Registering as a voter and getting a voter ID

Registering as a voter and getting a voter ID
Your name is added to the electoral roll in Telangana, and your voter ID card (EPIC) comes to your home free by speed post.
For whom: Indian citizens who ordinarily live in Telangana: people who are 18 or older, people about to turn 18, and voters who have moved here from another state or another place.
Published on 30-10-2026. Not every fact has been checked against its official source yet: confirm at the office.

For everyone

1.
First check whether your name is already on the electoral roll. A person may be on the roll in one place only.
💻 Online
electoralsearch.eci.gov.in ↗
Not confirmed: This search page works only with JavaScript, and we could not see its screens. ECI's manual says you can search by name and a relative's name, or by EPIC number.
2.
Call 1950 and ask whether a special revision of the Telangana roll is running now, and until when applications are taken.
📞 1950 (election helpline, toll-free)
Not confirmed: ECI's press note 086/2026 of 14 May 2026 ordered a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Telangana: qualifying date 1 October 2026, draft roll 31 July 2026, claims and objections until 30 August 2026. These dates may have changed since; we did not see a revised official schedule. While a revision runs, BLOs visit every house, and the process may differ in some ways.

Only if

How old are you? 17 (not yet 18)
3.
You can apply in advance, before you turn 18, if you will be 18 on one of that year's four qualifying dates (1 January, 1 April, 1 July, 1 October). The ERO keeps your application and decides it in the quarter in which you turn 18, preferably in that quarter's first month; only then is your name added.
✋ You do this yourself
Not confirmed: ECI's manual says advance applications are taken from the day that year's draft roll is published. We did not see "apply at 17" in an official text; the rule is turning 18 on one of that year's qualifying dates. Ask your BLO or 1950 whether your application can be taken now.

Only if

Have you been registered as a voter anywhere before? No, this is my first time · How old are you? 18 or older / 17 (not yet 18) · How will you apply? Online: the Voters' Service Portal or the ECINET app
4.
On the Voters' Service Portal or in the ECINET app, choose "Form 6" (new voter registration). Write your name in Telugu and in English. Upload the photo, proof of age and proof of address, and submit. Note down the reference number you get. Giving your Aadhaar number is your choice; the application is not rejected without it.
💻 Online
voters.eci.gov.in ↗
📎 Passport-size colour photo, Proof of age (date of birth), Proof of address (in your name, or your parent's or spouse's)
Not confirmed: The portal and the app open only with JavaScript, and we could not see their screens. By ECI's manual, online forms let you upload scanned documents and a photo. If you cannot apply online, give a paper form to your BLO.

Only if

Have you been registered as a voter anywhere before? No, this is my first time · How old are you? 18 or older / 17 (not yet 18) · How will you apply? On a paper form, through the BLO or at the ERO's office
5.
Fill in Form 6 in two copies. Paste the photo, and attach copies of the documents signed by you (self-attested). Giving your Aadhaar number is your choice. Give the form to your area's BLO, or at the ERO or AERO office of your constituency, or send it by post. If you do not know your BLO, ask on 1950.
🏛️ The Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) or Assistant ERO office of your Assembly constituency, or your BLO
📎 Passport-size colour photo, Proof of age (date of birth), Proof of address (in your name, or your parent's or spouse's)
💰 Fee: Free · Forms are free at ERO and AERO offices and from BLOs.

Only if

Have you been registered as a voter anywhere before? Yes, at another address (in another state, or elsewhere in Telangana), and I have moved here · How will you apply? Online: the Voters' Service Portal or the ECINET app
6.
On the Voters' Service Portal or in the ECINET app, choose "Form 8" and tick "shifting of residence". Give your EPIC number and the new address where you now live, upload the proof of address, and submit. Note down the reference number.
💻 Online
voters.eci.gov.in ↗
📎 Proof of address (in your name, or your parent's or spouse's)
Not confirmed: The portal and the app open only with JavaScript, and we could not see their screens. By ECI's manual, online forms let you upload scanned documents and a photo. If you cannot apply online, give a paper form to your BLO.

