You may be able to fax your completed absentee ballot from abroad if your state permits it for your voter category and circumstances. Before choosing a fax service, check your election office’s current instructions, required documents and receipt deadline.
- Check whether your state permits completed-ballot return by fax for your circumstances.
- Confirm the required signatures, accompanying forms, destination number and receipt deadline.
- Fax.Plus supports sending without a subscription. If you need purchased credit, the minimum manual top-up is $10.
- Save your transmission report, then check your ballot’s official status. Successful fax transmission does not establish that your ballot was accepted or counted.
Receiving a blank ballot by fax or email does not automatically mean you can return your completed ballot the same way. Use the state guides below to check the procedure that applies to you, then prepare and send your documents using the steps in this guide.
Check your state's ballot return options
Use the selector to find the key conditions, required documents and official instructions for your state. Then open the detailed state guide for the full procedure.
If your election office offers email or an official online return system for your circumstances, consider those options too. You may not need a fax service to complete the process.
First, separate three different voting steps
Election instructions may mention fax at three stages:
- Requesting a ballot: submitting a registration or absentee-ballot application.
- Receiving a blank ballot: having the election office deliver your unmarked voting materials.
- Returning a voted ballot: sending your completed ballot and required documents back.
Permission to use fax at one stage does not establish permission at another.
The Federal Post Card Application, or FPCA, is used to register and request an absentee ballot. The Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot, or FWAB, is a backup ballot with its own instructions. Neither should be confused with the regular ballot your election office sends you.
Start with the official FVAP voting guide for your state, then check your state election authority and local election office. Confirm which instructions apply to your voter category, current location and election.
Check your packet, recipient and deadline
Once you have identified the applicable state procedure, make three checks before uploading your documents.
Include every required page and signature
Use the ballot and forms supplied by your election office. Depending on the jurisdiction, you may need a signed declaration, affidavit, certificate or confidentiality waiver.
In the California ballot guide, for example, the signed return-envelope declaration and the Oath of Voter are separate requirements. A generic fax cover sheet cannot replace either document.
Follow the office’s signature instructions. A fax tool’s ability to add an electronic signature does not establish that the election office accepts that signature method.
Verify the number for voted-ballot return
Check the fax number on your current packet against the election office’s official instructions.
A number used for registration or ballot applications may serve a different purpose. California’s official county contact table distinguishes application and ballot-delivery routes from voted-ballot return.
Send directly to the designated election office. FVAP’s email-to-fax forwarding service ended on August 1, 2025. Older instructions directing materials to its former forwarding address are obsolete. See the official service-termination notice.
Confirm the receipt deadline and time zone
A fax-return deadline may require the election office to receive your materials by a particular time.
Starting an upload or pressing Send before that time is not enough. Allow time for transmission, a busy destination and any follow-up. Do not apply a postal grace period to a fax deadline or assume the deadline uses your current local time.
Check whether another step remains after faxing, such as mailing original documents. The New Jersey ballot guide covers one procedure with an additional mailing step. Follow the guide for your own state and your election office’s instructions.
Prepare readable files
Open the final version of every document before sending. Check that:
- All ballot pages and required forms are included.
- Completed fields, checkboxes and signatures are visible.
- Pages are upright and fully captured.
- No edges are cropped or obscured by shadows.
- The files follow the order required by your election office.
For a filled PDF, prepare a fixed printable copy so completed fields and annotations remain part of the page. Reopen the saved transmission copy and follow the Fax.Plus PDF preparation guidance.
Keep a copy of the final packet. Do not split it to fit a service’s free allowance or file limit without checking the election office’s instructions.
Send an eligible ballot without a subscription
Once you have confirmed that fax return is permitted, you can use the Fax.Plus web or mobile app to send your prepared documents.
Check your available pages and payment first
Fax.Plus Free provides a one-time allowance of 10 sending pages after mobile-number verification. Those pages do not renew monthly.
Verification can matter when you are abroad: the country associated with your IP address must match your phone number’s country code to receive the verification code. An email-verified Free account can still send using purchased credit without completing mobile verification. See the free-page verification requirements.
If you need credit, you can remain on Free and make a manual top-up without a subscription. The minimum purchase is $10, and unused credit does not expire. That initial payment is different from the credit consumed by one transmission. The pay-as-you-go terms explain the option.
Do not assume that an eight-page packet will necessarily use eight billable pages or qualify for a free transmission. Destination and connection duration affect usage, and connected failed attempts can also consume allowance or credit. Check the rate for your recipient’s fax number. Some high-rate destinations require a paid plan.
The Free plan permits a maximum of 30 pages and 30 MB combined per fax. Include every required form and cover page when checking your packet size.
Upload, review and send
- Sign in to Fax.Plus and open Send Fax.
- Enter the verified ballot-return fax number, including its country and area codes. A U.S. destination number starts with +1.
- Attach your completed ballot packet.
- Arrange the files in the order required by the election office.
- Review the recipient and attachments, then select Send.
- Wait for the final transmission result. A packet still preparing or sending has not completed transmission.
For device-specific instructions, see how to fax online. This workflow uses the web or mobile app; Email to Fax is not included on Free.
Save the transmission report and check your ballot’s status
After sending, open the fax in Sent and save its confirmation report. It records the transmission result, destination, time and page count. The fax confirmation guide explains that record.
Successful transmission does not mean your ballot was accepted or counted. It does not establish eligibility, correct signatures, a complete packet or compliance with an additional mailing requirement.
Use your state’s official ballot tracker or contact your election office through its official channels.
If a transmission fails, is incomplete or cannot be located by the office, keep the report and ask how to proceed while time remains. Check the result before sending again. Repeated attempts cannot guarantee delivery before the deadline and may consume additional credit.
When your instructions, documents and destination are confirmed, create a Fax.Plus account or sign in to send your prepared packet.
FAQs
Do I need my own fax number to receive my blank ballot?
If your election office provides the blank ballot by email or download, you do not need a Fax.Plus receiving number for that delivery. Receiving the blank ballot by fax is a separate requirement: Fax.Plus Free supports sending, while receiving requires a paid plan with a fax number. Confirm how the office will deliver your materials before purchasing receiving service.
What if my regular ballot arrives after I have already returned a FWAB?
FVAP instructs voters to complete and return their regular absentee ballot even if they have already submitted the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot. Only one ballot will be counted. Follow your state’s instructions and applicable deadlines for returning the regular ballot. This guidance concerns the official backup-ballot process, not sending duplicate copies of the same ballot. FVAP guidance.
Which state’s rules should I check if I have moved between countries?
For overseas civilian voters, voting residence is generally the U.S. address where you were last domiciled immediately before leaving the United States. Moving from one foreign country to another does not, by itself, establish a new U.S. voting residence. Military voters and their families have separate residence guidance. If you are unsure which election office handles your ballot, confirm your voting residence before requesting or returning voting materials. Official voting-residence guidance.
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