Filipino expats in the UAE who are not yet registered as overseas voters can apply for registration starting December 1, 2025, to take part in the 2028 Philippine national elections.
The Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi announced via its official Facebook page that overseas voter registration will begin on December 1 and run until September 30, 2027 — a 22-month window for eligible Filipinos abroad to register.
Filipinos abroad who will be at least 18 years old on or before May 8, 2028, are eligible to register as overseas voters and participate in the 2028 Philippine elections to vote for the next president, vice president, 12 senators, and one party-list representative.
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Where to register
Applications for registration/certification can be done at the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi, Philippine Consulate in Dubai, or any designated registration centers in the Philippines.
Requirements
Applicants are advised to bring the following requirements:
• Valid Philippine Passport
• Seafarer’s Record Book (SRB) for seafarers
• For dual citizens: Original or certified true copy of Order of Approval of Filipino Citizenship or Identification Certificate.
Top foreign posts
The Philippine missions in Abu Dhabi and Dubai are among the foreign posts with the highest number of overseas voters. During the last presidential elections in May 2022, Dubai saw a total of 60,393 Filipino expats who cast their votes — it was the highest number of overseas voters among Philippine foreign service posts all over the world since overseas voting began in 2004.
History was also made when internet voting was introduced in the midterm elections this year, which resulted in the elimination of queues at Philippine missions to cast ballots.
As of last count by the Philippine Commission on Elections (Comelec) in December 2024, there are 189,396 registered Filipino voters across the UAE — 123,502 of them are from Dubai and the Northern Emirates, and 65,894 are in Abu Dhabi.
