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American Citizen Services

Voting Information News

Absentee Voting - General Information

Federal Voter Assistance Program

U.S. citizens overseas are guaranteed the right to vote in federal elections in the United States.

In 2009 the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act was enacted. MOVE requires states to:

  • Eliminate notarization requirements for overseas ballots
  • Make voter registration and absentee ballot applications available electronically, as well as General Election information
  • Make a Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot available online for when official ballots don't arrive in time
  • Plan, as of this year, for a 45-day window for the ballot "round-trip"

MOVE requires all overseas and military voters to:

  • Re-register for every election cycle, instead of every two election cycles

The provisions and guidelines for transmitting election materials electronically are identified in each state and territory section of the Voting Assistance Guide (the Guide is available in hardcopy format or online).

You cannot register to vote or vote at the Embassy or Consulates. However, we do supply the form necessary to request an absentee ballot from your last state of residence. Federal Voter Assistance Program website will guide you on how to download, fill in and send the form to the appropriate address in your state.

We strongly encourage you to register to vote and/or request absentee ballots well in advance of elections to ensure that you will receive all ballots for which you are eligible. Should questions or problems occur, you would still be able to address them in time to vote. Please see Voting Inquiries for contact information.

What about Taxes?

Exercising your right to vote in elections for Federal offices only does not affect the determination of residence or domicile for purposes of any tax imposed under Federal, state or local law. Voting in an election for Federal office only may not be used as the sole basis to determine residency for the purposes of imposing state and local taxes.

If you claim a particular state as your residence and have other ties with that state in addition to voting then you may be liable for state and local taxation, depending upon that particular state law. Consult your legal counsel for specific questions.

You can learn more about U.S. Federal tax questions at our website.

Voting Inquiries

For questions, inquiries and assistance, please contact any of the following:

Federal Voting Assistance Program: (Available 24/7)

Email: vote@fvap.gov

Telephone: 1-800-438-8683

Online Chat: Available through www.fvap.gov

DSN: (312) 425-1584

A toll-free phone number is available for Japan: 00531-1208-96
A full list of toll-free phone numbers for 67 countries is available here.
Toll-free fax numbers from over 50 countries are listed here.

Japan's Embassy and Consulates also have e-mail addresses specifically for voting:

Fukuoka: VoteFukuoka@state.gov

Naha: VoteNaha@state.gov

Osaka-Kobe: VoteOsaka-Kobe@state.gov

Sapporo: VoteSapporo@state.gov

Tokyo: VoteTokyo@state.gov

 

More information available online at http://www.fvap.gov/