Overseas Voters Guide to India's 2024 General Elections: NRI Voting Rights and How to Register

Non-resident Indians are Indian citizens who live outside of the country the majority of the year. Since their full-time residence is not in India, there can be many questions whether NRIs can vote in Indian elections. This becomes especially important since there are currently over 1.34 crore NRIs in the world.¹

Until as recently as 2010, NRIs did not have the right to vote in India. However, with provisions of Sec 20A of the Representation of People Act 1950 by an amendment in 2010, NRIs can now exercise their right to register as overseas electors and participate in the Indian election process.

There is one caveat: the Act requires NRIs to be present in India to cast their vote. The Indian Government is considering a proposal to allow NRIs to participate through the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System. However, at the moment, NRIs cannot vote online or from abroad. ²

📋 NRIs Guide to Voting in India's Elections
Are NRIs Eligible to Vote? Can NRIs vote from abroad? Can NRIs vote online? Eligibility criteria for NRIs to vote Can OCIs vote in Indian Elections? How can NRIs Register to Vote? Verification process for NRI Voters How can NRIs cast their vote in India Elections?

Before discussing the rights of NRIs to vote and the process, let's look at the timeline for the Indian General Election 2024. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced a seven-phase election timeline for the Indian elections due to logistics and geography of Indian states:³

Timeline	2024 Election State-wise seats
First Phase on April 19, 2024	102 seats in the states of Arunachal Pradesh (2), Assam (5), Bihar (4), Chhattisgarh (1), Madhya Pradesh (6) Maharashtra (5), Manipur (1 and ½), Meghalaya (2), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Rajasthan (12), Sikkim (1), Tamil Nadu (39), Tripura (1), Uttar Pradesh (8), Uttarakhand (5), West Bengal (3), Andaman & Nicobar Islands (1), Jammu & Kashmir (1), Lakshadweep (1) and Puducherry (1)
Second Phase on April 26, 2024	89 seats in the states of Assam (5), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (3), Karnataka (14), Kerala (20), Madhya Pradesh (7), Maharashtra (8), Manipur (½) Rajasthan (13), Tripura (1), Uttar Pradesh (8), West Bengal (3), and Jammu & Kashmir (1)
Third Phase on May 07, 2024	94 seats in the states of Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Goa (2), Gujarat (26), Karnataka (14), Madhya Pradesh (8), Maharashtra (11), Uttar Pradesh (10), West Bengal (4), Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (2), and Jammu & Kashmir (1)
Fourth Phase on May 13, 2024	96 seats in the states of Andhra Pradesh (25), Bihar (5), Jharkhand (4), Madhya Pradesh (8), Maharashtra (11), Odisha (4), Telangana (17), Uttar Pradesh (13), West Bengal (8), and Jammu & Kashmir (1)
Fifth Phase on 20 May 2024	49 seats in the states of Bihar (5), Jharkhand (3), Maharashtra (13), Odisha (5), Uttar Pradesh (14), West Bengal (7), Jammu & Kashmir (1), and Ladakh (1)
Sixth Phase on 25 May 2024	57 seats in the states of Bihar (8), Haryana (10), Jharkhand (4), Odisha (6), Uttar Pradesh (14), West Bengal (8), and Delhi (7)
Seventh Phase on 01 June 2024	57 seats in the states of Bihar (8), Himachal Pradesh (4), Jharkhand (3), Odisha (6), Punjab (13), Uttar Pradesh (13), and West Bengal (9)
04 June 2024	Counting and Results

Are NRIs Eligible to Vote?

Yes, NRIs are eligible to vote as long as they are physically present in India. NRIs who are abroad at the time of the election are not eligible to cast a vote. You are also required to register to vote before participating in the election.

As of January 1, 2023, nearly 1.15 lakh overseas voters registered themselves as eligible voters and can participate in the 2024 General Elections.⁴

Can NRIs vote from abroad?

For 2024, NRIs cannot vote from abroad. NRIs must visit India and cast their vote in person.

Can NRIs vote online?

While voting online would be convenient for some NRIs who can’t visit India during the elections, it is currently not allowed.

