How to use the FWAB backup ballot when voting from abroad

Federal law requires states to send absentee ballots to military and overseas voters at least 45 days before a federal election, which for November 3, 2026 was September 19. If yours has not arrived, waiting for it is the mistake. The Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB) is a blank federal backup you can send now, and if the real ballot turns up later you can still return that too.

Check that your state lets you use the FWAB

Open the FWAB form (Standard Form 186, revised 08-2026). It is for active duty members of the Uniformed Services or Merchant Marine, their eligible spouses and dependents, and US citizens living outside the country. Read the first box on page one. As of October 2026, these states and territories count it only if you already registered and requested a ballot: AL, AS, AR, CT, FL, GU, ID, IL, IN, KS, LA, NH, NJ, NM, NY, PA, PR, RI, SD, TX, WI, WV, and WY. If yours is listed and you never sent a request, send the Federal Post Card Application (Standard Form 76) today as well.

Fill in the Voter Information page

Pick your voter category in section 1 and give your state driver license or ID number, or the last four digits of your Social Security number. In section 2, write your US voting residence: for military voters usually the last address in your state of legal residence, for overseas citizens usually the last place you lived before moving abroad. No PO box. Section 3 is where you are now.

In section 6, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Virginia want your full Social Security number. Alabama requires two witness signatures; Alaska, Virginia, and Wisconsin require one. Vermont voters write the voter's oath sentence printed in the instructions, and Puerto Rico voters list their parents' first names. Sign and date section 7.

Write in your choices on the Official Backup Ballot

For each federal office, write the name of the candidate or the party you choose. State rules vary on whether state and local contests count on the FWAB, so check with your election office before relying on it for those. Do not sign the ballot or write your name or any ID number on it.

Seal the ballot and send both pages

Fold the ballot and seal it in its own envelope; if you printed the form, mark that envelope "ballot enclosed." Put it and the Voter Information page in the mailing envelope addressed to your local election office, which you can find through the usa.gov election office directory. Every state accepts the FWAB by mail and many take it by email or fax. The official envelope needs no postage in US mail, APO, FPO, DPO, or diplomatic pouch; foreign mail needs international airmail postage.

If your state ballot arrives afterward. Fill it in and return it as well, noting that you already sent a FWAB. The election office counts only one.

If you want ballots for future elections. Tick yes in section 5 of the Voter Information page. Some states treat the FWAB as a registration and ballot request; the form recommends sending a new FPCA every year you live abroad.

Sources. Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot, SF 186, Federal Post Card Application, SF 76, EAC voting from another country, usa.gov absentee voting, usa.gov state and local election offices.