by Katalin Pearman, Hon. Consul
Hungarian Parliamentary Elections – April 3, 2022
Information to voters residing beyond the borders of Hungary
According to the provisions of Hungary’s Fundamental Law (Constitution), Hungarian citizens of legal age living within or beyond the borders of Hungary may cast their votes in parliamentary elections, thereby shaping together the future of Hungary and the Hungarian nation.
Registration of voters who do not have a residence in Hungary
In Parliamentary elections, voters who do not have a domicile or registered residence in Hungary may cast their vote on a party list and stand as a candidate for election. The right to vote will also be guaranteed in national referendums. From 2019, Hungarian citizens who do not have a registered residence in Hungary or another EU Member State will also be able to vote in European Parliament elections.
However, these voters can only exercise their right to vote when the National Election Office has entered them in the electoral register. You can apply to be entered in the electoral register at any time. It must be received by the National Electoral Office no later than 25 days before the day of the elections. If you miss this deadline, you may only vote in the next parliamentary elections or national referendum if . . .
– you have a Hungarian personal identification number (found on your address card) OR a valid ID card, valid passport or valid driving license to prove your Hungarian citizenship,
– you have a domicile abroad and do not have a place of residence or registered domicile in Hungary (if you do, you are
– automatically considered a voter who lives in Hungary),
– you are over 17, or 16 and married, and the marriage is registered in Hungary,
– the Hungarian court has not deprived you of your right to vote.
Your request can be filed here on-line or can be downloaded as a pdf here for personal or postal submission.
The form is also available at Hungarian diplomatic missions and consular posts abroad (note: NOT at the Honorary Consulate – it has to be at the Los Angeles Consulate General or any other Hungarian Consulate General in the US).
It is important that you fill in the application form carefully with the personal data on your address card, identity card, passport or driving license. (If you did not receive an address card after the simplified Hungarian naturalization, you can contact the embassy/consulate.)
You will be notified if your enrollment is successful or rejected. Notification will be sent to the e-mail, fax or postal address you provide in section 7 of the application form. To receive a successful notification, you must complete all address fields.
Out-of-country voters can cast their vote by post. Your ballot paper will be sent by our Office to the address you provide in point 6 of the application form, in the part “szavazólap átvétele.” You must provide an address where delivery is guaranteed.
If you do not wish to receive your ballot paper by post, you can collect it in person at one of the representations or Hungarian municipalities listed on the next page. In this case, leave out box 6A and fill in box 6B.
The application form can be completed online at www.valasztas.hu or on a form printed from the website and sent by post to the National Election Office:
Nemzeti Választási Iroda
1397 Budapest, Pf.: 547
Hungary
You will be enlisted in the electoral register for 10 years. During this period, you can vote in parliamentary elections, national referendums and elections to the European Parliament (in the latter case, only if you are resident outside the European Union).
After 10 years, you will be removed from the electoral register. The counting period will restart if you apply for an extension of your registration, if you modify your data or if you cast a vote. You can still request to be removed from the electoral roll at any time.
[Source: National Election Office Home – Nemzeti Választási Iroda (valasztas.hu)]
New U.S. visa requirement for Hungarian citizens born outside Hungary
According to the decision of the U.S. authorities, the U.S. authorities will only allow visa-free travel (only requiring an ESTA electronic travel authorization) for Hungarian citizens born in the current territory of Hungary.
If Hungarian citizens born outside the current borders of the Hungary want to travel to the US, they would have to apply for a visa, even if they have lived in Hungary for years or even decades.
The decision was made several months ago, but it did not apply for while, because due to the coronavirus pandemic, Washington imposed travel restrictions, so citizens of the Schengen countries were not allowed to enter the United States anyway. Since vaccinated Europeans are now allowed in the US, this is now relevant again.
Visa applications must be submitted in person at each country’s local U.S. Embassy. For example, Hungarians living in Romania can only do this at the diplomatic mission in Bucharest. The US Embassy in Budapest can only accept the application by Hungarian citizens who live in Hungary as a way of life and can prove this (e.g. with a residency card).