How to register

Register to vote or change your details

Who can register

You are responsible for registering yourself.

You can register at 16 years old, but you must be 18 or over to vote.

To register to vote you must be a British, EU or qualifying Commonwealth citizen.
See the list of eligible nationalities

When to register

You can register up to 12 working days before an election. However, if there are any problems with your registration then we can’t guarantee you will able to vote so we suggest you leave extra time for your registration to be processed.

Household enquiry forms

We need to know who can vote in your household. In autumn each year we used to send "household enquiry forms" to all residential addresses in the borough.

In order to save money and reduce waste we will now be using different methods of communication in order to carry out this task. If we have your email address or mobile number on our records and we have been able to match your details with other council or government records, you may receive an electronic communication from us requesting that you confirm your details are correct. The website we will be using for this purpose is www.elecreg.co.uk/merton-e

Please note that you will only be able to access this website by using your unique security codes and postcode. If you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact us at the details at the bottom of this page.

If we cannot contact you via electronic means we will either send your household a letter that confirms the details of all occupants, or a household enquiry form which will need to be returned even if there are no changes to make. You will only receive a household enquiry form if we have not been able to confirm your details with other council or government records.

The household enquiry form lists those electors currently registered to vote at the address. This form is not a voter registration form but you do need to complete it. There is a penalty of up to £1000 for failing to provide this information.

If you ask for a new name to be included on the voters list, a form will be sent to them asking for further details. They do not have to wait for this form to be sent to them; they can register online.

If you ask for a name to be removed from the voters list, we will contact them to check they want their name removed. After 14 days their name will be removed, unless the person contacts us to tell us otherwise.

Opt out of the ‘open register’

There are two versions of the electoral register: the full version and the 'open register'. The open register is available to anyone who wants to buy a copy.

You can opt out of the open register by using the Register to Vote service on GOV.UK (even if you're already registered to vote).

Find out more about the open register (GOV.UK)

Online register searches

Some companies provide online electoral register searches. You may find that your name appears on an online register search if your details were passed to them before you opted out of the open register. You should contact the company if you want them to remove your name from their online search.

View the electoral register

You can view the current register of electors at Merton Civic Centre. You need to tell us the address you want to view. You cannot search by name.

The British Library holds electoral registers back to the nineteenth century.

Contact us

Electoral Services
Merton Civic Centre
London Road
Morden
SM4 5DX

If visiting, please go to the main reception at Merton Civic Centre. Office hours are 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

Telephone: 020 8545 3407. During election periods this is usually staffed outside of normal visiting times.
Fax: 020 8545 3249
Email: electoral.services@merton.gov.uk