Eight Overseas Voter Lawsuits: Where the Cases Stand Before the 2026 Midterms
Eight lawsuits are challenging state rules that let some U.S. citizens born abroad vote in a state they have never personally lived in. These rules generally allow someone to qualify based on where a parent, guardian, spouse, or another close family member previously lived.
As of September 30, 2026, courts have reached trial-level decisions in three of the eight cases. A North Carolina court ruled against the state’s rule. Courts in Michigan and Nebraska rejected the challenges, but both cases are now on appeal, and the Nebraska Supreme Court heard arguments in that appeal on September 30. The other five cases remain unresolved.
There is also a new federal development. In August, the government changed the two main forms used by Americans voting from abroad, the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) and the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB), removing the option specifically for citizens who have never lived in the United States.
These developments affect a fairly specific group of overseas voters. If you lived in the U.S. before moving abroad and vote using your own former U.S. address, the eight lawsuits generally are not about your eligibility.
Who Do the Eight Overseas Voter Lawsuits Affect?
These lawsuits affect a fairly specific group of U.S. citizens abroad: people who were born overseas and have never personally lived in the state where they are trying to vote.
Some states allow these voters to use the last U.S. residence of a parent or legal guardian as their voting address. The exact rules vary by state, and some states do not allow people who have never lived in the U.S. to vote at all.
A U.S. citizen who has never lived in the United States and registers to vote using a parent’s last U.S. address. Roughly half the states allow this expressly, and the practice is long established.
If you lived in the U.S. before moving abroad and are voting using your own former U.S. address, these eight cases generally are not challenging your eligibility. For Americans who previously lived in the U.S., the normal overseas-voting rule is that your voting residence is the state where you last lived before leaving the country, even if you no longer own property or have other ties there.
The cases instead focus on state rules that extend voting rights to some citizens who have never established their own residence in that state. In most states that allow this, the voter uses a parent or legal guardian’s former address to determine where they vote.
That may sound like a small distinction, but it is at the center of all eight lawsuits. The challengers argue that the states’ residency rules do not allow these voters to register there. State officials defending the rules argue that their laws already give these citizens a way to vote.
Where Each State Case Stands, and Whether It Taxes Residents
As of September 30, 2026, courts have ruled in three of the eight cases, but two of those decisions are being appealed.
The results so far are mixed. North Carolina stopped allowing voting under the rule being challenged. Michigan and Nebraska kept their rules in place, although both cases are still going through appeals. The other five states have not reached a final decision.
| State | Where things stand |
|---|---|
| North Carolina | The challenge succeeded. A North Carolina court ruled in June that people who have never lived in the state cannot vote there based only on a parent or guardian’s former North Carolina residence. The state is now following that ruling. |
| Michigan | The challenge was rejected, but the case is being appealed. A Michigan court dismissed the lawsuit in April. The appeal is still active. |
| Nebraska | The challenge was rejected, but the case is being appealed. A Nebraska court ruled in August that the state’s law could remain in place. The Nebraska Supreme Court heard arguments in the appeal on September 30, and has not issued a decision yet. |
| Arizona | The case is still open. A court previously allowed the lawsuit to continue, but we have not found a final ruling. Arizona still lists people who have never lived in the U.S. as eligible in certain circumstances based on a parent’s Arizona registration. |
| Colorado | The case is still open. We have not found a final ruling as of September 30. |
| Nevada | The case is still open. We have not found a final ruling as of September 30. |
| New Jersey | The case is still open. The state has asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, but we have not found a decision on that request yet. |
| Virginia | The case is still open. We have not found a final ruling as of September 30. |
These cases are moving quickly ahead of the November election, so the status could change. We’ll continue updating this page as courts issue new decisions.
What Changed on the FPCA and FWAB in August 2026?
In August, the federal government updated the two main forms used by military members and Americans voting from abroad: the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) and the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB).
The new versions removed the checkbox for a U.S. citizen who has never lived in the United States. The Department of Defense said it made the change because it did not believe that category accurately reflected who is covered by the federal overseas-voting law.
That matters because some states still allow U.S. citizens born abroad to vote based on a parent, guardian, spouse, or another qualifying family connection. For example, current FVAP guidance says Delaware allows someone who has never lived in the U.S. to vote for federal offices if a parent or legal guardian was last domiciled there, while Wyoming does not allow it. FVAP
So the form change does not automatically mean these voters are no longer eligible under state law. It means the current federal forms no longer include a specific checkbox for their situation.
