If you are a European citizen (e.g. British) who has moved to France but does not have French citizenship, your voting rights are as follows:
- Local Elections. You are entitled to vote in local elections of the country in which you are resident (i.e. where your main home is). So, if your main residence is in France, you can vote in local French elections (e.g. for the local mayor). Contact the local mayor's office or préfecture in order to register for local elections.
- National Elections. National election voting rights is determined by your citizenship, not your residence. So if you are British and living in France, you can vote in British elections but not French (unless you have French citizenship). For guidance on how to vote in UK national elections while living abroad, see http://www.aboutmyvote.co.uk.
- European Parliament Elections. Same voting rights as national elections. See above link for details on how to vote while living abroad.
For any election, you will need to be on the voting register in order to vote. Often, applications to be on the register must be made some months in advance of an election, and in the case of a snap election you may not be able to complete the registration process prior to the election date. Consequently, if you do not wish to lose your vote, it is best to register as soon as possible. |
