# The Senedd Cymru (Representation of the People) Order 2025, Paragraph 1: General requirements for applications for an absent vote

Extent: E+W

(1) Applications under article 6 (absent vote at Senedd elections ...), 7 (absent vote at a particular Senedd election), 9 (proxies at Senedd elections) or 10 (voting as proxy at Senedd elections) must state—
(a) the applicant’s full name,
(aa) the applicant’s national insurance number, or if the applicant is not able to provide that information, the reason why the applicant is not able to do so,
(b) except in the case of an application under article 10(4) (an application to vote by post as proxy) and (7) (application for ballot paper to be sent to a different address from that shown in the record), 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 of electors,
(c) in the case of an application under article 10, the proxy’s address, together with the name of the elector for whom the proxy will act as proxy, and the elector’s address for the purposes of paragraph (b),
(d) in the case of an application to vote by post, the address to which the ballot paper is to 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, the reasons for the applicant’s request for a waiver of any requirement under article 6, 7, 8 or 10 to provide a signature, and the name and address of any person who has assisted with 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 be dated.
(3) Where an application is required to contain a signature and date of birth, in order to be capable of electronic scanning into the record, this information must be configured 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, year, namely [d][d] [m][m] [y][y][y][y].
(4) Where the application contains a request that the registration officer dispense with a requirement for a signature, sub-paragraph (3)(a) will not apply.
(5) An application which is made—
(a) under article 6(1), 9(6) or 10(4)(a) for—
(i) an indefinite period,
(ii) the maximum period as specified in article 6(1A)(a) or 10(5A)(a), or
(iii) the period specified in the application, or
(b) under article 7(1), (2), (3), (4), 9(7) or 10(7), for a particular Senedd election,
must state the period for which it is made, but where the poll for a Senedd election falls on the same day as the poll at another election, the same application may be used for both elections.
(6) Where an application is made to vote by proxy, it must include an application for the appointment of a proxy which meets the requirements of paragraph 6.
(6A) If, by virtue of arrangements made by the Minister of the Crown, an absent voting application is made through the UK digital service—
(a) the Minister of the Crown may complete the application in part using information provided by the applicant as part of an application, or partially completed application, made under section 10ZC or 10ZD of the 1983 Act for registration in, or alteration of, a register of electors where that application is made through or completed using the UK digital service,
(b) the application must contain a compliant photograph or electronic scan of the applicant’s signature if the application is required to contain a signature, and
(c) the Minister of the Crown 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.
(6B) In sub-paragraph (6A)(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 sub-paragraph (3)(a), and
(b) the photograph or electronic scan of the signature is sufficiently clear and unambiguous to comply with the requirements of sub-paragraph (3)(a).
(6C) If an applicant is unable to provide a national insurance number in accordance with sub-paragraph (1)(aa), as part of the application, the applicant may provide a copy of any of the documents listed in paragraph 11B(2) to (4).
(6D) A document provided under sub-paragraph (6C) may be transmitted by an applicant by electronic means.
(6E) The Minister of the Crown must send to the registration officer—
(a) any absent voting application the Minister of the Crown receives, subject to sub-paragraph (6F),
(b) the applicant’s previous name (if any provided),
(c) any copy documentation provided by the applicant in accordance with sub-paragraph (6C), and
(d) a reference number unique to that application.
(6F) If an absent voting application made through the UK digital service in accordance with sub-paragraph (6A) includes the applicant’s national insurance number, the Minister of the Crown—
(a) may send the registration officer that application without the national insurance number, and
(b) where the Minister of the Crown does so, must indicate to the registration officer that a national insurance number was included when the application was made by the applicant.
(7) A registration officer may satisfy themselves—
(a) that an application under article 6, 7, 9 or 10 meets any requirement that it has been signed by the applicant and states the applicant’s date of birth by referring to any signature and date of birth—
(i) previously provided by the applicant to the registration officer or the returning officer, or
(ii) previously provided by the applicant to the county or county borough council, or registrar of births and deaths, which the registration officer is authorised to inspect for the purposes of their registration duties, or
(b) as to whether the applicant is unable to provide a signature or a consistent and distinctive signature due to disability or inability to read or write.
(8) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1)(b), the address in respect of which the applicant is or has applied to be, or is treated as having applied to be, registered includes—
(a) in the case of a service voter, the address given in the service declaration in accordance with section 16(1)(d) of the 1983 Act,
(b) in the case of a person to whom section 7 of the 1983 Act applies (patients in mental hospitals who are not detained offenders or on remand), the address of the mental hospital or the address shown on the declaration of local connection in accordance with section 7B(3)(d) of the 1983 Act (notional residence: declarations of local connection),
(c) in the case of a person to whom section 7A of the 1983 Act applies (persons remanded in custody etc.), the address of the place at which that person is detained or the address shown on the declaration of local connection in accordance with section 7B(3)(d) of the 1983 Act,
(d) in the case of a homeless person within the meaning of section 7B(2)(c) of the 1983 Act, the address shown on the declaration of local connection in accordance with section 7B(3)(d) of the 1983 Act, and
(e) in the case of a person who is, or has been, a child looked after by a local authority, the address at which they are resident, or the address shown on the declaration of local connection in accordance with section 7B(3)(d) of the 1983 Act.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2025/864/schedule/1/paragraph/1 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/senedd-cymru-representation-of-the-people-order-2025/schedule-1/paragraph-1
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.