Voting from abroad by post
If you are registered as a Dutch voter abroad, you will receive your postal vote certificate by post. You will receive your ballot paper (stembiljet) by email or post. To vote, send your postal vote by post to the postal vote polling station in The Hague. Alternatively, you can post or hand deliver your postal vote to a Dutch embassy or consulate-general.
Your voting documents
Postal vote certificate, return envelope and ballot paper envelope
A postal vote certificate is a voting pass for voters outside the Netherlands. The municipality of The Hague sends the postal vote certificate, return envelope and ballot paper envelope by post about 12 weeks before the elections. Keep these documents safe and do not send them back at this time.
Ballot paper and list of candidates
You mark your vote on the ballot paper. The municipality of The Hague sends the ballot paper and list of candidates about 4 weeks before the elections. You will receive them by email (or by post if that’s what you requested when you registered). If you would like to change how you receive your ballot paper, contact the municipality of The Hague.
Sending your postal vote to the Netherlands
Together with your voting documents you will receive detailed instructions on how to send your vote to the postal vote polling station in The Hague. You must send your vote by post.
Posting your vote to a Dutch embassy
It’s also possible to post or hand deliver your postal vote to a Dutch embassy or consulate-general. Call the embassy or consulate-general for instructions.
Dutch embassies and consulates-general
Voting in Aruba, Curaçao and St Maarten
If you live in Aruba, Curaçao or St Maarten, you will receive your voting documents through the Dutch representation. You can post or hand deliver your postal vote to the Dutch representation.
Find out more about voter registration for residents of Aruba, Curaçao and St Maarten
Other ways to vote
If the postal service in the country where you live is slow or unreliable, you can arrange for someone in the Netherlands to vote on your behalf. This is called voting by proxy and is only possible in the elections for the House of Representatives and the European Parliament.
If you are in the Netherlands at the time of the election, you can vote with a voter’s pass in a Dutch municipality.
Contact
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.