COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
C0M(93) 534 final 
Brussels, 27 October 1993 
"imiifiiiiiii r' inT' iff • 
Proposal for a 
COUNCIL PIRECTIVE 
laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the 
right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament by citizens of the Union residing in a 
Member State of which they are not nationals 
(presented by the Commission) 
Table of contents 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 
1. General comments 
1. Scale of the problem 
2. Legal situation 
3. Historical background 
4. Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty 
5. Subsidiarity and proportionality 
II. Comments on individual articles 
TEXT OF THE PROPOSAL FOR A DIRECTIVE 
Recitals 
Chapter I: General provisions 
Article 1 : Scope 
Article 2 : Definitions 
Article 3 : Right to vote and to stand as a candidate 
Article 4 : A single vote and a single candidature 
Article 5 : Residence 
Article 6 : Ineligibility 
Article 7: Disqualification from voting 
Article 8 : Freedom of choice 
Chapter II: Exercise of the right to vote and the right 
to stand as a candidate 
Article 9: Exercise of the right to vote 
Article 10 : Exercise of the right to stand as a candidate 
Article 11: Appeals 
Article 12 : Information 
Article 13: Exchange of information 
Chapter III: Derogations and transitional provisions 
Article 14: Derogations 
Article 15: Transitional provisions 
Article 16 : Review clause 
Chapter IV: Final provisions 
Article 17 : Transposition 
Article 18 : Addressees 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 
I. General comments 
1. Scale of the problem 
For Community citizens who have availed themselves of their fundamental 
freedom to travel to and stay in a Member State other than their own, 
European integration has become a reality of which they have personal 
experience. Today, some five million citizens of the Union are living in a 
Member State of which they are not nationals. 
Some 130 000 Belgians, 40 000 Danes, 290 000 Germans, 360 000 Greeks, 
470 000 Spaniards, 300 000 French, 630 000 Irish, 1.2 million Italians, 
11 000 Luxemburgers, 240 000 Dutch, 840 000 Portuguese and 400 000 Britons 
are established outside their home Member State. 
The number of resident citizens of other Member States stands at 
approximately 541 000 in Belgium, 27 000 in Denmark, 1.3 million in Germany, 
50 000 in Greece, 240 000 in Spain, 1.3 million in France, 62 000 in 
Ireland, 150 000 in Italy, 105 000 in Luxembourg, 163 000 in the 
Netherlands, 29 000 in Portugal and 880 000 in the United Kingdom.1 
However, equality of treatment with nationals of the Member State of 
residence, which is guaranteed by Community law, has not yet been achieved 
as far as the exercise of political rights is concerned. 
2. Legal situation 
From 1976 onwards, the election of members of the European Parliament by 
direct universal suffrage, a milestone along the road to a People's Europe 
based on democracy, has raised the problem of how to ensure that all 
European citizens, and in particular those living in a Member State of 
which they are not nationals, can effectively exercise their right to vote 
in these elections. The Act of 20 September 1976 concerning the election of 
the representatives of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage2 
is silent on the conditions to be met in order to enjoy the right to vote 
and to stand as a candidate; Article 7(2) of the Act merely refers to the 
relevant national provisions. Article 8, the only provision of the Act that 
directly concerns voting rights, merely stipulates that no one may vote more 
than once. 
The national rules on European elections are thus based on different 
approaches to the problem of ensuring that every citizen can genuinely take 
part in elections to the European Parliament. 
1 Eurostat population statistics, 1992 
OJ No L 278, 8.10.1976. The Decision of 1 February 1993 amending the Act 
(OJ No L 33, 9.2.1993, p. 15) does not affect Articles 7 and 8. 
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(a) The right to vote 
With the exception of Ireland, all Member States have adopted a solution 
chiefly based on entitling their nationals living abroad to vote. 
Certain Member States (Denmark, the Netherlands and Portugal) grant such 
voting rights only to those of their expatriate nationals who are living in 
another Member State. 
In Germany, voting rights are extended to all German nationals residing in 
another member country of the Council of Europe and those who have lived in 
a non-member country for less than ten years. 
The United Kingdom grants voting rights also to UK citizens who have been 
out of the country for less than 20 years. 
Other Member States (Belgium, Greece, Spain, France, Italy and Luxembourg) 
continue to allow their nationals to vote in European elections even if they 
are living outside the Community. 
In four Member States (Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands and the 
United Kingdom), residents who are nationals of other Member States may also 
vote, subject to certain conditions. In Ireland, these European citizens 
must comply with the same rules on voting rights as Irish nationals; on the 
other hand, expatriate Irish nationals do not have the right to vote, 
whether they live in another Member State or in any other foreign country. 
In the Netherlands, the right to vote is granted to residents who are 
nationals of another Member State, unless their home Member State maintains 
their voting rights. 
In Belgium, nationals of other Member States may vote provided that they 
have been on the population register for at least three years and have lost 
their voting rights in their home Member State on account of their residence 
in Belgium. 
Lastly, all Irish nationals and Commonwealth citizens have the right to vote 
in the United Kingdom. 
(b) The right to stand as a candidate 
The right to stand as a candidate is reserved in ten Member States for 
nationals, even those residing in another Member State or a non-member 
country. In Germany, only those who have possessed German nationality for 
at least one year may stand as candidates. British citizens, Irish 
nationals and Commonwealth citizens may stand as candidates in the United 
Kingdom. In Italy, nationals of other Member States may stand for election, 
even if they do not live in Italy. 
(c) Disqualification 
The national rules on disqualification vary widely and are a reflection of 
different legal traditions. 
(i) Disqualification from voting 
Members of the electorate may be disqualified from voting by means of an 
individual decision taken on a variety of grounds : 
A criminal conviction may entail disqualification from voting in ten 
Member States. The exceptions are Denmark and Ireland. In Ireland, 
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however, a person detained in any premises in legal custody must be 
registered in the place where he would have been residing but for his having 
been so detained in legal custody. Prisoners therefore retain their right 
to vote and, if at liberty on polling day, may exercise that right. In 
Denmark there is not at present any legal basis for depriving a voter of the 
right to vote on the ground that he has been given a criminal sentence. 
Other grounds for disqualification from voting are moral unfitness in Italy 
and conviction for corrupt or illegal practice in the United Kingdom. 
Majors under some form of guardianship and persons suffering from mental 
disorder are deprived of the right to vote in ten Member States. Italy is 
the sole exception. In the United Kingdom disqualification may result from 
the fact that patients in mental hospitals are deemed to have no ordinary 
residence for electoral purposes. In Ireland, the situation of patients in 
mental hospitals is broadly similar to that of prisoners. In Denmark, only 
persons declared incapable of managing their own affairs are deprived of the 
right to vote. 
The status of decisions to disqualify from voting vary between 
Member States : 
A voter given a criminal sentence may be deprived of his right to vote 
automatically, by operation of law, or disqualification may require an 
express decision on the part of the court. In Belgium, France, Italy, 
Luxembourg and Portugal disqualification from voting is an automatic 
consequence of a conviction for certain crimes. In the UK, disqualification 
from voting is an automatic consequence of being convicted and sentenced to 
a term of imprisonment. In Germany, on the other hand, and in certain 
situations in Spain, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Portugal, a 
specific court decision is required. In Ireland disqualification in 
practice results from the fact that the elector is imprisoned, and 
consequently deprived of his ordinary residence. The national systems can 
also be classified by reference to the grounds for disqualification. In 
Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom 
disqualification is normally linked to a minimum sentence or conviction for 
a particular class of offence. In Germany, Greece and Portugal 
disqualification is normally confined to the offences listed by law. In 
France and the Netherlands the legislation departs from the general 
principle and lists certain articles of the penal code infringement of which 
may be grounds for disqualification from voting. In Spain disqualification 
from voting is a matter for the discretion of the courts. In certain cases 
courts in France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Portugal have a similar 
power. 
As a general rule disqualification from voting follows automatically where a 
person's affairs have to be managed for him, or where he is confined in a 
mental hospital. In the United Kingdom the mentally ill in confinement are 
considered to be without an ordinary residence. In Denmark confinement in a 
mental hospital does not lead to disqualification from voting. In Spain and 
Portugal disqualification from voting requires an express decision. In 
Italy majors in guardianship are entitled to vote, as an Act of Parliament 
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has removed the earlier restrictions permitted by the Constitution. In the 
United Kingdom the mentally ill may exercise the right to vote during lucid 
intervals. 
It is the courts who impose criminal convictions. Decisions on guardianship 
or the confinement of the mentally ill are sometimes taken by administrative 
authorities. 
As far as the effect of foreign decisions is concerned, it would appear that 
as a general rule a criminal conviction imposed by a foreign court will not 
disqualify from voting in the Member State of origin. The United Kingdom is 
an exception to this rule : in the UK law the test is whether the person 
concerned is actually imprisoned or unlawfully at large, and not whether he 
has been sentenced by a domestic or foreign judge. 
Under the rules of private international law, an enforceable foreign 
judgment in a civil-law case may result in disqualification from voting in 
Germany and Greece, and in certain cases in Belgium and France. In the 
Netherlands an elector can never be deprived of his right to vote, except by 
decision of a Dutch court. 
(ii) Disqualification from standing as a candidate 
The general approaches taken fall into three categories. 
In Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands the grounds for disqualification from 
standing are the same as those for disqualification from voting. 
In Denmark, Germany, France and Luxembourg the grounds for disqualification 
from voting hold good for disqualification from standing too, but there are 
also further grounds for disqualification from standing. 
In Greece, Spain, Ireland, Portugal and the United Kingdom the rules on 
disqualification from standing are different from those governing 
disqualification from voting. In Ireland persons who have been given a 
criminal conviction are disqualified from standing only when serving a 
prison sentence of more than six months passed by an Irish court. 
Looking at the substance of the rules, two types of arrangement can be 
distinguished. 
Certain criminal convictions can lead to disqualification in Belgium, 
Germany, Greece, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the 
United Kingdom. 
Under the law of Germany, Ireland, Italy and the United Kingdom, bankrupts 
and persons who for other reasons are considered unfit to hold elected 
public office are generally disqualified. In Denmark a person may be 
disqualified only if convicted for behaviour generally regarded as rendering 
him unfit to sit at the European (or Danish) Parliament. Following an 
election the Danish Parliament may declare an elected candidate to be an 
unfit person and thus deprive him of his seat, but such convictions may 
never be relied on to prevent someone standing for election. 
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(d) Exercise of the right to vote and to stand as a candidate 
In all Member States citizens have to complete certain formalities in 
advance of polling day if they are to be able to exercise their right to 
vote and to stand as a candidate at a particular election in any given 
locality or constituency. 
(i) Exercise of the right to vote 
In order to be able to exercise their right to vote, citizens of voting age 
must normally appear on the electoral roll drawn up for the constituency or 
locality in question. There are four different kinds of arrangement for 
entry on the electoral roll : while France and Greece apply the principle 
whereby each individual has to ask for his name to be entered, in Spain and 
Italy voters can only be entered automatically. In the other Member States, 
with the exception of Portugal, voters are normally entered automatically 
but certain categories of people can be entered on the roll at their 
request. In Portugal, where it is normally up to the individual to apply, 
the administration must automatically enter on the electoral roll all voters 
of whose existence it is aware. 
In some Member States where entry on the roll is automatic (Belgium, 
Denmark, Germany, Spain, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) the 
electoral roll is normally drawn up on the basis of the information on 
another public register, notably the population register or the register of 
births, marriages and deaths. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, on the 
other hand, voters are registered automatically on the basis of any relevant 
information collected by the registration officer after he has made the 
necessary enquiries. Clearly, in those Member States where individuals have 
to apply to be entered on the roll, they have to furnish the competent 
authority with all the necessary information and supporting documents when 
making their application. 
In Denmark, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal and 
the United Kingdom electoral rolls are periodically revised. In most of 
them this is done once a year, and twice a year in Italy. In Belgium, 
Germany and the Netherlands new electoral registers are drawn up before each 
election. 
In most Member States the electoral roll has to be published before it is 
finalized; Belgium and the Netherlands are the exceptions to this rule. 
Voters there are entitled to be informed whether or not they are on the 
electoral roll. 
Where registration is refused, citizens can seek judicial review in all 
Member States. Before taking the matter to the courts, they must apply for 
administrative review in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Italy, 
Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and the United Kingdom. 
(ii) Exercise of the right to stand as a candidate 
When lodging their application, persons entitled to stand normally have to 
provide the administration with a number of particulars and supporting 
documents concerning their personal situation. 
3. Historical background 
In 1960, in its draft Convention on election by direct universal suffrage,3 
the European Parliament proposed that Member States grant voting rights to 
their nationals living in another Member State; in cases where the 
Member State of residence also granted them the right to vote, they should 
not be allowed to vote twice. 
This draft was not favourably received by the Council, and the European 
Parliament replaced it in 1975 by a new draft which did not, however, deal 
with the right to vote and to stand as a candidate of European citizens 
living in a Member State of which they are not nationals. This draft was 
incorporated to a large extent in the Act concerning the election of the 
representatives of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage 
which the Council adopted on 20 September 1976. 
In 1977, in its resolution on voting rights in direct elections,4 the 
European Parliament urged Member States to ensure that their nationals 
living in another Member State could exercise their right to vote in the 
direct election of the European Parliament and called upon them to agree to 
allow these citizens to vote in the country which they are in on the date of 
the election (voting "in loco") . On the basis of work which began in the 
spring of 1977, the Council adopted in February 1978 a report on voting 
in loco, and in particular the practical arrangements for such voting. 
In 1982, in its draft Act adopting certain provisions relating to a uniform 
electoral procedure for the election of Members of the European Parliament,5 
Parliament proposed that Member States grant their nationals the right to 
vote irrespective of their place of residence, provided that this is in a 
Member State, and take the necessary measures to enable nationals to 
exercise their right to vote, without difficulty, in the country whose 
nationality they hold. Parliament also proposed that Member States grant 
the right to stand as a candidate to their nationals, irrespective of their 
place of residence, and to nationals of another Member State who have been 
resident on their territory for at least five years. The Council discussed 
this draft in detail but suspended work on the matter in 1983. 
In 1988, in its written declaration of 16 September,6 Parliament solemnly 
declared that, as from the June 1989 elections, the European Communities 
should adopt and apply the principle whereby any national of any 
Member State has the right to stand for election to the European Parliament 
in each and every Member State. 
OJ No 834, 2.6.1960 (Article 11] 
OJ No C 163, 11.6.1977, p. 39. 
OJ No C 87, 5.4.1982, p. 61. 
OJ No C 262, 10.10.1988, p. 222 
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In 1990, during preparations for the intergovernmental conference on 
political union, Spain proposed to the other Member States that the future 
treaty include provisions on European citizenship, and in particular the 
right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in the Member State of residence. 
The Conference of Parliaments of the European Community, which was held in 
Rome from 27 to 30 November 1990, also urged, in its final declaration, that 
the intergovernmental conference consider granting European citizens the 
right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in their Member State of residence. 
The European Council, meeting in Rome on 14-15 December 1990, welcomed 
Spain's initiative and invited the intergovernmental conference to examine, 
among other things, the extent to which certain civic rights, and in 
particular the right to take part in elections to the European Parliament, 
could be enshrined in the treaty. 
In 1991, in its resolutions on Union citizenship7 and on the guidelines for 
the draft uniform electoral procedure,8 the European Parliament reiterated 
its views on the topic. 
Article 8b(2) of the Treaty on European Union guarantees every citizen of 
the Union the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in the Member State in which he resides but of which he 
is not a national. The timetable in Article 8b(2) was laid down by the 
intergovernmental conference on the assumption that the Treaty on European 
Union would enter into force at the beginning of 1993. The political point 
of the deadline of 31 December 1993 is that the arrangements to be adopted 
by the Council should apply for the fourth direct election to the European 
Parliament in 1994, enabling the citizens of the Union to exercise these new 
rights for the first time and experience the reality of European Union. 
Even before entry into force of the Treaty on European Union, the 
Commission, responding to requests by the Council and Parliament, adopted on 
23 June 1993 and transmittod to thorn a drait proposal for a Council 
Directive laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the right to 
vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in 
the Member State of residence (SEC(93) 1021 final). On the basis of this 
working document, the Council and Parliament held informal discussions 
between July and October 1993 on how to implement Article 8b (2) of the 
Treaty so as to ensure that, in the elections to the European Parliament due 
to be held in June 1994, every citizen of the Union can effectively exercise 
his right to vote and to stand as a candidate in a Member State in which he 
resides but of which he is not a national. This proposal for a Directive 
takes account of the outcome of these preliminary discussions within the 
Council and Parliament. 
Resolution of 14 June 1991, OJ No C 183, 15.7.1991, p. 473; resolution 
of 21 November 1991, OJ No Ç 326, 16.12.1991, p. 205. 
Resolution of 10 October 1991, OJ No C 280, 28.10.1991, p. 141. 
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4. Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty 
Article 8b(2) of the Treaty establishing the European Community, as embodied 
in Title II of the Treaty on European Union, guarantees every citizen of the 
Union the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in the Member State in which he resides, under the same 
conditions as nationals of that State, and provides that the Council, after 
consulting the European Parliament, is to adopt the detailed arrangements 
for the exercise of these rights before 31 December 1993. 
(a) The aim of Article 8b (2) is to ensure that every citizen of the Union 
can effectively exercise his right to vote and to stand as a candidate in 
elections to the European Parliament, to strengthen still further the 
democratic legitimacy of Parliament and thus to reduce the democratic 
deficit in the Community, which has often been the object of criticism. 
These rights will also enable citizens of the Union to give joint expression 
to their European identity while maintaining their respective national 
identities. 
It is therefore necessary to ensure that the citizens of the Union enjoy the 
greatest possible freedom with regard to the right to vote and to stand for 
election to the European Parliament, and that the exercise of these rights 
is subject only to such conditions as are strictly necessary. 
(b) Given that Article b(2) of the Treaty guarantees the right to vote and 
to stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in the 
Member State of residence without actually replacing those rights in the 
home Member State, citizens of the Union must have a free choice as to the 
Member State in which they exercise their right to vote or to stand as a 
candidate. Care must be taken, however, to ensure that this freedom is not 
misused through double voting or standing as a candidate in more than one 
Member State. 
(c) Without prejudice to the uniform electoral procedure provided for in 
Article 138(3) of the EC Treaty, and while respecting the diversity of 
electoral systems in the Member States, Article 8b(2) of this Treaty does 
not seek overall harmonization of the relevant national laws, but merely the 
elimination of the nationality condition, which in most cases means that 
citizens of the Union have no right to vote or to stand as candidates in 
elections to the European Parliament in Member States in which they reside 
but of which they are not nationals. To overcome this problem they will be 
subject, by virtue of the principle of non-discrimination, to the same 
conditions as nationals of the Member State concerned. 
The need to observe the principle of equality between nationals and non-
nationals leads to the conclusion that changes to Member States' electoral 
laws should be kept to the minimum necessary. The directive is the most 
suitable type of legal instrument for such action and the one that 
interferes least with the role of national parliaments. 
(d) Based on Article 8b (2) of the EC Treaty, the aim of this Directive can 
only be to lay down, without prejudice to Article 138(3) of the EC Treaty 
and to the provisions adopted for its implementation, the detailed 
arrangements for the exercise, by citizens of the Union, of the right to 
vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in 
the Member State in which they reside but of which they are not nationals. 
Consequently, this Directive does not deal with matters concerning the 
establishment of a uniform electoral procedure as provided for by 
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Article 138(3) of the EC Treaty.9 The differences between the procedures 
involved are substantial: unanimous decision of the Council, acting on a 
proposal from the Commission, under Article 8b(2); and proposal by the 
European Parliament, unanimous decision by the Council and adoption by the 
Member States, in accordance with their respective constitutional 
requirements, under Article 138(3). 
5. Subsidiarity and proportionality 
In presenting this proposal for a Directive, which comes under the 
Community's exclusive powers, the Commission is aiming to discharge, at the 
earliest opportunity, its obligations under the second sentence of 
Article 8b(2). In keeping with the principles of subsidiarity and 
proportionality, the Commission proposes that the detailed arrangements 
referred to in the second sentence of Article 8b(2) be adopted in the form 
of a directive and that the content of the directive be limited to what is 
strictly necessary for attaining the objective set out in Article 8b(2) of 
the EC Treaty. 
II. Comments on individual articles 
Article 1: Scope 
Spelling out the scope of Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty, Article 1 defines 
the field of application of this Directive. 
1. Paragraph 1 makes it clear that this Directive covers only citizens of 
the Union residing in a Member State of which they are not nationals and 
their right to take part in the election of representatives of that State to 
the European Parliament; its aim is not, therefore, to achieve overall 
approximation of Member States' electoral laws. Consequently, the Directive 
does not affect, for instance, the rules of each Member State governing the 
right to vote and to stand as a candidate either of nationals in their home 
Member State (e.g. French nationals in France or British citizens in the 
United Kingdom) or of citizens of the Union residing in a Member State other 
than the one in which they exercise their right to vote or to stand as a 
candidate (e.g. a French citizen residing in France and standing as a 
candidate in Italy) . Neither does it affect the right to vote or to stand 
as a candidate of persons who are not citizens of the Union, for example 
nationals of Commonwealth countries established in the United Kingdom. 
The electoral procedure concerns primarily the electoral system, 
preparations, and in particular the drawing-up of lists of candidates, 
voting, the choice of polling day and the method of counting votes. On 
the other hand, the right to vote and to stand as a candidate concerns 
only the conditions to be met in order to be entitled to vote or to stand 
as a candidate, such as those relating to citizenship, minimum age and 
disqualification, and the conditions to be met for a voter or a person 
entitled to stand as a candidate to be able effectively to exercise his 
right in a particular election (for example, entry on the electoral roll 
for a given constituency). 
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2. Paragraph 2 specifies that the Directive does not affect each 
Member State's rules on the conditions in which nationals may vote or stand 
as a candidate in their home Member State, even if they reside outside the 
electoral territory of that State. 
Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty guarantees the right to vote and to stand as 
a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in the Member State of 
residence, without substituting this for the right to vote and to stand as a 
candidate in the home Member State. The purpose of paragraph 2 is to 
ensure, in the eventuality of such rights being maintained in the home 
Member State, that citizens of the Union have a free choice as to the 
Member State in which they can take part in the European elections. 
Article 2: Definitions 
1. To ensure consistency with the Act of 20 September 1976 concerning the 
election of the representatives of the European Parliament by direct 
universal suffrage, Article 2(1) defines the concept of "elections to the 
European Parliament", as used in Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty, by 
reference to Article 1 of the Act. 
2. To ensure consistency with the Act of 20 September 1976 and its 
territorial scope as laid down in Article 2, the second paragraph of 
Article 15 and the Annexes thereof, the concept of electoral territory has 
to be defined by reference to that Act and the national provisions adopted 
under it. The question of whether or not a particular part of the national 
territory of a Member State or whether or not an overseas country or 
territory attached to a Member State belongs to the electoral territory 
therefore falls within the exclusive scope of the Act and the national 
provisions adopted under it by each Member State. 
3. In defining the concept of the Member State of residence, Article 2(3) 
reproduces the relevant phrase in Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty. On the 
other hand, the concept of the home Member State is defined in Article 2(4) 
on the criterion of nationality. 
4. Article 2(5) and (6) define the concepts of Community voter and 
Community national entitled to stand as a candidate by reference to 
Article 3 of the Directive. 
5. In defining the electoral roll, Article 2(7) aims not to alter but to 
embrace the different types of official registers of voters which currently 
exist in the Member States, irrespective of the way in which they are drawn 
up (automatic registration or registration on individual application) and 
updated (permanent or non-permanent lists, periodic revision or compilation 
before each election). The definition also makes allowance for the special 
situation of some Member States which do not draw up a specific electoral 
register but indicate eligibility to vote on the population register. 
Article 2(7) does not rule out the electoral roll being subdivided into 
categories of voter. 
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6. Given that the date on which citizens of the Union must satisfy the 
requirements for voting or for standing as a candidate is not the same in 
all Member States, Article 2(8) refrains from any harmonization and 
introduces the concept of the reference date, which is defined by reference 
to the law of the Member State of residence. Since the aim is not to 
approximate Member States' electoral systems, the definition also makes 
allowance for the special situation of certain Member States which specify 
several reference dates. 
7. In defining the concept of the formal declaration, Article 2(9) refers, 
avoiding any approximation of national rules, to the different types of 
declaration that currently exist in the Member States. It can correspond, 
for example, to a "statutory declaration" under UK law or an 
"eidesstattliche Versicherung" (sworn statement) under German law. 
According to this definition, the declaration must be lodged with the 
competent authority referred to in Articles 9 and 10 of the Directive. 
Furthermore, inaccuracy in the declaration must make the person concerned 
liable to penalties in accordance with the law of the Member State of 
residence. When they transpose the Directive, it will be for the 
Member States to spell out the form the declaration has to take. 
Article 3: Right to vote and to stand as a candidate 
Within the framework established by the first sentence of Article 8b(2) of 
the EC Treaty, Article 3 lays down the conditions to be met in order to have 
the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in the Member State of 
residence. The date on which these conditions must be met may, depending on 
the law of the Member State of residence, be either the polling day or any 
other reference date. Clearly, whether the reference dates for the right to 
vote and for the right to stand as a candidate are the same also depends on 
the rules laid down by each Member State. 
1. Given that the second sentence of Article 8(1) of the EC Treaty defines 
the concept of Union citizenship and the definition is spelled out in the 
Declaration on nationality of a Member State, which is annexed to the 
Treaty on European Union, Article 3(a) merely refers to that provision of 
the EC Treaty. In so doing, Article 3 takes account of the fact that the 
rules on the acquisition and possession of the nationality of a Member State 
fall within the scope not of the EC Treaty, but of the national law of the 
Member State concerned. 
This means in particular that determination of the nationality of persons 
originating in overseas countries and territories, within the meaning of 
Article 227(3) of the Treaty, is a matter exclusively for the legislation of 
the Member State which has a special relationship with each overseas country 
or territory. Consequently, persons originating in overseas countries or 
territories who possess, under the legislation of a Member State, the 
nationality of that State and who reside in another Member State have the 
right to vote and to stand as a candidate there in elections to the 
European Parliament. It is thus for the individual Member States to 
specify, if necessary for the purposes of applying this Directive, the 
persons who are to be deemed their nationals. 
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On the other hand, since the Directive concerns only the right to vote and 
the right to stand as a candidate in a Member State other than the home 
Member State, it cannot deal with the situation of persons originating in 
overseas countries or territories who do not have the nationality of a 
Member State or of those residing in the Member State with which the 
overseas country or territory has a special relationship, even if they have 
the nationality of that State. 
2. Within the framework established by the first sentence of Article 8b(2) 
of the EC Treaty, Article 3(b) implements the principle of equality between 
national and Community voters and, at the same time, the principle of 
interfering as little as possible with Member States' electoral laws. Under 
these laws, the other conditions to be met in order to have the right to 
vote concern, in particular, the voting age and residence. 
After Union citizenship, residence in the Member State in which the right to 
vote or to stand as a candidate is exercised is the second key condition to 
be met in order to benefit from the guarantee afforded by Article 8b(2) of 
the EC Treaty. This condition highlights the link with the right to move 
and reside freely which is enshrined in Article 8a of that Treaty. 
Although, unlike the concept of citizenship, residence is not defined in the 
Treaty itself, there is no need to define it uniformly for the purposes of 
this Directive. Articles 3 and 5 consequently refrain from giving any such 
definition, which enables the principle of equal conditions for national 
voters and Community voters and for national candidates and Community 
nationals entitled to stand as candidates to be complied with more 
effectively. At the same time, the Directive avoids interfering, in this 
area, with Member States' electoral systems. 
The voting age is currently 18 years in all Member States; the minimum age 
for standing as a candidate varies between 18 and 25 years. 
Article 3 does not, however, affect the administrative requirements to be 
met in each Member State if a voter is to be able to exercise his right to 
vote in a particular locality or constituency in a given election or if a 
person entitled to stand as a candidate is to be able to stand on a 
particular list or in a particular constituency in a given election. These 
requirements are designed to ensure that elections are properly prepared and 
proceed smoothly and concern, in particular, residence in the locality or 
constituency in which the vote is to be cast, possibly for a minimum period. 
The same applies to the administrative requirements to be met by candidates. 
These concern, in particular, nomination procedures, certain means of proof 
and the closing dates for applications. It goes without saying that any 
Community voter or Community national entitled to stand as a candidate who 
wishes effectively to take part in the European elections in his 
Member State of residence must comply with the relevant national rules 
applicable to nationals. 
3. In view of the importance of the rules on disqualification from voting 
and from standing as a candidate, Article 3 provides that citizens of the 
Union may not vote or stand as candidates in their Member State of residence 
if they have been deprived of the right to vote or the right to stand as a 
candidate respectively and, as far as the substance of the requirements is 
concerned, refers to Articles 6 and 7. 
- 13 -
4. In some Member States, citizens who acquired their nationality by 
naturalization must have been nationals for a certain minimum period, say a 
year, before they can stand as a candidate. That being so, the principle of 
equality between nationals entitled to stand as candidates and nationals of 
other Member States so entitled means that citizens of the Union who 
acquired the nationality of their home Member State by naturalization and 
who reside in another Member State (for example, a French citizen of 
Moroccan origin residing in Germany) must, mutatis mutandis, comply with 
this condition. Citizens should, therefore, be deemed to have met this 
condition in the Member State of residence when they have been nationals of 
their home Member State for the same minimum period. 
Article 4: A single vote and a single candidature 
1. The elections are intended to produce a single Community institution, 
and Article 4(1) accordingly sets out to prevent any voter from voting 
twice, thereby abusing the freedom to choose the place in which he wishes to 
vote given him by Articles 1(2) and 8. Article 4(1) confirms that it is not 
permissible to vote twice, a principle already stated in Article 8 of the 
Act of 20 September 1976. The mechanism for ensuring that this principle is 
complied with in practice is laid down in Articles 8 and 13. 
2. As the body to be elected is a single Community institution a person 
must not be allowed to stand as a candidate in more than one Member State. 
Since residence outside the home Member State does not normally result in 
disqualification from standing as a candidate in that Member State, and in 
view of the fact that some Member States allow also non-resident citizens of 
the Union to stand as candidates, the risk of dual candidatures must not be 
taken lightly. In order to interfere with Member States' electoral systems 
as little as possible, Article 4(2) does not affect national rules governing 
dual candidatures within each Member State. Clearly, too, Article 4(2) is 
aimed merely at preventing a person standing as a candidate in more than one 
Member State at the same election; it does not, for example, preclude a 
person standing as a candidate in his Member State of residence at one 
election and in his home Member State at subsequent elections. 
Article 5: Residence 
1. Article 5 returns to the residence condition referred to in 
Article 3(b), on the right to vote and the right to stand. It avoids any 
uniform definition, indirectly leaving the concept of residence used in the 
electoral law of the Member State of residence to apply. The laws of the 
Member States vary widely here, some requiring the person concerned to have 
his principal or habitual residence in the place, some requiring only that 
he stay there habitually, and some that he be entered on the register of 
population. 
- 14 -
The laws of some Member States require that the person concerned must have 
completed a minimum period of residence there; Article 5 is intended to 
prevent any discrimination against Community voters or Community nationals 
entitled to stand as candidates which might arise if this condition could in 
practice be met easily by nationals of the country but only with difficulty 
by non-nationals. Article 5 makes a period of residence in other 
Member States, for example in the Member State of origin, equivalent to a 
period spent in the Member State of residence. 
Since Article 5 deals only with the conditions to be met in order to have 
the right to vote or to stand as a candidate in the Member State of 
residence, the requirement laid down in the first sentence does not affect 
any specific conditions laid down by a Member State in respect of the 
exercise of these rights in a particular constituency or locality at a 
particular election and normally linked to a minimum period of residence in 
that constituency or locality. 
