- Latest available (Revised)
- Point in Time (03/08/2020)
- Original (As enacted)
Version Superseded: 01/10/2020
Point in time view as at 03/08/2020. This version of this provision has been superseded.
You are viewing this legislation item as it stood at a particular point in time. A later version of this or provision, including subsequent changes and effects, supersedes this version.
Note the term provision is used to describe a definable element in a piece of legislation that has legislative effect – such as a Part, Chapter or section.
Representation of the People Act 1983, Section 4 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 17 August 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Changes and effects yet to be applied by the editorial team are only applicable when viewing the latest version or prospective version of legislation. They are therefore not accessible when viewing legislation as at a specific point in time. To view the ‘Changes to Legislation’ information for this provision return to the latest version view using the options provided in the ‘What Version’ box above.
(1)A person is entitled to be registered in the register of parliamentary electors for any constituency or part of a constituency if on the relevant date he—
(a)is resident in the constituency or that part of it;
(b)is not subject to any legal incapacity to vote (age apart);
(c)is either a qualifying Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland; and
(d)is of voting age.
F2(2). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(3)A person is entitled to be registered in the register of local government electors for any electoral area if on the relevant date he—
(a)is resident in that area;
(b)is not subject to any legal incapacity to vote (age apart);
(c)is a qualifying Commonwealth citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Ireland or [F3—
(i)except in relation to a local government election in Scotland,] a relevant citizen of the Union;
[F4(ii)in relation to a local government election in Scotland, a qualifying foreign national,] and
(d)is of voting age [F5or, if resident in an area in Wales, is 16 years of age or over].
[F6(3A)A person is also entitled to be registered in the register of local government electors for any electoral area in Wales if on the relevant date the person—
(a)is resident in that area,
(b)is not subject to any legal incapacity to vote (age apart) in an election of members (or of a member) of Senedd Cymru,
(c)is a qualifying foreign citizen, and
(d)is 16 years of age or over.]
(4)The preceding provisions have effect—
(a)subject to—
(i)any enactment imposing a disqualification for registration as a parliamentary, or (as the case may be) local government, elector; and
(ii)compliance with any prescribed requirements; and
(b)(as respects registration as a parliamentary elector) without prejudice to section 2(1) of the Representation of the M1People Act 1985 (registration of British citizens overseas).
(5)A person otherwise qualified is (despite subsection (1)(d) or (3)(d), as the case may be) entitled to be registered in a register of parliamentary electors or local government electors if he will attain voting age before the end of the period of 12 months beginning with the 1st December next following the relevant date, but—
(a)his entry in the register shall give the date on which he will attain that age; and
(b)until the date given in the entry he shall not by virtue of the entry be treated as an elector for any purposes other than those of an election the date of the poll for which is the date so given or any later date.
[F7(5A)If a person entitled to be registered by virtue of subsection (5) above has an anonymous entry in the register, the references in paragraphs (a) and (b) of that subsection to his entry in the register are to be read as references to his entry in the record of anonymous entries prepared in pursuance of paragraph 8A of Schedule 2 below.]
[F8(5B)In relation to a register of local government electors for any electoral area in Wales, the reference to “voting age” in subsection (5) is to be interpreted as “16 years of age”]
(6)In this section—
“qualifying Commonwealth citizen” means a Commonwealth citizen who either—
is not a person who requires leave under the M2Immigration Act 1971 to enter or remain in the United Kingdom, or
is such a person but for the time being has (or is, by virtue of any enactment, to be treated as having) any description of such leave;
“the relevant date”, in relation to a person, means—
the date on which an application for registration is made (or, by virtue of section 10A(2) below, is treated as having been made) by him;
in the case of a person applying for registration in pursuance of a declaration of local connection or a service declaration, the date on which the declaration was made.]
Textual Amendments
F1S. 4 and preceding cross-heading substituted for s. 4 (29.1.2001 for specified purposes and 16.2.2001 otherwise) by 2000 c. 2, s. 1(2); S.I. 2001/116, art. 2(1)(2) (with art. 2(4))
F2S. 4(2) repealed (1.10.2014) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 (c. 13), ss. 14(1)(a)(i), 28; S.I. 2014/2613, art. 2(2)(a)
F3Words in s. 4(3)(c) inserted (S.) (3.8.2020) by Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Act 2020 (asp 6), ss. 1(3)(a), 12(2); S.S.I. 2020/162, reg. 2
F4S. 4(3)(c)(ii) inserted (S.) (3.8.2020) by Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Act 2020 (asp 6), ss. 1(3)(b), 12(2); S.S.I. 2020/162, reg. 2
F5Words in s. 4(3)(d) inserted (E.W.) (1.6.2020) by Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020 (anaw 1), ss. 12(1)(a), 42(3)(a)
F6S. 4(3A) inserted (E.W.) (1.6.2020) by Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020 (anaw 1), ss. 12(1)(b), 42(3)(a)
F7S. 4(5A) inserted (E.W.S.) (1.1.2007) by Electoral Administration Act 2006 (c. 22), ss. 10, 77, Sch. 1 para. 3; S.I. 2006/3412, art. 3, Sch. 1 paras. 1, 12(a) (subject to transitional provisions and savings in art. 6, Sch. 2) (amendment extended to N.I. (15.9.2014) by The Anonymous Registration (Northern Ireland) Order 2014 (S.I. 2014/1116), arts. 1(1), 2(2))
F8S. 4(5B) inserted (E.W.) (1.6.2020) by Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020 (anaw 1), ss. 12(1)(c), 42(3)(a)
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 4(5) applied (with modifications) (N.I.) (1.7.2008) by The Representation of the People (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/1741), reg. 14(3)(4), Sch. 4
C2S. 4(6) modified (E.W.S.) (27.3.2013) by The Electoral Registration (Postponement of 2013 Annual Canvass) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/794), arts. 1(1), 2(4)
Marginal Citations
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Point in Time: This becomes available after navigating to view revised legislation as it stood at a certain point in time via Advanced Features > Show Timeline of Changes or via a point in time advanced search.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: