The Election Commission (EC) has lifted regional restrictions and time limits on overseas voter registration, which will allow expatriates in all countries to sign up for postal voting ahead of the 13th national election and the upcoming referendum.

EC Secretary Akhtar Ahmed announced on Wednesday that from 12:01 AM on Thursday (November 27), Bangladeshi citizens abroad will be able to register through the Postal Vote BD mobile app from anywhere in the world. Registration will remain open until 11:59 PM on 18 December.

The commission launched the Postal Vote BD app on November 18, and registration began the next day. As of Wednesday evening, 41,334 expatriates had registered across various regions.

The EC’s earlier decision to allocate only five days per region had prompted the opposition BNP to demand an extension. The new decision now allows expatriates in nearly 150 countries to register simultaneously without regional divisions.

“From now on, expatriate voters can complete their registration at their convenience from any corner of the world,” Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said, adding that the deadline of December 18 will remain unchanged.

He acknowledged that some technical issues may occur, including one-time-password (OTP) delivery problems linked to address formats. “Any errors identified will be fixed promptly. Our technical teams will resolve these issues based on experience,” he said.

Mock Voting and Election Preparations
To streamline preparations for both the national election and the referendum, the EC will conduct a mock voting exercise on Saturday from 8 AM to 12 PM at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Government Girls’ High School.

“Based on the mock polling results, we will finalise decisions regarding the number of polling centres, booths, and required manpower,” the secretary said.

The government issued an ordinance on Tuesday to hold the referendum and the general election on the same day. Ahmed noted that the EC had already begun its mental, administrative, and field-level preparations anticipating the referendum’s addition.

EC Meets TikTok Representatives
A delegation from TikTok also met the Chief Election Commissioner and four commissioners on Wednesday. The team was led by Ferdous Mottakin, TikTok’s South Asia Head of Public Policy and Government Relations.

Following the meeting, Mottakin told reporters the platform is committed to preventing misinformation, manipulation, and election-related harmful content.

“We assured the EC that TikTok will not be used in any way to spread misleading or manipulative election content,” he said.

He added that TikTok maintains multilayered safety systems year-round to curb misinformation, disinformation, impersonation, and other harmful content, with heightened vigilance during elections.

“We believe coordinated efforts by the Election Commission, media, and digital platforms are essential to ensure a safe and reliable online environment during the upcoming election,” he said.