Frequently Asked Questions

You can check your registration status anytime online on the official IEC website here or SMS your ID number to 32810 (R1.00/SMS). 

If you are not registered to vote, you can register quickly and easily online here.

All you need to vote is a valid ID document. This can be your green, bar-coded ID book, smart ID or temporary ID.

NB! You must vote at the polling station that you are registered at.

You can check where you are registered to vote by checking your registration status online here.

You can simply update your details on the IEC voter portal, by doing the following:

• Login or create a profile on the My IEC voter portal.
• Click, Check and Confirm your address.
• View and manage your address and update your details.

If you’re a South African citizen you can vote overseas, at your nearest South African Embassy, High Commission, or Consulate. To vote, you must:

1. Be a registered voter and live or be overseas on election day. If you have previously registered in SA, then you are still registered. If you have not registered previously, you must register in person at your nearest South African Embassy, High Commission, or Consulate. Double-check your registration status here. 
   Note: You are not required to re-register if when checking your registration details you get a message that you have to re-register due to changes to the voting district boundaries. This only applies to voters living in South Africa.
2. Have a valid South African ID AND a valid South African passport (a temporary passport will do).
3. Submit a VEC10 form within 15 days of the election being proclaimed notifying the Electoral Commission of:
   a) Your intention to vote overseas and,
   b) the foreign embassy or consulate you intend to vote at.
4. Once you have submitted your VEC10, you can check the status of your VEC10 application online here.
   

For more information, visit the IEC’s website here or to find your nearest South African Embassy, High Commission or Consulate click here.

Even if you can’t travel to your voting station on election day, because of a physical disability or pregnancy, you can still vote! You will need to apply for a ‘special vote’. You can do this by:

1. Applying for a special vote online here.
2. Getting a friend or family member to collect, complete and submit an MEC 35 form on your behalf at a local IEC office.

On a predetermined date, voting officials will visit you at the address that you indicated in your application for a home visit and allow you to vote.