Article 6: Ineligibility 
1. Article 6 deals only with ineligibility, the state of a Union citizen 
who has been legally barred from standing as a candidate at elections. The 
question of incompatibility between membership of Parliament and other 
offices, which is currently governed by Articles 5 and 6 of the Act of 
20 September 1976, is a matter for the uniform election procedure referred 
to in Article 138(3) of the EC Treaty, and is not affected by this 
Directive. 
2. Since a person may be disqualified from standing as a candidate under 
the civil or criminal law either of his Member State of residence or of his 
home Member State, and, in the absence of international conventions, such 
court decisions are not normally enforceable in the Member State of 
residence, Article 6 lays down the principle that both sets of rules are to 
apply concurrently. Concurrent application is not incompatible with the 
Community principle of non-discrimination: since the aim is to prevent 
possible distortion as a result of disparities between disqualification 
rules in force in the Member States, such a system can be regarded as 
forming part of the "detailed arrangements" to be adopted by the Council 
under Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty. 
As far as the substance is concerned, concurrent application is justified on 
the ground that a person who has been deprived of his right to stand as a 
candidate at elections in his home Member State, normally by order of a 
court, should not be able to recover this right merely by virtue of his 
residence in another Member State. The possibility of a citizen of the 
Union who has been deprived of his right to stand as a candidate in his home 
Member State standing as a candidate in his Member State of residence and 
campaigning for election there is of concern to both Member States. To 
safeguard the reputation of the European Parliament, steps should be taken 
to prevent a citizen of the Union who has been deprived of his right to 
stand as a candidate sitting in Parliament or even campaigning for election 
to it. Clearly, the risks of Parliament's reputation being undermined are 
- 15 -
greater and more visible in the case of disqualification from standing as a 
candidate as in that of disqualification from voting. Article 6(1) thus 
requires the Member State of residence to recognize any disqualification 
from standing as a candidate in the home Member State. 
The arrangements governing disqualification do vary widely from one 
Member State to another; concurrent application is based on the view that 
they all comply with the general principles of democracy and the rule of 
law, and that there is consequently nothing to prevent the Member State of 
residence recognizing a disqualification in the home Member State. 
2. To implement these rules on concurrent application, Article 10(2) 
requires the Member State of residence to ask the person concerned to 
produce, when he submits his application to stand as a candidate, an 
attestation from his home Member State certifying that he has not been 
deprived of the right to stand as a candidate in that State or that no such 
disqualification is known to those authorities. On that basis, Article 6(2) 
requires the Member State of residence to declare an application to stand as 
a candidate inadmissible where the citizen is unable to produce the 
attestation. Since Article 10(2) establishes a procedural requirement, 
Article 6(2) relates to a purely formal check which in most Member States is 
normally carried out before the election. That being so, Article 6(2) in no 
way affects certain national rules on disqualification from standing as a 
candidate whereby a check on the substance of the matter can only be made 
after the election. Given the political importance of disqualifications, 
however, it is desirable that disqualification should wherever possible be 
declared before the election campaign begins. 
Article 7: Disqualification from voting 
Since the risks of Parliament's reputation being undermined are much smaller 
in the case , of. .. disqualification from voting than disqualification from 
standing-as a candidate, Article 7 lays down more flexible arrangements than 
Article 6. 
1. "Che Member State of residence is free to decide whether or-not to take 
account of a disqualification from voting in the home Member State. It is 
consequently also free to decide whether or not to require the Community 
voter to state in his declaration under Article 9(3) that he l^as not been 
deprived of the right to vote in his home Member State. 
2. Member States , which opt for concurrent application as allowed by 
Article 7.(1) may notify the home Member State of the declaration referred to 
in Article 9(3). They must, however, transmit only such details as are 
strictly necessary for the implementation of that provision. On the other 
hand, the home Member State must respond to enquiries from the Member State 
of residence and supply it with all relevant and normally available 
information. To protect personal data and comply with the principle of 
proportionality, the home Member State must provide the Member State of 
residence with only those details that are strictly necessary for the 
implementation of the rules on concurrent application. For the same 
reasons, the Member State of residence may use the information only for that 
purpose. Once it has opted for concurrent application, the Member State of 
- 16 -
residence must take the appropriate steps to prevent the person concerned 
from voting, either by removing him from the electoral roll or by refusing 
him access to the polling station. 
3. Under Article 7(3), the home Member State may take the initiative of 
transmitting to the Member State of residence any necessary information to 
enable it to take account of a disqualification from voting in the home 
Member State. In such cases, however, the Member State of residence will 
not have to respond. 
Article 8: Freedom of choice 
1. To preserve the voter's freedom to choose the Member State in which he 
wishes to vote, Article 8(1) provides that a Community voter will be entered 
on the electoral roll of his Member State of residence only at his express 
request. The importance of a voter ' s showing that he has opted to vote in 
his Member State of residence stems above all from the effect such a 
decision has on voting entitlement in the home Member State: a voter thereby 
waives his right to vote in his home Member State. It would be 
inconceivable for this to happen without the person concerned first making a 
request to that effect. 
2. In accordance with the principle of equality between nationals and 
Community voters Article 8(2) makes it clear that where a Community voter 
has exercised his entitlement to choose which State to vote in and has had 
himself entered on an electoral roll in his Member State of residence, and 
that Member State is one in which voting is compulsory, he too will be 
subject to the obligation to vote. 
Article 9: Exercise of the right to vote 
1. Article 9(1) deals with the time at which an application for entry on 
the electoral roll should be made to the competent authority in the 
Member State of residence; it seeks to interfere as little as possible with 
the rules in force in the Member States, which vary widely in this respect. 
In those Member States in which the registers are updated periodically, 
Community voters would be able to submit their applications during that 
period. Outside that period registration would be possible only by way of 
exception, under the same rules as apply to nationals. 
In Member States where the register is finalized before each election, 
usually automatically, Community voters must be entitled to apply within a 
reasonable period before closure of the register. When they transpose this 
Directive into their national law the Member States concerned will have to 
determine an appropriate period taking account on the one hand of the 
legitimate interests of the voters and on the other of the need for proper 
organization of the election. 
- 17 -
2. Article 9(2) deals with the documents which a Community voter must 
produce in support of his application: these are to be the same as those 
required of a national. In order to prevent anyone from voting twice, 
however, Community voters have to be asked for a number of further 
documents. As the objective is as far as possible to facilitate the 
exercise of the right to vote in the Member State of residence, these extra 
documents have to be kept to a strict minimum. Since the rules on 
supporting documents should also be based on the principle that statements 
made by the citizens concerned should be trusted, Article 9(2) requires 
Community voters merely to produce a formal declaration containing a 
limited number of particulars enabling the home Member State to identify 
them easily and take the necessary steps to prevent double voting. 
3. Under Article 9(3), the Member State of residence may require a limited 
number of other supporting documents for the purposes of implementing 
Article 7, identifying the person concerned more easily or checking the 
minimum period of residence referred to in the first sentence of Article 5. 
4. Article 9(4) is aimed at preserving the Community voter's freedom to 
choose the Member State in which he proposes to vote while avoiding any 
interference with the electoral rules in the Member States, and at the same 
time at facilitating the updating of the registers of Community voters by 
the Member States without imposing any unnecessary administrative 
formalities on the voters. 
Article 10: Exercise of the right to stand as a candidate 
1. Article 10(1) deals with the documents which a Community national is to 
produce when he submits his application to stand as a candidate: these are 
to be the same as the documents required of a national of the country. To 
prevent candidates from standing in two Member States, however, 
Article 10(1) requires Community candidates to produce a number of further 
documents, but these are kept to a strict minimum. The layout of 
Article 10(1) is identical to that of Article 9(2). 
2. For the purposes of applying the rule on concurrent application of 
disqualifications from standing as a candidate laid down in Article 6, 
Article 10(2) provides that a Community national must produce, in support of 
his application, an attestation from the competent administrative 
authorities of his home Member State certifying that he has not been 
deprived of the right to stand as a candidate in that Member State. If 
necessary, and in particular where such information is not centralized, the 
home Member State may confine itself to certifying that no such 
disqualification is known to its authorities. Clearly, it is up to each 
Member State to decide which of its authorities are to be competent for the 
purposes of Article 10(2), and in particular to determine what role could be 
played here by its consular authorities. 
