You’re eligible to enrol and vote if you are 18 years or older, a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident, and you’ve lived in New Zealand continuously for 12 months or more at some time in your life.
For electoral purposes, you are a permanent resident if you’re in New Zealand legally and not required to leave within a specific time.
You’re not eligible to enrol and vote if any of the following statements are true:
you’re a New Zealand citizen who has not been in New Zealand within the last 6 years
you’re a permanent resident of New Zealand who has not been in New Zealand within the last 3 years
you have to leave New Zealand by a set date, such as a date on a student, work, or visitor permit
you're serving a prison sentence of 3 years or more in a New Zealand prison
you’ve been in a psychiatric hospital for over 3 years after being charged with a criminal offence
you’ve been convicted of a corrupt practice and added to the Corrupt Practices List
After the 2023 General Election the eligibility criteria for people living overseas will change back to the previous settings of 3 years for New Zealand citizens and 12 months for New Zealand permanent residents.