A French citizen living on the Costa keeps the vote in presidential, legislative and European elections and in referendums for as long as they live abroad. The one condition is being on the liste électorale consulaire — consular electoral list of the consulate that covers your address, which for Málaga province is the Consulate General of France in Seville.
The date to write down is 12 March 2027. The presidential first round is on 18 April 2027, and the law closes consular-list registration on the sixth Friday before the first round. Recent arrivals are the ones to check: still on a commune list back in France, or on no list at all.
Last verified: 28 September 2026.
Who can vote from Spain
No time limit. You are French, 18 or over on polling day, you hold your civil and political rights, and you are on the consular electoral list.
You sit on one electoral list at a time. Joining the consular list automatically removes you from your commune list in France. A French national on the Registre des Français établis hors de France — register of French citizens abroad who turns 18 before polling day is added to the consular list without applying.
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Which elections you can vote in from here
From the consular list you vote in the presidential election, both rounds; legislative elections, for one of the eleven deputies for French citizens abroad (Spain sits in the fifth of those constituencies); European Parliament elections, on the French lists; national referendums; and elections of the conseillers des Français de l’étranger — councillors for French citizens abroad, next due in 2032.
What it does not give you: municipal, departmental and regional elections. Those need a commune list, and Service-Public page F16904 lists the communes that will take a citizen living abroad (the commune of birth, the last home address, one where you have paid local taxes for two years, among others). A commune list replaces the consular one, so it is a choice.
One European-election trap. If you are on Spain’s electoral census for European elections, that registration wins: you vote for Spanish MEPs. To vote for the French lists from Spain, you first ask to be removed from the Spanish census, then join the consular list.
Registering on the consular list
You register once. Online, through the consular register on service-public.fr: if you are already on the Registre des Français établis hors de France, you add, check or change your electoral registration there directly. Or in person at the consulate, with proof of identity, proof that you live in the consular district and form cerfa 12669, completed and signed.
For the Costa del Sol the consulate is the Consulate General of France in Seville, Avenida Cardenal Bueno Monreal 56, 41013 Seville. Its district covers all eight provinces of Andalucía, including Málaga, plus Extremadura and Murcia. The “Vérifier votre inscription électorale” service on service-public.fr then shows your list and your polling station. Keep your email address and mobile number current on the register: internet voting in legislative elections runs on those two details.
The cut-off: 12 March 2027
Service-Public page F35050 states the rule: to vote in a given election you register no later than the sixth Friday before the first round. Counting back from Sunday 18 April 2027 gives Friday 12 March 2027. That date is worked out from the rule, since no 2027 calendar has been published, so watch for the consulate’s notice.
A few narrow cases (a move for work after the cut-off, a public servant retiring abroad, very recent French nationality, voting rights recently restored) get until the tenth day before the first round, in person at the consulate with proof.
How you vote from the Costa
Presidential election. Two ways only: in person at the polling station the consulate opens, with proof of identity, or by proxy. No post, no internet. A convocation letter arrives by email or post a few weeks before the vote with the address of your polling station. Where the Andalucía stations will be in April 2027 is not yet published, so allow for a drive.
Legislative elections. Internet, post, in person at the consular station, or proxy. The internet option needs a valid email address (for your login) and mobile number (for the SMS password) on your consular record.
Proxy. Start it at maprocuration.gouv.fr and have it validated at the consulate, or fill in the cerfa form at the consulate. The person voting for you can be on any list; what they have to do is turn up at your polling station on the day. One person can hold up to three proxies when at least one comes from a consular list. The embassy’s advice is to set it up as soon as the election date is fixed.
Dates that matter
- 12 March 2027: last day on the consular list for the presidential election (sixth Friday before the first round, computed from F35050).
- 18 April 2027: presidential first round. 2 May 2027: second round.
- March 2028: departmental and regional elections, commune list only.
- 2029: legislative elections, unless the Assembly is dissolved earlier, and European elections.
- 2032: municipal elections (commune list only) and the next councillors’ election.
What this does not cover
Voting in Spain. As an EU citizen resident here you can register for Spanish municipal elections, and you can choose Spanish rather than French MEPs, one or the other. Spanish regional and general elections stay closed to non-Spaniards. See How to Register to Vote in Spanish Municipal Elections as a Foreign Resident and Can Foreigners Vote in Elections in Spain?
Polling station addresses for 2027 are not published, and 12 March is computed from the legal rule rather than announced. Dual nationality and civic-rights questions are matters for the Seville consulate.
The five-minute version
- No time limit: a French citizen abroad votes in presidential, legislative and European elections and referendums from the consular list.
- Register once, online via the register of French citizens abroad on service-public.fr, or at the Consulate General in Seville with ID, proof of address and cerfa 12669.
- Deadline for the 2027 presidential election: 12 March 2027, the sixth Friday before the 18 April first round.
- Presidential vote: at the consular polling station or by proxy, nothing else. Legislative: internet, post, in person or proxy.
- Municipal, departmental and regional elections in France need a commune list, which replaces the consular one.
Related guides
- Can You Still Vote in Your Home Country While Living in Spain?
- How to Register to Vote in Spanish Municipal Elections as a Foreign Resident
- Can Foreigners Vote in Elections in Spain?
- Spain Election Calendar for Foreign Residents
General information, not legal advice, current as of 28 September 2026. Primary sources: Service-Public (pages F16904, F35050 and F1940), La France en Espagne (Voter à l’étranger; Consulat général de France à Séville), France Diplomatie (vote à l’urne, vote par internet, procuration de vote).
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