3. Under Article 10(3), the Member State of residence may require the 
person concerned to produce a limited number of additional supporting 
documents in order to help identify him or check that any condition laid 
down under the last paragraph of Article 3 is met. 
- 18 -
Article 11 : Appeals 
1. The notification required by Article 11(1) serves to enable appeals to 
be lodged under Article 11(2). It leaves Member States free to choose the 
way in which the information is to be supplied; it may be given to the 
person concerned individually, or announced when the electoral roll is 
published, but whatever method is chosen, the information must be supplied 
in good time. 
2. Applying the principle that the rules governing nationals and non-
nationals are to be the same, Article 11(2) provides that Community 
nationals may lodge appeals in the same way as nationals of the Member State 
of residence, whether through litigation or some form of review procedure. 
Article 12: Information 
As Community voters and Community nationals entitled to stand as candidates 
have to meet the same conditions as nationals as well as certain specific 
conditions, particularly as regards supporting documents, Article 12 
requires the competent authorities of the Member State of residence to 
inform them of their entitlements in good time, in order to enable them to 
exercise their right to vote or to stand as a candidate there if they so 
wish. It leaves Member States free to choose the most appropriate way of 
doing this. 
Article 13: Exchange of information 
While avoiding any unnecessary red tape, Article 13 establishes machinery 
for the exchange of information between Member States in order to prevent, 
wherever possible, double voting and double candidature in violation of 
Article 4. To that end, the Member State of residence will have to pass on 
to the home Member State information on the latter's nationals who are 
entered on electoral rolls or are standing as candidates. 
The content of the information should be based on the statements made by the 
individuals concerned in their formal declarations. To ensure that Union 
citizens' personal data are properly protected and in accordance with the 
principle of proportionality, the information exchanged should contain only 
those particulars that are necessary for implementing Article 4 and should 
be used only for that purpose. 
If this machinery for the exchange of information is to operate effectively, 
the information must be transmitted sufficiently in advance of polling day. 
The fact remains, however, t.hat the time allowed for entry on the electoral 
roll and submission of applications to stand as candidates varies widely 
between the Member States. 
On the basis of the information transmitted by the Member State of 
residence, the home Member State will have to take, in accordance with its 
existing electoral law, appropriate measures to prevent as far as possible 
its nationals voting twice or standing as candidates in two Member States. 
Given the variety of electoral systems and political traditions in the 
- 19 -
Member States, Article 13 allows either preventive checks before polling day 
(for example, removal from the electoral roll), repressive checks after the 
election (e.g. penalties under criminal law) or a combination of both. 
Article 14: Derogations 
1. The second sentence of Article 8(b) (2) of the EC Treaty allows 
derogations where warranted by problems specific to a Member State; such 
problems arise mainly where there is a particularly high proportion of 
nationals of other Member States. The average proportion is currently 
between about 0.3% and about 6% of all resident Union citizens. There is 
only one Member State in which the proportion of Community residents of 
voting age is substantially higher, at about 29% of the total potential 
electorate. 
In view of this situation, paragraph 1 lays down a threshold of 20% which 
must be reached before a Member State can derogate under points(a) and (b). 
The proportion is to be calculated on the basis of statistics for all Union 
citizens of voting age residing in the Member State on the date indicated. 
Since the detailed arrangements referred to in Article 8b(2) of the Treaty 
are to be adopted "without prejudice to Article 138(3) and to the provisions 
adopted for its implementation", Article 14 makes it clear that this 
Directive does not affect each Member State's right to adopt appropriate 
measures relating to the electoral procedure. Pending additional provisions 
to be adopted under Article 138(3) of the Treaty, neither this Directive, 
nor the Act of 2 0 September 1976 concerning the election of the 
representatives of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage (see 
Article 7(2) of the Act) affect in any way each Member State's existing or 
planned provisions relating to electoral procedure, and in particular the 
composition of lists of candidates. 
Points (a) and (b) in paragraph 1 limit the possible derogations, which may 
not go beyond a requirement that Community nationals must have resided in 
that Member State for a minimum period. As far as the right to stand is 
concerned it is reasonable to set a period which is no longer than twice the 
term for which the European Parliament is elected. As far as the right to 
vote is concerned the minimum period of residence may not be more than one 
such term. 
But provision must be made to ensure that Community nationals who are unable 
to vote or to stand as candidates in their home Member State by reason of 
their residence in another Member State, or because of the length of their 
residence there, do not need to satisfy this minimum residence requirement 
in order to vote and to stand in their Member State of residence. 
- 20 -
2. Furthermore, problems specific to a Member State and warranting 
derogations under the second sentence of Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty can 
stem from the fact that, in certain Member States, nationals of other 
Member States already have the right to vote in elections not only to the 
European Parliament but also to the national parliament. 
In one Member State, citizens of a neighbouring Member State are not treated 
as foreigners and have had the right to vote and to stand as candidates in 
parliamentary elections and local elections since 1948, as well as in 
elections to the European Parliament since 1979, under conditions that are 
exactly the same in both form and substance as those applying to nationals. 
In the neighbouring Member State, since 1935 any person born in the other 
Member State has not been treated as a foreigner. In addition, the 
constitution has been amended to allow the legislator to grant non-national 
residents the right to vote in elections to the national parliament. On 
that basis, the electoral law adopted in 1985 provides that citizens of the 
other Member State in question and, on a reciprical basis, nationals of all 
other Member States have the right to vote in elections to the national 
parliament. As far as elections to the European Parliament are concerned, 
residents who are nationals of the other Member State concerned, as well as 
nationals of all other Member States, have had the right to vote since 1977. 
Consequently, nationals of these two Member States residing in the other one 
normally appear, in the Member State of residence, on the electoral rolls 
for elections to the national parliament, which are established 
automatically in both the Member States. The electoral rolls for elections 
to the European Parliament are established automatically on the basis of 
those national electoral rolls in both countries. 
Nationals of the two Member States concerned who reside in the other one 
should not therefore have to comply with the specific formalities laid down 
by Articles 6 to 13 of this Directive. 
3. The clause in Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty which allows derogations is 
concerned with the arrangements for the exercise of the rights guaranteed, 
and not the guarantee itself. Any derogation must therefore be subject to 
review. Article 14(3) accordingly establishes a system of regular reports. 
In order to enable the Commission, in its capacity as guardian of the 
Treaty, to verify whether the tests of paragraphs 1 and 2 are still 
satisfied, Member States which derogate must be required to supply the 
Commission with all the necessary background information, and in particular 
with the relevant statistics. 
- 21 -
Article 15: Transitional provisions 
Given the extremely tight schedule for implementing this Directive in time 
for the fourth direct elections to the European Parliament, a number of 
transitional provisions are essential to take account of some specific 
problems facing certain Member States. 
1. Since in some Member States all citizens of the Union or citizens of 
other, specified, Member States are already entitled to vote in elections to 
the European Parliament and may therefore be entered on the electoral rolls 
even before this Directive enters into force, it is necessary to recognize 
their acquired rights and to provide that the Directive should not affect 
their registration. Such persons need not submit an application under 
Article 8 or produce the supporting documents required by Article 9. Under 
Article 9(4), this situation may be maintained after the fourth direct 
elections to the European Parliament if the existing national legislation so 
allows. 
2. Article 15(2) provides that, where a Member State requires that as a 
rule names are to be entered on an electoral roll only at a certain time of 
year, it is to take any measures necessary to enable Community voters to 
exercise their right to vote in their Member State of residence at the 
fourth direct elections to the European Parliament. 
3. Article 15(3) takes account of certain technical problems facing 
Member States which do not draw up a specific electoral roll but indicate 
eligibility to vote in the population register. The arrangements provided 
for here do not encroach on the principle of the free choice of the 
Member State in which to exercise the right to vote or the principle laid 
down in Article 8(1). 
4. Since the legislation of certain Member States lays down a lengthy 
internal procedure for the nomination of candidates by political parties or 
groups, and this procedure, which normally lasts over a year, will already 
have been started or even completed by the political parties or groups 
before 1 February 1994, the Member States concerned must be able to provide 
that the procedures and decisions taken under them remain valid. 
