Filipinos in UAE can soon vote online for May 2025 elections

Filipino expats in the UAE will be able to vote online for the Philippines' upcoming midterm elections, it was announced on Wednesday.

This means the community no longer have to wait in queues to cast their ballots during the polls that will be held in 2025.

The Philippine Consulate-General in Dubai on Wednesday shared the Comelec guidelines for the new online voting voting system, which will be used for the first time next year.

The official election day is May 12, 2025, but for Filipinos across the globe — including the UAE — overseas absentee voting will run for 30 days from April 13 to May 12, 2025.

The Philippines is set to elect 12 senators and members of the House of Representatives, in addition to thousands of local officials, during the polls.

Overseas voters, however, will cast their ballots only for senators and party-list representatives.

How to vote online

To be able to use the new Online Voting and Counting System (OVCS), eligible voters have to sign up first.

Pre-enrolment on the Comelec's voting portal begins on February 27, 2025.

Voting can be done on mobile phone, tablet, laptop or desktop, and on any web browser. In case of any issues, ballots can still be cast physically at the embassy in Abu Dhabi or the consulate-general in Dubai, where OVCS kiosks will be set up.