Proof of Identity for Enrolment - Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the Proof of Identity (POI) scheme for enrolment?
- How do I enrol?
- Does POI make the enrolment process more difficult?
- What will the AEC do with the information I give on the enrolment form to confirm my identity?
- I'm already enrolled and only changing my address or my name. Do I still need to provide POI?
- What do I do if my driver's licence has a different address or name (ie. my maiden name) on it, than the one I want to enrol under?
- I have a current driver's licence but can I use my Medicare card (for example) to confirm my identity when enrolling?
- What identification documents do you accept if I don't have a driver's licence?
- What do I do with the identification document?
- Can my wife/husband/partner sign my form as the ‘authorised person' ?
- Can I use a photocopy of my identification document?
- I don't have a driver's licence or any of the identity documents listed on page 3 of the enrolment form. What do I do?
- I have a green form. Should I still send that in?
- What happens if the AEC receives an old green enrolment form?
- What did the AEC do to reduce the number of old green forms being sent in?
- Does the one form still enrol me to vote in federal, state and local elections?
- I want to register as a general postal voter. Do I need to provide POI?
- What about providing POI to vote? Will everybody have to do this too?
What is the Proof of Identity (POI) scheme for enrolment?
The POI scheme for federal electoral enrolment came into effect throughout Australia on Monday 16 April 2007.
From this date all people eligible to enrol on the Commonwealth electoral roll need to prove their identity when enrolling for the first time, re-enrolling to get back on the roll or updating their enrolment because they have moved or changed name.
POI for enrolment was introduced by the Commonwealth Parliament as part of a package of changes to electoral law that was passed in June 2006.
How do I enrol?
You must enrol or update your address or name details by completing the new purple enrolment form or the new internet enrolment form.
There are three ways to show proof of your identity when filling in the new purple enrolment form.
Either:
Provide your Australian driver's licence number and state/territory of issue
OR
If you don't have a driver's licence, you can show an original of one identification document – like your passport, birth certificate, Medicare card or Centrelink concession card – to an authorised person who is on the electoral roll, who will then sign a declaration on your enrolment form.
OR
If you don't have a driver's licence or an acceptable identity document, you can ask two people who are already on the electoral roll, and who have known you for at least a month, to confirm your identity by signing your enrolment form.
Enrolment forms are available at all AEC offices and at Australia Post outlets, Medicare Offices, Australian Taxation Office shopfronts and some Rural Transaction Centres. The new on-line internet enrolment form is available on the AEC website.
Does POI make the enrolment process more difficult?
The enrolment process is no more time consuming or complicated than it was before. The three ways for providing POI mean that everyone who is eligible to enrol is able to meet the new identity requirements. In most states it will be easier if the applicant has a driver's licence, as they will not need to have their application witnessed.
POI for enrolment is further strengthening the high integrity of the roll and ensuring only those eligible to enrol and vote are on the electoral roll.
What will the AEC do with the information I give on the enrolment form to confirm my identity?
The POI information you give on your enrolment form is not given to any other person or organisation outside the AEC. It is used for enrolment purposes only. The AEC has the authority to access each state and territory's transport authority data to check the driver's licence details on the enrolment form.
I'm already enrolled and only changing my address or my name. Do I still need to provide POI?
Yes. You need to provide POI every time you fill in an enrolment form to change your address details or your name on the electoral roll.
What do I do if my driver's licence has a different address or name (ie. my maiden name) on it, than the one I want to enrol under?
In most cases that won't matter. Fill in the enrolment form for the address that you have been living at for at least a month or the name you are legally or commonly known as. If there is any problem the AEC will contact you.
I have a current driver's licence but can I use my Medicare card (for example) to confirm my identity when enrolling?
No. The law is if you have a current Australian driver's licence you must use it to verify your identity when filling in the enrolment form. It is only if you don't have a driver's licence that you can demonstrate your identity by other means.
What identification documents do you accept if I don't have a driver's licence?
If you don't have an Australian driver's licence, you can use an original of one of the documents listed below (in alphabetical order):
- Australian birth certificate (or an extract) issued at least 5 years ago
- Certificate of Australian citizenship
- Concession card from Centrelink or Department of Veteran's Affairs (must be current)
- Credit or bank account card (must be current)
- Defence force, Australian discharge certificate
- Divorce documents from the Family Court of Australia
- Employee identification card (must be current with a photo and signature)
- Firearms licence (must be current with a photo and signature)
- Justice of the Peace appointment document (must be Australian)
- Marriage certificate (must be registered in Australia)
- Medicare card
- Passport (must be current and Australian)
- Proof of age card issued by, or under the authority of, a state/territory government
- Security guard/crowd control licence (must be current)
- Student identification card (must be current with a photo)
The identification documents accepted are listed on page 3 of the purple enrolment form.
What do I do with the identification document?
