Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, Section 19 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996) upholds that all South African citizens living abroad, who are over the age of 18, can vote in national elections. We cannot vote in provincial or municipal elections.

To vote you need to register so your name appears on the voters’ roll. The voters’ roll contains particulars of voters and it is an important tool to protect against electoral fraud, such as to ensure that individuals only vote once.

Visit the IEC website and submit your ID Number.

In order to vote abroad you will need to do the following:

1. Ensure you are registered to vote. You can check your status on the IEC website. In order to vote abroad you have to be registered abroad, so please update your registration status to a diplomatic mission overseas, even if you are already registered in SA.
2. Ensure you have a valid South African ID (this can be the Smartcard ID, the green bar-coded ID or a temporary ID document);
3. If you won’t be able to vote at the location at which you registered due to e.g. a holiday or work trip, you can change your voting station temporarily through a VEC 10 form. This form is available until 22 April, and you can fill it in here.
4. Head to the SA foreign mission at which you registered on the announced election day. You can find your nearest SA foreign mission on the DIRCO website.

South Africans will go to the polls again in 2024. The date of the election has been proclaimed by the president to be the 29th of May. South Africans overseas will be able to cast their vote on either 17 or 18 May, depending on whether the official workweek in the host country is Monday to Friday (the majority of countries), or Sunday to Thursday.

In practice, this means in the majority of countries around the world, such as the UK, Namibia and South Korea, people will vote on Saturday 18 May. People in Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar will vote on Friday 17 May.

Note: South Africans abroad can’t vote in local government elections.

If you are living abroad but still registered to vote in South Africa, you will need to change your registration status to a mission overseas to show the IEC you are going to vote in a foreign country. Due to changes in the electoral law people are now only able to vote where they are registered, so you are required to be registered overseas if you are going to vote overseas.

If you live in South Africa but will be abroad on election day, you will be able to submit an online VEC 10 form to temporarily change your registration status to a mission overseas. The same applies when you have registered overseas but will be at a different diplomatic mission on election day.

The VEC 10 form will only be available until 22 April, so it’s important you don’t miss the deadline to submit it.

You must:

• be a South African citizen;
• be at least 16 years old (you can only vote from age 18);
• have a valid current green, bar-coded South African ID book, Smart ID card or temporary ID certificate.

You need to take your valid SA ID (either the green, bar-coded South African ID book; Smart-card ID; or valid Temporary Identity Certificate). While in past elections a valid SA passport was also necessary, the IEC has scrapped this requirement for the upcoming election. Only original documents can be accepted, no copies.

No, only a green bar-coded ID book, smartcard ID or temporary ID certificate will accepted on voting day.