Article 16: Review clause 
In view of the complexity of the technical problems involved in implementing 
Article 8b(2) of the EC Treaty, in particular the machinery for the exchange 
of information referred to in Articles 7 and 13, the Commission will have to 
evaluate, in a report to Parliament and the Council drawn up after the 
June 1994 elections, the experience gained in applying the Directive and 
propose any amendments that may be necessary. If necessary, the Council 
will be requested to act unanimously, once Parliament has been consulted, on 
any proposals for amendments put forward by the Commission. 
- 22 -
Article 17: Transposition 
So that the Directive can apply at the fourth direct elections to the 
European Parliament, in June 1994, Article 17(1) sets an extremely short 
deadline for transposition. 
- 23 -
PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 
laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of 
the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to 
the European Parliament by citizens of the Union residing 
in a Member State of which they are not nationals 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in 
particular Article 8b(2) thereof, 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament, 
Whereas the European Union marks a new stage in the process of creating an 
ever closer union among the peoples of Europe; whereas one of its tasks is 
to organize, in a manner demonstrating consistency and solidarity, relations 
between the peoples of the Member States; whereas its fundamental objectives 
include a strengthening of the protection of the rights and interests of the 
nationals of its Member States through the introduction of a citizenship of 
the Union; 
Whereas to that end Title II of the Treaty on European Union, amending the 
EEC Treaty with a view to establishing the European Community, introduces a 
citizenship of the Union for all nationals of the Member States and confers 
on such nationals on that basis a number of rights which they may assert; 
Whereas the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in the Member State of residence, embodied in 
Article 8b (2) of the EC Treaty, is an instance of the application of the 
principle of non-discrimination between nationals and non-nationals and a 
corollary of the right to move and reside freely enshrined in Article 8a of 
that Treaty; 
Whereas Article 8b(2) is concerned only with the possibility of exercising 
the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament, without prejudice to Article 138(3) of the EC Treaty, 
which provides for the establishment of a uniform procedure in all 
Member States for those elections; whereas it essentially seeks to abolish 
the nationality requirement which currently has to be satisfied in most 
Member States in order to exercise those rights; 
- 24 -
Whereas application of Article 8b(2) does not presuppose harmonization of 
Member States' electoral systems; whereas, moreover, to take account of the 
principle of proportionality set out in the third paragraph of Article 3b of 
the EC Treaty, the content of Community legislation in this sphere must not 
go beyond what is necessary to achieve the objective of Article 8b(2); 
Whereas the purpose of Article 8b (2) is to ensure that all citizens of the 
Union, whether or not they be nationals of the Member State in which they 
reside, can exercise in that State their right to vote and to stand as a 
candidate in elections to the European Parliament under the same conditions; 
whereas the conditions applying to non-nationals, including those relating 
to period and proof of residence, should therefore be identical to those, if 
any, applying to nationals of the Member State concerned; 
Whereas Article 8b(2) guarantees the right to vote and to stand as a 
candidate in elections to the European Parliament in the Member State of 
residence, without actually substituting it for the right to vote and to 
stand as a candidate in the Member State of which the citizen is a national; 
whereas the freedom of citizens of the Union to choose the Member State in 
which to take part in European elections must be respected, while taking 
care to ensure that this freedom is not abused by people voting or standing 
as a candidate in more than one country; 
Whereas any derogation from the general rules of this Directive must be 
warranted, pursuant to Article 8b(2), by problems specific to a 
Member State; whereas any derogation must, by its very nature, be subject to 
review; whereas such specific problems may arise in a Member State in which 
the proportion of citizens of the Union of voting age who reside in it but 
are not nationals of it is very significantly above average; whereas 
derogations are warranted where such citizens form more than 20% of the 
total electorate; whereas such derogations must be based on the criterion of 
period of residence; 
Whereas citizenship of the Union is intended to enable citizens of the Union 
to integrate better in their host country and that in this context, it is in 
accordance with the intentions of the authors of the Treaty to avoid any 
polarization between lists of national and non-national candidates; 
Whereas this risk of polarization concerns in particular a Member State in 
which the proportion of non-national citizens of the Union of voting age 
exceeds 20 % of the total number of citizens of the Union of voting age who 
reside there and that, therefore, it is important that this Member State may 
lay down, in compliance with Article 8 B of the Treaty, specific provisions 
concerning the compsition of lists of candidates; 
Whereas account must be taken of the fact that in certain Member States 
residents who are nationals of other Member States have the right to vote in 
elections to the national parliament and the formalities provided for by 
this Directive can consequently be eased, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: 
Chapter I: General provisions 
Article 1 
1. This Directive lays down the detailed arrangements whereby 
citizens of the Union residing in a Member State of which they are not 
nationals may exercise the right to vote and to stand as a candidate there 
in elections to the European Parliament. 
- 25 -
2. Nothing in this Directive shall affect each Member State's 
provisions concerning the right to vote or to stand as a candidate of its 
nationals who reside outside its electoral territory. 
Article 2 
For the purposes of this Directive: 
(1) "elections to the European Parliament" means elections by direct 
universal suffrage to the European Parliament of representatives of the 
peoples of the States brought together in the European Community in 
accordance with the Act concerning the election of the representatives of 
the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage;1 
(2) "electoral territory" means the territory of a Member State in which, in 
accordance with the Act concerning the election of the representatives of 
the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage and, within that 
framework, in accordance with the electoral law of that Member State, 
members of the European Parliament are elected by the people of that 
Member State; 
(3) "Member State of residence" means a Member State in which a citizen of 
the Union resides but of which he is not a national; 
(4) "home Member State" means the Member State of which a citizen of the 
Union is a national; 
(5) "Community voter" means any citizen of the Union who is entitled to vote 
in elections to the European Parliament in his Member State of residence in 
accordance with this Directive; 
(6) "Community national entitled to stand as a candidate" means any citizen 
of the Union who has the right to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in his Member State of residence in accordance with this 
Directive; 
(7) "electoral roll" means the official register of all voters entitled to 
vote in a given constituency or locality, drawn up and kept up to date by 
the competent authority under the electoral law of the Member State of 
residence, or the population register if it indicates eligibility to vote; 
(8) "reference date" means the day or the days on which citizens of the 
Union must satisfy, under the law of the Member State of residence, the 
requirements for voting or for standing as a candidate in that State; 
(9) "formal declaration" means a declaration by the person concerned, 
inaccuracy in which makes that person liable to penalties. 
OJ No L 278, 8.10.1976, p. 5. 
- 26 -
Article 3 
Any person who, on the reference date: 
(a) is a citizen of the Union within the meaning of the second subparagraph 
of Article 8(1) of the Treaty, 
(b) not being a national of the Member State of residence, satisfies the 
same conditions in respect of the right to vote and to stand as a 
candidate as that State imposes by law on its own nationals, 
shall have the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the 
European Parliament in the Member State of residence unless deprived of 
those rights pursuant to Articles 6 and 7. 
Where, in order to stand as a candidate, nationals of the Member State of 
residence must have been nationals for a certain minimum period, citizens of 
the Union shall be deemed to have met this condition when they have been 
nationals of a Member State for the same period. 
Article 4 
1. Community voters shall exercise their right to vote either in the 
Member State of residence or in their home Member State. No person may vote 
more than once at the same election. 
2. No person may stand as a candidate in more than one Member State at the 
same election. 
Article 5 
If, in order to vote or to stand as candidates, nationals of the 
Member State of residence must have spent a certain minimum period as a 
resident in the electoral territory of that State, Community voters and 
Community nationals entitled to stand as candidates shall be deemed to have 
fulfilled that condition where they have resided for an equivalent period in 
other Member States. This provision shall apply without prejudice to any 
specific conditions as to length of residence in a given constituency or 
locality. 
Article 6 
1. Any citizen of the Union who resides in a Member State of which he is 
not a national and who, through a criminal law or civil law decision, has 
been deprived of his right to stand as a candidate under either the law of 
the Member State of residence or the law of his home Member State, shall be 
precluded from exercising that right in the Member State of residence in 
elections to the European Parliament. 
