What is the voter authority certificate?

A Voter Authority Certificate is a free photo ID document for voting in person. It is for people who do not have another accepted form of photo ID. You apply through your local council's electoral registration office. The deadline is 5pm, six working days before polling day.

Photo ID has been required at polling stations in Great Britain since the Elections Act 2022 came into force. Those rules cover general elections, English council polls, police commissioner contests and recall petitions. People who lack accepted ID, such as a passport or driving licence, can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate instead. It is valid for all of those polls.

To apply, you must be registered to vote. You can apply online on GOV.UK or with a paper form. You need a recent digital or printed photo and usually your National Insurance number. If you cannot provide these, the council may ask for other documents. The certificate shows your name and photo, but not your address. Help is available from your council.

The certificate has no formal expiry date, though councils recommend renewing it every ten years so the photo stays recognisable. Anonymous electors can apply for a separate Anonymous Elector's Document. Take-up has been modest, and the Electoral Commission has found that some people were turned away from polling stations for lacking ID. Most voters already hold a valid passport or driving licence.