(1) All eligible voters must be entered in the electoral register ex officio if they are registered with the residents’ registration offices on the forty-second day before the election (qualifying date)
1. in respect of an abode,
2. in respect of a seagoing vessel which is eligible to fly the German flag (section 12 subsection (4) number 1 of the Federal Elections Act) and on which the eligible voters are employed or hired to serve or undergoing training as a captain or crew member,
3. in respect of an inland waterway vessel that is registered on a shipping register in the Federal Republic of Germany (section 12 subsection (4) number 2 of the Federal Elections Act),
4. in respect of a prison or similar facility (section 12 subsection (4) number 3 of the Federal Elections Act).
(2) In the electoral register must be listed, upon application, those persons eligible to vote
a) (repealed)
b) who, without having an abode, are otherwise habitually resident in the electoral area,
c) who are in a prison or similar facility and do not have to be entered in the electoral register ex officio as per subsection (1) number 4,
(3) If a person eligible to vote who is listed in the electoral register as per subsection (1) changes abode and registers with the registration office of the new place of residence prior to the beginning of the period during which the electoral register may be inspected (section 17 subsection (1), second sentence, of the Federal Elections Act), the eligible voter will be entered in the electoral register of the municipality to which he or she has moved upon application only. An eligible voter listed in the electoral register as per subsection (1) who registers a new address within the same municipality remains on the electoral register of the polling district in which he or she was registered on the qualifying date. The eligible voter must be advised of the provisions of the first and second sentences when registering.
If the entry in the electoral register is made upon application, the municipal authority of the new place of residence reports this without delay to the municipal authority of the former place of residence, which removes the eligible voter from its electoral register. If, in the case specified in the first sentence, the municipal authority of the former place of residence has received or subsequently receives a notice of disqualification from voting, it reports this information without delay to the municipal authority of the new place of residence, which removes the person from its electoral register; the person concerned must be notified of their removal from the register.
(4) Subsection (3), first and third sentences, apply accordingly to eligible voters who are not registered in respect of an abode on the qualifying date, but register with the residents’ registration office in respect of an abode prior to the electoral register inspection period.
(5) If a person eligible to vote who is listed in the electoral register as per subsection (1) moves into an additional abode in a different municipality, which becomes his or her main residence, or moves his or her main residence to another municipality, subsection (3) applies accordingly if he or she registers with the registration office prior to the electoral register inspection period.
(6) Section 21 subsection (2) of the Federal Act on Registration determines which is the main residence of an eligible voter with multiple abodes.
(7) Before a person is entered in the electoral register, it must be verified that he or she meets the voting requirements laid down in section 12 of the Federal Elections Act and that he or she is not disqualified from voting pursuant to section 13 of the Federal Elections Act. In cases where this is required for checking a returning person’s eligibility to vote as per section 12 subsection (2), third sentence, of the Federal Elections Act, the municipal authority may demand an affirmation in lieu of an oath as evidence of the returning person’s eligibility to vote in accordance with section 18 subsection (6), first sentence. If entry in the electoral register is based solely on an application, it must also be ascertained whether the application was submitted within the time limit and in the prescribed manner.
(8) If a municipal authority does not approve an application for entry in the electoral register or removes a person from the register, it must notify the person concerned without
(9) The municipal authority must advise, not later than the qualifying date, the management of any prison or similar facility within the municipality of the provisions of subsection (2) number 1 letter (c) and of the need to notify the persons concerned if registration of the inmates of such facilities is not required pursuant to section 27 subsection (4) of the Federal Act on Registration.
