South Africans living abroad will be able to cast their votes on April 15, the Independent Electorate Commission (IEC) said on Monday.

In a statement, the IEC's chief electoral officer Advocate Pansy
Tlakula said South Africans abroad who qualify to vote will be able to cast their ballot at the country's missions abroad.

South Africans who will be temporarily abroad on election day, April 22, either on holiday, a business trip or studying abroad, must inform the IEC of their intention to vote.

They also need to do so if they wanted to cast special votes on April 20 or 21 at their voting districts before leaving the country.

"This they do by completing a VEC 10 form, which is available on the IEC website, and deliver the completed form to the IEC not later than midnight on February 27, 2009," said the commission.

Tlakula said that only certain categories of voters qualified to cast special votes.

The IEC said that election officials or members of security forces performing election duty and South Africans who were abroad during the election period, who had indicated their intention to vote prior to leaving, could apply and vote on April 20 and 21 between 9am and 5pm.

This was to be done at the presiding officer of the voting district where they have registered.

President Kgalema Motlanthe proclaimed the elections on February 12 and the election timetable was published in the Government Gazette on February 16.

"After the promulgation of the date for the elections on February 12, 2009, the Commission approved an election timetable, which outlines the electoral processes until election day," she said.

The timetable gives time frames for among other things special votes.

South African citizens who have registered to vote and whose names appear on the voter's roll qualify for special votes if they are pregnant, not in the country because they are working for government abroad, or an election official.

Special votes are also available to people who are temporarily abroad while on holiday, on a business trip, attending a tertiary institution or participating in international sports events.

This does not apply to all South Africans who are overseas, as the
Constitutional Court will only pronounce in March on a Pretoria High Court ruling that registered voters abroad should be given the right to vote.

According to the IEC, people who were pregnant or disabled could apply to their municipal electoral officer of the voting district where they are registered between April 1 and 14, from 9am to 5pm, to qualify for voting.

This is also the case if they were to be hospitalised in a different city.

"IEC officials will then visit such voters on April 20 and 21, 2009 at the place indicated on their application to enable them to cast their votes."

Voters who cast their ballots in South Africa will need to produce their green, bar-coded ID book or a valid temporary ID certificate.

South Africans voting at a mission abroad will be asked for their identity document and passport.