The Indian Government has proposed to include NRIs in the list of people who are eligible to vote through the E-Postal Ballot System (ETPBS), but it is not in effect yet for 2024.⁹

Presently, only the following categories of voters are allowed to cast their votes through ETPBS:

1. Members of the Armed Forces on Duty
2. Central Armed Police Forces
3. Indian Embassies
4. Diplomatic Missions,
5. Media persons
6. Voters above 80 years or with disabilities
7. Voters under preventive detention

Eligibility criteria for NRIs to vote in India's elections

Any NRI who still holds Indian citizenship, and has not renounced or replaced their Indian citizenship for another country’s, is eligible to register as a voter as long as they are in India at the time of the election. They’re primary residence is allowed to be overseas.

NRIs are eligible to register as a voter in the constituency per their place of residence mentioned in their Indian passport.

Here are the requirements NRIs must satisfy to be eligible to vote in India:⁵

1. The NRI must be an Indian citizen and should not have acquired overseas citizenship.
2. The individual must be at least 18 on the first day of January of the revision of the electoral roll. For example, an NRI must be 18 years old at the start of January 2024 to be eligible for this years election.⁶

Can OCIs vote in Indian Elections?

Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) or holders of a Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card are not eligible to vote in Indian elections, even if they live in India.

An OCI is defined as a person of Indian origin but does not have Indian citizenship. OCIs have foreign countries as their primary citizenship. Second and third generations who have foreign citizenship but can show proof of Indian origin can register as an Overseas Citizen of India cardholder under Sec 7A of the Citizenship Act 1955. While it does provide a lifetime visa and allows for opening NRI accounts, OCIs are technically considered foreigners.⁷

Since an OCI is a foreign national and not an Indian citizen, they do not have any voting rights.

How can NRIs Register to Vote?

NRIs are considered overseas electors but must be in India to vote and must register for the constituency for the address listed on their passport. Here is the process for NRI voter registration in India:⁸

1. Identify your polling station. This interactive map can help find your polling station and the Election officer’s contact details.
2. NRIs must complete Form 6A online at the National Voters Services Portal and upload the necessary proofs. The form can be downloaded to complete by hand and you will need to provide two copies. Alternatively, NRIs can obtain these forms free of cost at Indian missions.
3. The following documents are required to register as an overseas elector.

• One recent passport-sized color photo to be affixed on Form 6A
• Self-attested photocopies of the pages of the passport containing the address, photo, and other family details
• The photocopy of the passport containing the valid visa document

NRIs can submit Form 6A either online or offline by mail or submitting in person. If you are sending the form by post, you must make sure you attest the photocopies of all the supporting documents.

If you’d like to submit in person in your constituency in India, you can submit the form before the Electoral Registration Officer. You will need to bring your original passport for verification.

The verification process is as follows.

1. On submission, the Booth Level Officer will personally visit the address in your passport and check to verify the documents.
2. If no one can verify the documents, they are sent to the concerned Indian mission for verification.
3. The office communicates the decision by post and SMS based on the information submitted in Form 6A. The electoral rolls are available on the Chief Electoral Officer's website. Overseas electors’ names are included in a separate section.
4. The NRI can use Form No 8 to make corrections in the electoral roll.

Here are some important things to keep in mind regarding NRI voter registration in India:

1. Enrollment is allowed only once on the electoral roll. Therefore, you must declare that you have not enrolled as a general elector already.
2. If registered as a general elector, you must provide an ID while submitting Form 6A.
3. On return to India permanently, you can register as a resident Indian general elector in your constituency.

How can NRIs cast their vote in India Elections?

NRIs can only vote in the Indian election if they are present in India on voting day, still hold Indian citizenship and have registered.

On voting day, you must visit the polling booth in-person and provide an original identification. There are no other ways to vote as an NRI.

However, that should not discourage NRIs from participating in the democratic process. Every vote is valuable and can make a difference in how you would want your nation to be governed. Even if you are not able to vote in person, NRIs can show their support for candidates online and encourage Indian citizens to vote.

Election Commission of India 👉

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Sources used for this article:

1. More than 66 percent of 1.34 crore NRIs live in Gulf countries: RTI reply - The Economic Times
2. Explained: E-Postal Ballot For Overseas Indian Voters
3. HT lok sabha
4. Explained: E-Postal Ballot For Overseas Indian Voters
5. https://old.eci.gov.in/voter/service-overseas-voter/
6. https://eoi.gov.in/
7. https://www.mea.gov.in/faq-overseas-indians.htm.
8. https://old.eci.gov.in/voter/service-overseas-voter/
9. https://www.indiatimes.com/explainers/

Sources verified on 26 March 2024.