For someone who has never lived in the U.S., the safest next step is to check the rules for the state they plan to vote in and contact the election office if anything is unclear before submitting the FPCA or FWAB.
What are the Lawsuits Actually Arguing?
At the center of these cases is a fairly simple question: Can a state let a U.S. citizen who has never lived there vote based on a parent, spouse, guardian, or another family connection?
The Republican National Committee and the other plaintiffs challenging these laws say no. Their argument is that the state constitutions require voters to have actually been residents of the state, and that a family member’s connection to the state is not enough. In several of the lawsuits, they also argue that allowing people they consider ineligible to vote affects the votes of people who do live in the state.
The states defending these rules disagree. Their arguments vary because the laws are different from state to state, but the basic position is that their existing election laws legally allow these citizens to vote. In Michigan, for example, the state argued that the legislature has the power to define voting residence and specifically created a rule for certain spouses and dependents of overseas voters. In Nebraska, state officials argued that “residence” does not necessarily require someone to have physically lived there and that the state’s law is constitutional.
Some states have also argued that the groups bringing the lawsuits have not shown enough direct harm to challenge the laws in court, or that the challenges came too late. Those issues can determine whether a case moves forward even before a court decides the larger question about who is eligible to vote.
It’s important to note that the rules being challenged come from state law. The federal overseas-voting law does not create one nationwide rule allowing every U.S. citizen who has never lived in the country to choose a state through a parent or other family member. That is why the answer can differ depending on the state.
What Do These Lawsuits Mean for the 2026 Midterms?
For most Americans voting from abroad, these lawsuits do not change the usual process. If you previously lived in the U.S. and are voting using your own former address, you can continue following your state’s normal overseas-voting rules.
The uncertainty is concentrated among people who were born abroad and have never lived in the U.S. For those voters, eligibility depends on the state. Some states still allow them to vote based on a parent, guardian, spouse, or another qualifying family connection, while others do not.
The eight lawsuits could change those rules in the states involved, but so far there is no single nationwide answer:
- North Carolina: The challenged rule is no longer being used. The state says people who have never lived in North Carolina cannot register or vote there solely through that provision.
- Michigan and Nebraska: Their rules remain in place for now, although both cases are being appealed.
- Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Jersey, and Virginia: The lawsuits are still unresolved, so voters should check their state’s current guidance before registering or returning a ballot.
Michigan, for example, currently continues to tell U.S. citizens who have never lived in the country that they may register there if a parent, legal guardian, or spouse last lived in Michigan and they have not registered in another state.
Because these cases are still moving through the courts so close to the November 3 election, anyone who has never lived in the U.S. and plans to vote through one of these states should check the latest instructions from the state or local election office before submitting voting forms.
Why Taxes Are Part of This Debate
The eight lawsuits are about voting rights, not taxes. But for Americans living abroad, the two issues can overlap.
Us Tax Obligations Can Apply Even If You’ve Never Lived in the US
A U.S. citizen can have federal tax filing obligations even if they were born abroad and have never lived in the United States. U.S. citizens abroad are generally subject to the same federal filing rules as citizens living in the country and must consider their worldwide income when determining whether they need to file.
That does not mean every American abroad ultimately owes U.S. income tax. Foreign tax credits, the foreign earned income exclusion, and other provisions can reduce or eliminate the amount due. But citizenship itself can create filing and reporting obligations regardless of where someone has lived.
That creates an unusual situation for the voters at the center of these lawsuits: their U.S. citizenship can create federal tax and reporting obligations, while their ability to vote may depend on whether a particular state recognizes a voting connection through a parent, guardian, spouse, or another family member.
Related Article: U.S. Taxes for Expats, Explained
Does Voting from Abroad Make You a State Tax Resident?
Not automatically. State tax residency is generally based on a broader set of facts about where you live and where you are legally considered domiciled.
Federal voting guidance specifically says that voting for federal offices from abroad does not change your tax status. It also cautions that voting in state or local elections may have state-tax consequences depending on the state’s laws and your residency or domicile.
So using a parent’s former address to vote does not, by itself, mean you suddenly owe that state income tax. But voting can become relevant when a state looks at your overall ties to determine residency or domicile.
