The Police and Crime Commissioner Elections Order 2012

General requirements for applications for absent vote U.K.

11.—(1) An application under Part 1 of this Schedule must state—

(a) the full name of the applicant,

[F1 (aa) the applicant’s national insurance number or, if they are not able to provide that information, the reason why they are not able to do so,]

(b) except in a case within paragraph (c), the address in respect of which the applicant is registered or has applied to be (or is treated as having applied to be) registered in the register,

(c) in the case of an application under paragraph 7(4) or 7(6) (applications relating to postal proxy voting), the proxy's address, together with the name of the elector for whom the applicant will act as proxy and the elector's address for the purposes of paragraph (b),

(d) in the case of a person applying to vote by post, the address to which the ballot paper should be sent,

(e) in the case of an application to vote by proxy, the grounds on which the elector claims to be entitled to an absent vote,

(f) in the case of a person who is unable to provide a signature (or a consistent or distinctive signature), the reasons for requesting the waiver of any requirement under paragraph 3 or 7 to provide a signature and the name and address of any person who has assisted in the completion of the application, and

(g) where the applicant has, or has applied for, an anonymous entry, that fact.

(2) The application must be made in writing and must be dated.

(3) Where an application is required to contain a signature and date of birth, the information must be set out in a manner that is sufficiently clear and unambiguous as to be capable of electronic scanning into the record by configuring the information as follows—

(a) the signature must appear against a background of white unlined paper of at least five centimetres long and two centimetres high, and

(b) the applicant's date of birth must be set out numerically configured in the sequence of date, month and year, namely [d][d][m][m][y][y][y][y].

(4) Sub-paragraph (3)(a) does not apply where the application contains a request that the registration officer waive the requirement for a signature.

(5) An application under Part 1 of this Schedule must—

(a) state that it is made for a particular PCC election, and

(b) identify the election in question.

[F2 (5A) Where, by virtue of arrangements made by the Secretary of State, an application for an absent vote under Part 1 may be made through the digital service—

(a) the Secretary of State may complete the application in part using information provided by the applicant as part of an application, or partially completed application, under section 10ZC or 10ZD of the 1983 Act for registration in, or alteration of, a register of electors made through or completed using the digital service;

(b) where the application is required to contain a signature, the application must contain a compliant photograph or electronic scan of the applicant’s signature;

(c) the Secretary of State must—

(i) request that the applicant provide their most recent previous name (if they have one), and

(ii) provide an explanation of the purpose for which the information will be used.

(5B) In sub-paragraph (5A)(b) “compliant photograph or electronic scan of the applicant’s signature” means—

(a) the signature contained in the photograph or electronic scan complies with the requirements of paragraph (a) of sub-paragraph (3), and

(b) the photograph or electronic scan of the signature is sufficiently clear and unambiguous so as to comply with the requirements of sub-paragraph (3).]

(6) An application to vote by proxy must also include an application for the appointment of a proxy which meets the requirements of paragraph 14 [F3 and (where applicable) paragraph 14A].

(7) An application under Part 1 of this Schedule may be combined with an application for an absent vote made under the 2001 Regulations, including those Regulations as applied by regulations made under sections 9HE and 105, 9MG and 105, 44 and 105 or 45 and 105 of the Local Government Act 2000 M1 or sections 52ZQ and 113 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 M2 .

[F4 (8) Where an applicant is unable to provide a national insurance number in accordance with sub-paragraph (1)(aa), the applicant may provide as part of the application a copy of any of the documents listed in paragraph 16C(2) to (4).

(9) The Secretary of State must send to the appropriate registration officer—

(a) subject to sub-paragraph (10), any application the Secretary of State receives via the digital service,

(b) the applicant’s previous name (if any provided),

(c) any copy documentation provided by the applicant in accordance with sub-paragraph (8), and

(d) a reference number unique to that application.

(10) Where an application made through the digital service in accordance with paragraph (5A) includes the applicant’s national insurance number the Secretary of State—

(a) may send the registration officer that application without the national insurance number, and

(b) where the Secretary of State does so, must indicate to the registration officer that a national insurance number was included when the application was made by the applicant.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Sch. 2 para. 11(1)(aa) inserted (31.10.2023) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(2), 17(5)(e)(i)

F2 Sch. 2 para. 11(5A)(5B) inserted (31.10.2023) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(2), 17(5)(e)(ii)

F3 Words in Sch. 2 para. 11(6) inserted (16.1.2023) by The Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382), regs. 1(3), 59(2)(a) (with reg. 1(6)(7))

F4 Sch. 2 para. 11(8)-(10) inserted (31.10.2023) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(2), 17(5)(e)(iii)

Marginal Citations

M1 2000 c.22. Sections 9HE and 9MG were inserted by section 21 of, and Schedule 2 to, the Localism Act 2011 (c.20). Section 45 was amended by section 22 of, and paragraph 66 of Schedule 3 to, that Act. Section 105 was amended by section 22 of, and paragraph 70 of Schedule 3 to, that Act.

M2 1992 c.14. Section 52ZQ was inserted by Schedule 5 to the Localism Act 2011 and section 113 was amended by section 72 of, and paragraph 32 of Schedule 6 to, that Act.