The EU Council has adopted a revised directive aimed at making it easier to vote and stand as candidate in elections to the European Parliament for EU citizens residing in a member state of which they are not nationals.
The new rules aim to facilitate the supply of information to citizens when voting in European elections, as well as the exchange of relevant information among member states, for instance to prevent both double or undue voting due to a criminal conviction. They will strengthen citizens’ electoral rights, notably through:
- providing proactive information to citizens concerned about their electoral rights and the conditions for registration, including informative translations in widely understood EU languages
- standardised registration templates to make registration processes more accessible and understandable, regardless of the country
- safeguards to prevent citizens from being automatically removed from the electoral rolls of their country of origin when they register abroad, an issue that has previously led to unintentional disenfranchisement
Moreover, the new rules will support the integrity of elections with measures to prevent double voting or candidacy.
A recent report on the 2024 European Parliament elections revealed that while there are around 14 million so-called mobile citizens, very few actually vote in European elections. The new rules will help ensure that voting is easy and accessible for all. Member States now have two years to transpose the rules, until June 2027.
The legislative act will be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force twenty days after this publication. Member states will have two years after the directive’s entry into force to transpose most of its provisions in their national legislation.
Council directive on the right to vote and stand as a candidate for EU mobile citizens, 24 June 2025
