https://crsreports.congress.gov
Updated April 11, 2025
Absentee Voting for Uniformed Services and Overseas Citizens:
Roles and Process, In Brief
Members of the military, their families, and overseas U.S.
citizens face unique voting challenges. These can include
delays in receiving or transmitting balloting materials;
uncertainty about voter eligibility; and varying state,
territorial, and local requirements. This CRS In Focus
provides congressional readers with an overview of the
federal statute designed to aid these voters, and their typical
registration and voting process. It does not contain legal
analysis and is not intended to provide guidance to
individual voters.
Overview of the Current Statute
The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act
(UOCAVA; 52 U.S.C. §§20301-20311) is the only federal
statute devoted specifically to voting access for members of
the military and other uniformed services, and other
overseas citizens. (Other federal elections and voting
statutes not covered in this CRS product also could have
implications for these voters.) Congress enacted UOCAVA
in 1986 and most recently substantially amended the statute
in 2009, through provisions in the FY2010 National
Defense Authorization Act (NDAA; P.L. 111-84). The
2009 language (Title V, Subtitle H of the NDAA) was titled
the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE)
Act.
UOCAVA is designed to make it easier for uniformed
servicemembers and overseas citizens to register and vote
in federal elections, provided that they are otherwise
qualified to do so. Perhaps most notably, UOCAVA
requires states and some other jurisdictions (discussed
below) to permit covered voters to register to vote absentee,
and requires the federal government to expedite
transmission of completed ballots.
Federal Responsibilities
Highlights of current federal government UOCAVA
responsibilities include the following.
• A 1988 executive order designates the Secretary of
Defense to administer UOCAVA. Currently, daily
responsibility for doing so rests with the Federal Voting
Assistance Program (FVAP) and that office’s Director.
FVAP administers military and civilian aspects of the
statute.
• UOCAVA requires the FVAP Director to coordinate
with the U.S. Postal Service to develop procedures to
“expedite” delivery of delivery of completed ballots in
time for those ballots to be counted, provided that they
are received for transmission at least seven days before
the election. Referencing postal law (39 U.S.C. §3406),
UOCAVA requires balloting materials to be transmitted
postage-free. Voters may be responsible for covering the
cost of foreign postage or a commercial carrier, if
applicable.
• The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) may enforce
compliance with UOCAVA through litigation.
• FVAP prescribes the Federal Post Card Application
(FPCA) and Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB),
discussed below.
• FVAP consults with and educates state, territorial, and
local election officials about their obligations under the
act, and provides information to covered voters.
State Responsibilities
Highlights of current state government UOCAVA
responsibilities include the following, assuming that voters
are eligible to register and cast ballots. Exemptions can
apply in specific circumstances.
• States must permit UOCAVA voters to vote and use
absentee registration procedures in federal elections.
• States must accept and process voter registration and
absentee ballot applications, if the voter makes a valid
request at least 30 days before the election.
• States must transmit absentee ballots to UOCAVA
voters no later than 45 days before a federal election, if
the voter makes a valid request that is received at least
45 days before the election.
• States must transmit absentee ballots per state law, if the
voter makes a valid request less than 45 days before a
federal election, and, “if practical,” at state discretion,
“in a manner that expedites the transmission.”
• States must establish procedures for transmitting ballots
by mail and electronically, and must provide UOCAVA
voters with an option to designate a preferred
transmission method. States must send blank ballots
electronically (or make them available online) at the
voter’s request.
• Because UOCAVA voters may print election materials
themselves, states may not reject otherwise validly
completed Federal Write-In Absentee Ballots solely
because they do not comport with a state’s requirements
for envelopes, paper weight, or notarization.
Voters the Statute Covers
UOCAVA covers two groups of citizens: one that is
primarily members of the military and the other that is
primarily private citizens. The statute classifies these as (1)
absent uniformed services voters and certain dependents;
