around five minutes. You'll need your National Insurance number.

Register to vote

If you're a student, you can register to vote at both your home and term-time addresses, as long as they're not in the same council area.

If your main address is a caravan or park home, you can still register to vote. If your poll card doesn't come in the post at election time you can find out where your polling station is online. You don't need your poll card to vote.

Register to vote anonymously

If you think that being on the electoral register could put your safety at risk, you may be able to register anonymously. You will need to:

  • explain why your safety (or the safety of someone in the same household) would be at risk if your name or address were on the register
  • provide evidence of  a court order or similar to support your application

To register anonymously you'll need to download an anonymous registration form and email it to electoral.services@canterbury.gov.uk

Your name and address will be replaced by a code, and your details won't be included on any forms sent to the household. If we need to contact you, we'll do this without revealing your anonymous registration.

Applications are valid for one year and renewal details will be sent to you automatically.

Register to vote with no fixed address

You can still register to vote if you have no fixed address. This may be because you are:

  • a patient in a mental health unit
  • remanded in custody but not convicted of a crime
  • homeless 

You'll need a local connection, such as somewhere you have lived before. Contact our elections team to register.