How to vote from overseas

You can enrol and vote in the Tāmaki Makaurau by-election from overseas if all the following statements are true:

•  you are 18 years or older
• you’ve lived in New Zealand for more than 12 months continuously at some time in your life
• you are one of the following:
  • a New Zealand citizen who has been in New Zealand within the last 3 years
  • a New Zealand permanent resident who has been in New Zealand within the last 12 months.

Enrolling from overseas is not compulsory — it’s your choice whether you enrol.

Are you a permanent resident?

For electoral purposes, you’re a permanent resident if you’re in New Zealand legally and not required to leave within a specific time.

Are you Niuean, Tokelauan, or a Cook Islander?

If you’re Niuean, Tokelauan, or a Cook Islander, you can vote if you’re enrolled, you’ve lived in New Zealand continuously for 12 months or more, and you’ve visited New Zealand in the last 3 years.

Are you Australian?

If you’re Australian you can vote if you’re enrolled, you’ve lived in New Zealand continuously for 12 months or more, and you’ve visited New Zealand in the last 12 months.

Are you a public servant or member of the New Zealand Defence Force

You’re eligible to enrol and vote no matter how long you’ve been outside New Zealand if you’re in one of the following groups:

• Public servants working overseas and their families
• New Zealand diplomats or trade representatives and their families
• Members of the New Zealand Defence Force and their families.

Depending on when you last visited New Zealand, you may not be able to enrol or update your details online. If you find you're not able to update your details online, please contact us at overseas@vote.nz.

Contact us if you’re no longer eligible

If you don’t meet the requirements above, please contact us to tell us you’re no longer eligible.

Email: overseas@vote.nz

Before you can vote, you must be enrolled to vote. If you’re already enrolled, make sure your details are up to date.

It’s easy to enrol or update your details online using your New Zealand driver licence, New Zealand passport or RealMe verified identity.

Enrol or update online

To vote from overseas in the Tāmaki Makaurau by-election, you need to enrol by midnight, Friday 5 September (NZ time).

If you're a member of the New Zealand Defence Force who is stationed overseas, you're not required to enrol in order to vote - but if you're not enrolled, you won't be able to download your voting papers.

Your voting papers are not automatically sent to you overseas.

The easiest and quickest way to vote from overseas is to download your voting papers. Before you download your voting papers you need to be correctly enrolled.

Downloading your voting papers

If you're on the unpublished roll you will not be able to download your voting papers. Please contact us on overseas@vote.nz for further assistance.

Tick the circle next to the name of the electorate candidate you choose. You can only vote for one candidate.

Overseas voters may now mark their voting paper digitally, and overseas voters and their witnesses can sign the special vote declaration using an electronic device or by inserting a digital signature, as long as it shows their normal signature.

You may also choose to print your voting papers and complete them by hand, then scan or photograph and upload them.

How to complete your voting papers

When you’ve marked your voting papers, return them to us in one of the following ways:

• Upload them online
• Post or hand deliver them to your nearest overseas voting place.

You can also return your voting papers by posting them to the Electoral Commission in New Zealand - however we strongly recommend you use one of the other options. Please contact us on overseas@vote.nz if you are not able to do so.

You cannot return your voting papers by email or fax.

Your voting papers will include full information on how to return them.

Uploading your voting papers

If you’re enrolled to vote and you’re blind, partially blind or have another physical disability that prevents you from marking your voting paper without assistance, you’re eligible to vote by telephone dictation.

You need to register to use the telephone dictation service for the by-election, even if you've used it at previous elections.

Telephone dictation voting