What overseas electors can and can't vote in

From abroad you get a say in who sits in the House of Commons, and that's it, apart from the odd referendum.

The short version

Registered overseas electors aged 18 or over can vote in UK Parliament elections: general elections and by-elections [1][2].
In the Electoral Commission's words, you "can't vote in any other elections in the UK" [1]. That rules out local council, mayoral, Police and Crime Commissioner, Scottish Parliament, Senedd and Northern Ireland Assembly elections.
Referendums are case by case: each one sets its own rules on who can vote [2].
Armed forces and Crown servant voters posted abroad are different: they can vote in all elections where they're registered [1].
You vote in the constituency of your last UK address, in person, by post or by proxy, but never at an embassy or consulate [3].

The overseas franchise in one table

The UK has a lot of different elections, and each has its own franchise (the legal list of who can vote). Overseas electors are on the parliamentary one only.

Election or vote	Can overseas electors take part?
UK Parliament general election	Yes [1][2]
UK parliamentary by-election	Yes, if it's in your registered constituency [1][5]
UK-wide referendum	Only if that referendum's rules include overseas electors [2]
Local council elections and council by-elections	No [1]
Mayoral elections, including the Mayor of London and London Assembly	No [1]
Police and Crime Commissioner elections	No [1]
Scottish Parliament elections	No [1]
Senedd elections	No [1]
Northern Ireland Assembly elections	No [1]
Recall petitions for your old MP	Ask your council (see below) [6]

That's eight "no"s to two "yes"es, which can feel a bit stingy. But the two "yes"es decide the government.

UK Parliament elections: general elections and by-elections

The House of Commons has 650 MPs, each representing a constituency [7]. At a general election you get one vote for a candidate in your constituency [7]. The Electoral Commission's eligibility list for UK general elections explicitly includes "a UK citizen living abroad who has previously been registered to vote in the UK or has lived in the UK" [7].

As an overseas elector, your constituency is the one that contains your last UK address: where you were last registered, or where you last lived if you never registered [3]. If the boundaries have moved since you left, you vote in whichever constituency that address is in now.

By-elections count too. They happen when a seat falls vacant between general elections, for example when an MP resigns, dies or is recalled [5]. If the vacancy is in your old constituency, you can vote. One warning: the Electoral Commission's by-election page still describes overseas voters as those registered "in the last 15 years" [5]. That limit was scrapped from 16 January 2024, and the Commission's own overseas pages confirm you can register however long ago you left [1][3]. Our main guide to votes for life covers the change.

You must be 18 or over on polling day to vote at a UK Parliament election [7].

Referendums: it depends on the Act

GOV.UK puts it simply: you "may be able to vote in referendums", and "each referendum has different rules on who can vote in it" [2]. Every referendum is created by its own Act of Parliament (or of a devolved parliament), and that Act decides the franchise.

In practice, UK-wide referendums have tended to use the parliamentary franchise, which includes overseas electors, while referendums on devolved questions have tended to use the local or devolved franchise, which doesn't. The 2016 EU referendum, for example, was open to British overseas electors who were then within the old 15-year limit. The 2014 Scottish independence referendum was for people registered in Scotland, so a Glaswegian living in Gdańsk didn't get a vote.

When a referendum is announced, check GOV.UK and the Electoral Commission for its rules before assuming either way [2][1].

Why you can't vote in local, mayoral or devolved elections

This is the question that annoys people most, especially those who still own a flat in Leeds and pay council tax on it. The short answer is that these franchises are built around living in the area.

Local councils run services for the people who live there: bins, schools, roads, social care. Their elections are open to residents, including qualifying EU citizens living in the UK, who can't vote for Westminster [1].
Mayors and Police and Crime Commissioners are local posts with local franchises too [1][4].
The Scottish Parliament and the Senedd have their own franchises set by their own parliaments. In Wales, residents can register from 14 and vote from 16 at Senedd and council elections, and qualifying foreign citizens living in Wales can vote in them [10]. None of these is extended to people living abroad [1].
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the same: overseas electors registered in Northern Ireland can vote only in UK Parliament elections [1].

So the franchise isn't "British people", it's "people who live here", with Westminster the one place where former residents abroad keep a say. Paying council tax on a UK property doesn't change that. Neither does owning a holiday home, though a genuine second home can matter for people living in the UK (see below).

The exceptions: service and Crown servant voters

Members of the armed forces, Crown servants such as diplomats, and British Council staff posted overseas, and their spouses or civil partners, don't register as ordinary overseas electors. They use a service or Crown servant declaration, and the Electoral Commission confirms that a service voter or Crown servant voter based overseas "can vote in all elections taking place in the area where you're registered" [1]. That includes local and devolved elections.

If you've left the UK for any other reason, retirement, work for a private employer, love, the weather, you're an overseas elector, and the Westminster-only rule applies.

What about a home you still have in the UK?

Some Brits split their time and still have a genuine home in the UK. The Electoral Commission notes that people with two homes "may be able to register to vote at both addresses" [8]. That's ordinary registration based on residence, not overseas registration, and whether a property counts is decided by the electoral registration office, not by you. A let-out flat or a holiday cottage you visit for a fortnight in August is unlikely to qualify. If in doubt, ask the council for the area.

If you move back to the UK for good, register at your new UK address, and tell the council where you were registered as an overseas elector.

Recall petitions

A recall petition is how an MP can lose their seat between elections. If at least 10% of registered voters in the constituency sign within six weeks, the seat is vacated and a by-election follows [6]. The Electoral Commission says you can sign if you're registered to vote at an address in the constituency, in person, by post or by proxy, and that the postal deadline is 5pm, 11 working days before the signing period closes [6]. Overseas electors are registered against an address in their old constituency, so if a petition opens there, contact the council's electoral services team to confirm your position and arrange a postal or proxy signature in time.

How to make the vote you do have count

Knowing what you can vote in is half the job. The other half is being able to use it.

Stay registered. Overseas registration lasts until 1 November in the third year after it takes effect, and you'll be removed if you don't renew [3][2]. GOV.UK's Register to vote service handles renewals as well as new registrations [9].
Set up a postal or proxy vote. You can't vote at an embassy, high commission or consulate [3]. Unless you'll be in the UK on polling day, you need one or the other, and the Electoral Commission notes a proxy may suit you better if post is slow [3].
Watch for by-elections in your old seat. They come with little warning. A long-term proxy covers them automatically.
Check the rules for each referendum when it's called [2].

If you'd like to talk this through with other Brits abroad, our community groups for Brits abroad are a friendly place to ask.

What overseas electors can and can't vote in: Westminster, yes; the council, no