To be able to vote at Council elections, a person must be entitled to be included on Council's voters' roll on the 'entitlement date' which is 57 days before election day.  A person may only be enrolled once on Geelong's voters' rolls. The roll comprises a number of different types of voters, as outlined below.

Enrolment as Resident
Everyone enrolled to vote in State and Federal elections (mainly Australian citizens aged 18 years or over who have lived at their current address for at least one month) is automatically enrolled to vote in Council elections. Voting is compulsory for these people, except for those aged 70 years or over.

To update an enrolment for your current address, pick up an enrolment form from any post office, phone the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) on
13 18 32, or download a form from the VEC website via the link below:
www.vec.vic.gov.au/enrolmentlg.html

Enrolment as Ratepayer
The following people are also eligible to be enrolled for Council elections, provided they are not already enrolled as a State or Federal elector for a property in the City of Greater Geelong:

• Non-resident owners
  Owners of property who are listed on Council's rate records as not living at their property, will automatically be included on the voters' roll. Voting is not compulsory in Council elections. Up to two owners in this category can be enrolled per property.
   
• Other owners
  Those who don't fit into either of the above categories, e.g. are not an Australian citizen, but own a property in Geelong City and are aged 18 years or over, can apply to be enrolled on the voters' roll. Up to two owners per property may apply.
   
• Occupiers
  Up to two occupiers of a property may apply to be enrolled in place of the owners if they pay the rates and with the agreement of the owners, unless the Council rate notice is addressed directly to the occupiers.
   
  Council encourages occupiers of shops and commercial and industrial properties to be enrolled (provided the above paragraph applies) and have their say in Council's electoral representation.
   
• Corporation nominees
  A corporation owning or occupying a property in the City and which pays the rates, may appoint either a director or company secretary to represent it on the voters' roll. The person it appoints cannot be otherwise eligible to vote in the municipality.
   
  People wanting to find out if they are enrolled under these extra categories, or require an enrolment form to be sent out, should contact the Service Centre on 5227 0270.
   
• Silent voters
  A person may apply to have his or her address not shown on the voters' roll. Contact Council for further details.

One vote only
A person can only be enrolled once in the municipality, even if the person has entitlements in more than one Ward.

If a person is on the state electoral roll for an address in the municipality he or she will only be enrolled for that address, irrespective of any other entitlement.

If a person owns more than one property he or she can only be enrolled for one of those properties - usually the one with the highest capital improved value.

A person can not apply for enrolment as an occupier or a corporation representative if he or she is enrolled as a resident or as an owner.