2. When should my ballot arrive?

States must start sending out overseas ballots 45 days before an upcoming federal election to anyone with a ballot request on file. Most US general elections are held the first week of November, which means overseas ballots will start going out the third week of September. 

If you send in your ballot request form (the Federal Post Card Application, or FPCA) after ballots have starting going out, then your state must send out your ballot within a few days of approving your FPCA form.

When it's time for ballots to arrive, be sure to check your email inboxes carefully. Ballots are not always clearly marked and can end up in secondary inboxes or your spam folder. 

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