Voting from Abroad

The next US Presidential Election is in November 2024. Primary voting has already started. Registering to vote and submitting a ballot is fast, easy, and can be done from anywhere in the world!

Start by confirming your voter registration with your state. Some states require absentee voters to register annually, so you may need to re-register. Go to FVAP.gov to connect to your state's voter portal to register to vote, request a ballot, and more. The non-partisan League of Women Voters also has an educational site, Vote411.org, to learn about candidates and issues in your voting district. If you have any questions about registering to vote overseas, please contact U.S. Consulate General Amsterdam’s Voting Assistance Officer at voteAmsterdam@state.gov.

If you are already registered to vote and receive your state's primary voting materials, each state has different requirements for returning the ballot. Some states allow you to return your completed ballot electronically; others do not. Suppose your state requires you to return paper voting forms or ballots to local election officials by mail. In that case, you can do so through international mail, professional courier service, or through the US Mission in the Netherlands' diplomatic pouch. The diplomatic pouch provides free mail service from embassies and consulates to a US sorting facility. You will need to place your ballots in postage-paid return envelopes or in envelopes bearing sufficient US postage addressed to the relevant local election officials for them to be delivered to the proper local election authorities. If using the diplomatic pouch, ballots can be dropped off in the ballot box at the US Embassy The Hague, John Adams Park 1, Wassenaar. Only sealed and postage-paid ballots can be mailed. Please note that delivery times vary, but it takes approximately four weeks for mail to reach its destination if sent via diplomatic pouch. All overseas US citizens are advised to submit their forms and ballots accordingly.

Alternatively, you can send your ballot to your US election office through the Dutch mail system, PostNL (standard international postage rates apply). Or, you can use an express delivery service such as UPS, DHL, or FedEx to send your ballot to the United States (commercial rates apply). If you choose either of these two options, please review the delivery timeline information to ensure your ballot arrives by the deadline.

If you are looking to connect with either (in alphabetical order, as the AWCA is non-partisan) Democrats or Republicans while living in the Netherlands, both organizations have organizations for voters outside of the US. Please see the websites for Democrats Abroad and Republicans Overseas for more information.