2. An application from any citizen of the Union to stand as a candidate in 
elections to the European Parliament in the Member State of residence shall 
be declared inadmissible where that citizen is unable to provide the 
attestation referred to in Article 10(2). 
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Article 7 
1. The Member State of residence may check whether the citizens of the 
Union who have expressed a desire to exercise their right to vote there have 
not been deprived of that right in the home Member State through an 
individual civil law or criminal law decision. 
2. For the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Member State of 
residence may notify the home Member State of the declaration referred to in 
Article 9. To that end, the relevant and normally available information 
from the home Member State shall be provided in good time and in an 
appropriate manner; such information may only include details which are 
strictly necessary for the implementation of this Article and may only be 
used for that purpose. If the information provided invalidates the content 
of the declaration, the Member State of residence shall take the appropriate 
steps to prevent the person concerned from voting. 
3. The home Member State may, in good time and in an appropriate manner, 
submit to the Member State of residence any information necessary for the 
implementation of this Article. 
Article 8 
1. A Community voter shall exercise his right to vote in the Member State 
of residence if he has expressed the wish to do so. 
2. If voting is compulsory in the Member State of residence, Community 
voters who have expressed the wish to do so shall be obliged to vote. 
Chapter II: Exercise of the right to vote and the right 
to stand as a candidate 
Article 9 
1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to enable a Community 
voter who has expressed the wish for such to be entered on the electoral 
roll sufficiently in advance of polling day. 
2. In order to have his name entered on the electoral roll, a Community 
voter shall produce the same documents as a voter who is a national. He 
shall also produce a formal declaration stating: 
(a) his nationality and his address in the electoral territory of the 
Member State of residence, 
(b) where applicable, the locality or constituency in his home Member State 
on the electoral roll of which his name was last entered, and 
(c) that he will exercise his right to vote in the Member State of residence 
only. 
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3. The Member State of residence may also require a Community voter to: 
(a) state in his declaration under paragraph 2 that he has not been deprived 
of the right to vote in his home Member State, 
(b) produce a valid identity document, and 
(c) indicate the date from which he has been resident in that State or in 
another Member State. 
4. Community voters who have been entered on the electoral roll shall 
remain thereon, under the same conditions as voters who are nationals, until 
such time as they request to be removed or until such time as they are 
removed automatically because they no longer satisfy the requirements for 
exercising the right to vote. 
Article 10 
1. When he submits his application to stand as a candidate, a Community 
national shall produce the same supporting documents as a candidate who is a 
national. He shall also produce a formal declaration stating: 
(a) his nationality and his address in the electoral territory of the 
Member State of residence, 
(b) that he is not standing as a candidate for election to the European 
Parliament in any other Member State, and 
(c) where applicable, the locality or constituency in his home Member State 
on the electoral roll of which his name was last entered. 
2. When he submits his application to stand as a candidate a Community 
national must also produce an attestation from the competent administrative 
authorities of his home Member State certifying that he has not been 
deprived of the right to stand as a candidate in that Member State or that 
no such disqualification is known to those authorities. 
3. The Member State of residence may also require a Community national 
entitled to stand as a candidate to produce a valid identity document. It 
may also require him to indicate the date from which he has been a national 
of a Member State. 
Article 11 
1. The Member State of residence shall inform the person concerned of the 
action taken on his application for entry on the electoral roll or of the 
decision concerning the admissibility of his application to stand as a 
candidate. 
2. Should a person be refused entry on the electoral roll or his 
application to stand as a candidate be rejected, the person concerned shall 
be entitled to legal remedies on the same terms as the legislation of the 
Member State of residence prescribes for voters and persons entitled to 
stand as candidates who are its nationals. 
Article 12 
The Member State of residence shall inform Community voters and Community 
nationals entitled to stand as candidates in good time and in an appropriate 
manner of the conditions and detailed arrangements for the exercise of the 
right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections in that State. 
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Article 13 
Member States shall exchange the information required for the implementation 
of Article 4. To that end, the Member State of residence shall, on the 
basis of the formal declaration referred to in Articles 9 and 10, supply the 
home Member State, sufficiently in advance of polling day, with information 
on the latter State's nationals entered on electoral rolls or standing as 
candidates. The home Member State shall, in accordance with its national 
legislation, take appropriate measures to ensure that its nationals do not 
have a double vote or stand as candidates in two Member States. 
Chapter III: Derogations and transitional provisions 
Article 14 
1. If on 1 January 1993, in a given Member State, the number of citizens of 
the Union of voting age who reside in it but are not nationals of it exceeds 
20% of the total number of citizens of the Union residing there who are of 
voting age, that Member State may, without prejudice to the appropriate 
measures relating to the composition of lists of candidates which it is 
entitled to take, subject to the provisions to be adopted in pursuance of 
Article 138(3) of the Treaty, and by way of derogation from this Directive: 
(a) restrict the right to vote to Community voters who have resided in that 
Member State for a minimum period, which may not exceed five years; 
(b) restrict the right to stand as a candidate to Community nationals 
entitled to stand as candidates who have resided in that Member State 
for a minimum period, which may not exceed ten years. 
These provisions are without prejudice to appropriate mesures which this 
Member State may take with regard to the composition of lists of candidates 
and which are intended in particular to encourage the integration of non-
national citizens of the Union. 
However, Community voters and Community nationals entitled to stand ax 
candidates who, owing to the fact that they have taken up residence outside 
their home Member State or by reason of the duration of such residence, do 
not have the right to vote or to stand as candidates in that home State 
shall not be subject to the conditions as to length of residence set out 
above. 
2. Where, on 1 February 1994, the nationals of a Member State who reside in 
another Member State have also the right to vote for the national parliament 
there and, for that purpose, may be entered on the electoral roll under 
exactly the same conditions as national voters, the latter Member State may, 
by way of derogation, refrain from applying Articles 6 to 13 of this 
Directive in respect of such nationals. 
3. By 31 December 1997 and thereafter 18 months prior to each election to 
the European Parliament, the Commission shall present to the Council and to 
Parliament a report in which it shall check whether the grant to the 
Member States concerned of a derogation pursuant to Article 8b(2) of the 
Treaty is still warranted and shall propose that any necessary adjustments 
be made. 
Member States which invoke derogations under paragraphs 1 and 2 shall 
furnish the Commission with all the necessary background information. 
- 30 -
Article 15 
For the fourth direct elections to the European Parliament, the following 
special provisions shall apply: 
1. Citizens of the Union who, on 15 February 1994, already have the right 
to vote in the Member State of residence and whose names appear on the 
electoral roll in the Member State of residence shall not be subject to the 
formalities laid down in Article 9. 
2. Member States in which the electoral rolls have been finalized before 
15 February 1994 shall take the steps necessary to enable Community voters 
who wish to exercise their right to vote there to enter their names on the 
electoral roll sufficiently in advance of polling day. 
3. Member States which do not draw up specific electoral rolls but indicate 
eligibility to vote in the population register and where voting is not 
compulsory may also apply this system to Community voters who appear on that 
register and who, having been informed individually of their rights, have 
not expressed a wish to exercise their right to vote in their home 
Member State. They shall forward to the home Member State the document 
showing the intention expressed by those voters to vote in the Member State 
of residence. 
4. Member States in which the internal procedure for the nomination of 
candidates for political parties and groups is governed by law may provide 
that any such procedures which, in accordance with that law, were opened 
before 1 February 1994 and the decisions taken within that framework shall 
remain valid. 
Chapter VI: Final provisions 
Article 16 
The Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and the 
Council by 31 December 1995 on the application of the provisions of this 
Directive to the June 1994 elections to the European Parliament. On that 
basis the Council, acting unanimously on a proposal from the Commission and 
after consulting the European Parliament, may adopt provisions amending this 
Directive. 
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Article 17 
Member States shall adopt the laws, regulations and administrative 
provisions necessary to comply with this Directive no later than 
1 February 1994. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof. 
When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to 
this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of 
their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be 
laid down by Member States. 
Article 18 
This Directive is addressed to the Member States. 
ISSN 0254-1475 
COM (93) 534 final 
DOCUMENTS 
EN 06 
Catalogue number : CB-CO-93-572-EN-C 
ISBN 92-77-60278-3 
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities 
L-2985 Luxembourg