# The Police and Crime Commissioner Elections Order 2012, Paragraph 16C: Power to request additional evidence in relation to absent vote applications where registration officer considers it necessary


(1) This paragraph applies where, upon receipt of an application for an absent vote under Part 1, a registration officer considers additional evidence is necessary to verify the identity of the applicant.
(2) The registration officer may require that the applicant give them a copy, or where the registration officer considers it appropriate, the original, of one of the following documents—
(a) the applicant’s passport;
(b) the applicant’s identity card issued in the European Economic Area;
(c) the applicant’s biometric immigration document issued in the United Kingdom in accordance with regulations made under section 5 of the Borders Act 2007;
(d) the applicant’s electoral identity card issued in Northern Ireland; or
(e) the applicant’s photocard driving licence granted in the United Kingdom or driving licence granted by a Crown Dependency, which bears a photograph of the applicant.
(3) Where an applicant is not able to give one of the documents in sub-paragraph (2), the registration officer may require that the applicant give them a copy, or where the registration officer considers it appropriate, the original, of—
(a) one of the following documents, which, except in relation to sub-paragraph (vii), must have been issued in the United Kingdom or Crown Dependencies—
(i) the applicant’s birth certificate;
(ii) the applicant’s marriage or civil partnership certificate;
(iii) the applicant’s adoption certificate;
(iv) the applicant’s firearms certificate granted under the Firearms Act 1968;
(v) the record of a decision on bail made in respect of the applicant in accordance with section 5(1) of the Bail Act 1976;
(vi) the applicant’s driving licence, which is not in the form of a photocard; or
(vii) the applicant’s driving licence granted other than in the United Kingdom or Crown Dependencies, which bears a photograph of the applicant and which must be valid for at least 12 months from the date the applicant entered the United Kingdom; and
(b) two other documents, each of which may be either from paragraph (a) or from sub-paragraph (4).
(4) Where the applicant is not able to give documents in accordance with sub-paragraph (3), the registration officer may require that the applicant give them a copy, or where the registration officer considers it appropriate, the original, of four documents, each of which may be any of the following kinds of evidence and which must bear the applicant’s full name—
(a) a financial statement, including but not limited to—
(i) a mortgage statement;
(ii) a bank or building society statement or a letter from a bank or building society confirming that the applicant has opened an account with that bank or building society;
(iii) a credit card statement;
(iv) a pension statement;
(b) a council tax demand letter or statement;
(c) a utility bill;
(d) a Form P45 or Form P60 issued to the applicant by their employer or former employer;
(e) a statement of benefits or entitlement to benefits, such as a statement of child benefit, within the meaning of section 141 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992, or a letter confirming that the applicant is entitled to housing benefit, within the meaning of section 130 of that Act.
(5) If an applicant is unable to give the documentary evidence required under paragraphs (2) to (4), the registration officer may require that the applicant give an attestation which must—
(a) confirm that the applicant is the person named in the application;
(b) state that the person signing the attestation is aware of the penalty for providing false information to a registration officer;
(c) be in writing and signed by a person—
(i) whom the registration officer is satisfied is of good standing in the community;
(ii) who is registered as an elector in a local authority area in England or Wales;
(iii) who is not the spouse, civil partner, parent, grandparent, brother, sister, child or grandchild of the applicant; and
(iv) who has not already signed a relevant identity attestation for two other applicants since, whichever is the later,—
(aa) the date on which the revised register in which that person’s name appears was last published under section 13(1) of the 1983 Act, or
(bb) the date on which a notice specifying that person’s entry in the register was issued under (as the case may be) section 13A(2), 13AB(2), 13B or 13BC of that Act (and if there has been more than one such notice, the date on which the last one was issued);
(d) state the full name, date of birth, address, electoral number and occupation of the person signing the attestation; and
(e) state the date on which it is made.
(6) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(7) In sub-paragraph (5)(c)(iv), a “relevant identity attestation” is an attestation provided in accordance with—
(a) sub-paragraph (5);
(b) regulation 26B(6) or (6ZA) or 56C(5A) or (6) of the 2001 Regulations;
(c) regulation 26B(6) or (6ZA) or 56C(5A) or (6) of the Representation of the People (Scotland) Regulations 2001;
(ca) regulation 25A(3) of the Representation of the People (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2008;
(d) regulation 72B(5A) or (6) of the Recall of MPs Act 2015 (Recall Petition) Regulations 2016;
(e) regulation 7(6) of the Voter Identification Regulations 2022.
(8) Sub-paragraphs (2) to (6) do not apply where the applicant is registered, or has applied to be registered, in the register of electors in pursuance of the following declarations—
(a) a service declaration on the grounds that the applicant is a Crown servant or the spouse or civil partner of a Crown servant;
(b) a service declaration on the grounds that the applicant is a member of the forces; or
(c) a service declaration on the grounds that the applicant is the spouse or civil partner of a member of the forces.
(9) In the case of an application to which sub-paragraph (8)(a) or (c) applies, the registration officer may require that the applicant give them a copy, or where the registration officer considers it appropriate, the original, of one of the following documents, which has been certified by a Crown servant or British Council employee or an officer of the forces, who is not the applicant’s spouse or civil partner—
(a) the applicant’s passport; or
(b) the applicant’s identity card issued in the European Economic Area.
(10) In the case of an application to which sub-paragraph (8)(b) applies, the registration officer may require that the applicant give an attestation which must—
(a) confirm that the applicant is the person named in the application;
(b) be in writing and signed by an officer of the forces who is not the spouse, civil partner, parent, grandparent, brother, sister, child or grandchild of the applicant;
(c) state the full name, address and rank of the person signing the attestation and the service (whether naval, military or air forces) in which they serve; and
(d) state the date on which it is made.
(11) In this paragraph—
“Crown Dependency” means the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey or the Isle of Man;
“Crown servant” has the meaning given by regulation 14 of the 2001 Regulations;
“member of the forces” has the same meaning as in section 59(1) of the 1983 Act;
“officer of the forces” means a member of the forces who is an officer.
(12) This paragraph does not apply in relation to an application under paragraph 3(2)—
(a) which is received by the registration officer after 5pm on the sixth day before the date of the poll at the election for which it is made, and
(b) where paragraph 16(2) or (2C) applies.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/1917/schedule/2/paragraph/16C (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/police-and-crime-commissioner-elections-order-2012/schedule-2/paragraph-16C
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.