Only if

Have you been registered as a voter anywhere before? Yes, at another address (in another state, or elsewhere in Telangana), and I have moved here · How will you apply? On a paper form, through the BLO or at the ERO's office
7.
Fill in Form 8 and tick "shifting of residence". Give your EPIC number and your new address, and attach a self-attested copy of the proof of address. Hand it in at the ERO office of the constituency where your new address is, or to the BLO there.
🏛️ The ERO office of the constituency of your new address, or the BLO there
📎 Proof of address (in your name, or your parent's or spouse's)
💰 Fee: Free · Forms are free at ERO and AERO offices and from BLOs.

For everyone

8.
The BLO comes to your home to check your details. Be at home yourself if you can; otherwise an adult of the household should be there.
✋ You do this yourself
9.
The ERO puts your application on the notice board for 7 days for objections, then decides. If in doubt, the ERO calls you to a hearing. You are told the decision by post and by SMS.
✋ You do this yourself
10.
If you applied online, check the status on the portal or the app with your reference number. For any application you can also call 1950.
💻 Online
voters.eci.gov.in ↗
Not confirmed: The portal and the app open only with JavaScript, and we could not see their screens. If it does not work there, call 1950.
11.
Once your name is on the roll, the voter ID card (EPIC) comes to your address free by speed post. If you moved, you get a new card with the same EPIC number.
✋ You do this yourself
💰 Fee: Free · The card is free.
⏱️ within 37 days · The card should reach you within 32 to 37 days of the ERO's order (ECI's manual).

Only if

Have you been registered as a voter anywhere before? Yes, at another address (in another state, or elsewhere in Telangana), and I have moved here
12.
When the new card comes, return the old card to the ERO at once.
✋ You do this yourself

For everyone

13.
If you want, download the electronic copy of the card (e-EPIC) from the portal or the app, with your EPIC number or the form's reference number.
💻 Online
voters.eci.gov.in ↗
Not confirmed: The portal and the app open only with JavaScript, and we could not see their screens. If it does not work there, call 1950.

You cannot get this

You must be 18 to be registered. Applying in advance is only for those who will be 18 on one of that year's four qualifying dates (1 January, 1 April, 1 July, 1 October). Before 17 this is usually not possible.
Instead, see:
Come back to this guide when you are 17. If unsure, call 1950 and ask.
Not confirmed: The age of 17 is only our reckoning; the official rule is being 18 on one of that year's qualifying dates.

Documents you need

If you don't have it:
If you do not have a birth certificate, that guide says how to get one.
→ Birth certificate
If you don't have it:
A student living in a hostel or mess can enrol there with a bonafide certificate from the head of the institution, or enrol at the parents' address instead.

If something goes wrong

If it is rejected
You can appeal against the ERO's order to the District Election Officer (DEO) within 15 days: a memo signed by you with a copy of the order, handed in or sent by registered post to arrive in time. Against the appeal decision you can appeal again to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Telangana, within 30 days. Or fix the problem and apply again.
District Election Officer (DEO); then the Chief Electoral Officer, Telangana
ceotelangana.nic.in ↗
Not confirmed: ECI's manual names the appeal authority slightly differently in two places: the District Election Officer (DEO) in one, the District Magistrate or Collector in the other. The website of the Chief Electoral Officer, Telangana (ceotelangana.nic.in) did not open for us on 30 October 2026. Ask at the ERO office or on 1950 where to file the appeal.
If it is late
If the BLO does not come, the decision is late or the card does not arrive, call 1950, or lodge a complaint on the portal or in the ECINET app. You can follow the complaint with its reference number.
1950 (election helpline, toll-free)
📞 1950
Also
If the post brings the card back undelivered, the ERO must have the BLO deliver it to you within 15 days. If the address on the card is wrong, the BLO has you fill in Form 8. Meanwhile you can download the e-EPIC.
1950 (election helpline, toll-free)
📞 1950
If you are asked for more money
The forms and the voter ID card are free. Do not pay anyone who asks for money to get it done; call 1950 and report it.
1950 (election helpline, toll-free)
📞 1950
→ Birth certificate→ Getting lost documents again→ Voter ID: corrections, change of address, new card, removing a name→ Getting a new Aadhaar
Updated on 30-10-2026
Sahayam is not a government service. We take no applications, documents or money.
About Sahayam