You must show the original of your identification document to an ‘authorised person' who then signs the declaration on your enrolment form on page 3. The list of who is an authorised person is on page 1 of the purple enrolment form. They are:
List of people authorised to be shown an identity document
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander incorporated organisation committee member or chairperson
- Accountant (must be a registered tax agent)
- Airline passenger carrier ground staff
- Australian Electoral Commission or other state or territory electoral authority staff
- Bank, credit union or building society officer (except the manager of a bank travel centre)
- Clerk, sheriff or bailiff of a court
- Commissioner for Affidavits, Declarations or Oaths
- Commonwealth, state or territory government full-time permanent or part-time employee (includes authorities)
- Commonwealth, state or territory Member of Parliament or local government councillor or member of their staff
- Defence force member
- Dentist
- Diplomatic or consular officer (except an honorary consular officer)
- Engineer, chartered professional or member of the Association of Consulting Engineers
- Finance Company officer
- Justice of the Peace
- Liquor licence holder (must be current)
- Manager of a community, ethnic or remote resource centre
- Manager of a women¹s refuge or crisis and counselling centre
- Marriage celebrant (within the meaning of the Marriage Act 1961)
- Marriage counsellor (within the meaning of Family Law Act 1975)
- Master of a merchant vessel
- Medical Practitioner
- Member of the Association of Taxation and Management Accountants
- Member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of Australia
- Minister of Religion (within the meaning of the Marriage Act 1961)
- Nurse, registered or enrolled
- Person employed as a remote resource centre visitor
- Pharmacist
- Physiotherapist
- Pilot (must hold a current licence)
- Police officer or police aide
- Postal manager or other permanent Australia Post employee
- Prison officer
- Real estate agent (must be licensed or registered)
- Statutory office holder receiving an annual salary
- Surveyor (must be registered or licensed)
- Teacher (primary, secondary or tertiary) (must be full-time permanent or part-time and currently employed)
- Veterinary Surgeon
- A person not listed above before whom statutory declarations may be made under a law of the Commonwealth, state or territory
Can my wife/husband/partner sign my form as the ‘authorised person' ?
Yes. If you don't have a driver's licence and your wife/husband/partner or any family member is enrolled and in one of the authorised classes of people listed on the enrolment form.
Can I use a photocopy of my identification document?
No. You must show the ‘authorised person' the original of your identification document. The ‘authorised person' signs a legal declaration on the enrolment form that they have seen the original.
I don't have a driver's licence or any of the identity documents listed on page 3 of the enrolment form. What do I do?
To enrol you need TWO people who are enrolled and have known you for at least one month to confirm your identity on your enrolment form. These two people have to write their name and address on the enrolment form and sign a legal declaration that they have known you for at least one month.
These people do not have be an ‘authorised person'. They just have to be enrolled and have known you for at least one month. They can also be someone in your family, as long as they are enrolled.
I have a green form. Should I still send that in?
No. The old green forms, and any form downloaded from the AEC website before 16 April 2007, are no longer accepted by the AEC for enrolment. These old forms do not meet federal enrolment requirements after 16 April 2007.
What happens if the AEC receives an old green enrolment form?
An old form received by the AEC after 16 April 2007 is NOT accepted for federal enrolment. The AEC will contact the person to let them know about the new purple form and will provide them with a new form to complete and return to the AEC.
What did the AEC do to reduce the number of old green forms being sent in?
The AEC reduced the number of green forms in circulation just prior to Monday 16 April 2007 by removing forms from Australia Post outlets and the AEC website on Friday 13 April. AEC offices removed enrolment forms from public display on Thursday 5 April 2007 enabling officers to individually respond to enrolment requests up until 16 April 2007.
Does the one form still enrol me to vote in federal, state and local elections?
Yes. The one form is used to enrol or update the electoral roll for federal, state/territory and local government elections. The AEC has worked with each state and territory electoral authority to ensure that the new forms meet both federal electoral requirements and the relevant state or territory requirements.
It's important that you complete the enrolment form for the state or territory that you are entitled to be enrolled in. This is because enrolment requirements differ between states.
Which states/territories have enrolment requirements that differ from the federal POI enrolment requirements?
In Victoria and Western Australia to be on the electoral roll for state and local government elections you need to also get a witness (who is on/eligible to be on the electoral roll respectively) to sign that they are satisfied the statements are true and that they saw you sign the enrolment form. This is in addition to meeting the POI requirements for federal electoral enrolment.
For all other states and territories, meeting the POI requirements puts you on the electoral roll for federal, state and local government elections.
I want to register as a general postal voter. Do I need to provide POI?
No, as long as you are already enrolled and are not changing your name or address details. You are only required to provide POI when filling in the enrolment form to enrol, re-enrol or update your enrolment details.
What about providing POI to vote? Will everybody have to do this too?
No. On election day if you are not found on the certified list of voters for your electorate you may be offered a provisional vote. Changes to legislation in June 2006 mean that provisional voters will also need to provide POI either at the time of voting or by the close of business on the first Friday following election day. The types of documents that are required for provisional voting POI will be largely the same as those required for enrolment POI.
Where do I send my form?
Please enter your residential postcode to find out where to send your form.