Overseas Voters Have an Important Federal Tax Protection
The federal overseas-voting law, known as UOCAVA, includes a specific protection for tax residency. It says that exercising a right under UOCAVA cannot change someone’s residence or domicile for federal, state, or local tax purposes.
For someone who previously lived in the U.S. and is voting from abroad using their own former residence, that provides an important separation between where they vote and where they are considered a resident for tax purposes.
The situation is less clear for the citizens at the center of these lawsuits. The federal tax protection applies specifically to rights exercised under UOCAVA. In August 2026, the Department of Defense removed the “never lived in the United States” category from the federal voting forms, saying that category did not accurately reflect eligibility under UOCAVA.
Those voters may still have voting rights under state law, but they should not assume that the federal UOCAVA tax protection answers every question about their state tax residency.
The Bigger Issue for Americans Born Abroad
This is where the tax and voting issues intersect.
Someone born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent may be a U.S. citizen from birth and therefore subject to U.S. tax filing and reporting rules even though they have never lived in the country. IRS At the same time, there is no single nationwide rule giving that person a state where they can vote. Their eligibility may depend on the laws of the state where a parent or another qualifying family member last lived, and those rules are exactly what the eight lawsuits are challenging.
The lawsuits will not determine whether these citizens have U.S. tax obligations. But they do highlight the difference between the way the U.S. tax system treats citizenship and the way election law determines voting eligibility for citizens who have never lived in the country.
Related Article: How Do I Change My U.S. State Residency While Living Abroad?
What Did the SCOTUS Rule About Ballots Received After Election Day?
A separate 2026 case answered another important question for Americans voting from abroad: Does a mailed ballot have to physically arrive by Election Day to be counted?
In June, the Supreme Court ruled no. In Watson v. Republican National Committee, the Court upheld Mississippi’s rule allowing absentee ballots to be counted if they are postmarked by Election Day and arrive within five days afterward. The Court said federal law establishes when voting must take place, but it does not require every ballot to be received by election officials on Election Day.
That does not create a five-day grace period nationwide. Each state can still set its own deadline for receiving absentee ballots. Some require overseas ballots to arrive by November 3, while others will count ballots that arrive afterward if they were mailed or sent on time.
For Americans abroad, the practical takeaway is simple: check both parts of your state’s deadline. When you must send your ballot and when your election office must receive it may be two different dates.
We have the state-by-state registration, ballot request, and return deadlines in our 2026 guide to voting from abroad
What Should Overseas Voters Do Now?
For most Americans abroad, the basic process has not changed. If you previously lived in the U.S., continue using your last U.S. residence as your voting address and follow your state’s normal overseas-voting instructions.
If you were born abroad and have never lived in the U.S., take a little more care this year:
- Check whether your state currently allows you to vote. Eligibility for people who have never lived in the U.S. varies by state, and the rules in the eight states covered in this article may still change before Election Day.
- Confirm which voting address you should use. Depending on the state, that may be based on where a parent, guardian, spouse, or another qualifying family member last lived.
- Check the current FPCA instructions before submitting your form. The federal forms changed in August 2026 and no longer include a separate checkbox for citizens who have never lived in the United States.
- Do not wait on a court case if you can act now. If your state currently says you are eligible, follow its existing instructions and deadlines unless the state tells voters otherwise.
- Check that your ballot was received. Most states provide an online way to confirm ballot status, and your state or local election office can help if something looks wrong.
How Many Voters Could These Lawsuits Affect?
There isn’t a current national count of how many U.S. citizens are registered to vote through the kinds of rules being challenged in these eight lawsuits.
The broader overseas voting population is much larger. FVAP estimated that about 3.3 million U.S. citizens lived abroad in 2024, including about 2.2 million who were old enough to vote. But most of those people previously lived in the United States and are not the group at the center of these cases.
The best federal estimate specifically for citizens who had never lived in the U.S. is older. FVAP estimated about 11,590 registered voters nationwide in 2016 who fell into that category.
More recent state data suggests the number affected by any one lawsuit may be relatively small. In Nebraska, for example, the Secretary of State reported 116 people registered under the provision being challenged as of July 2026.
So while these cases raise a broader question about voting rights for Americans born abroad, the eight lawsuits directly concern a much smaller group than the 2.2 million voting-age Americans living overseas.
Check Your State Tax Position Before November
Frequently Asked Questions
Sometimes. Eligibility depends on the state. Some states allow U.S. citizens born abroad who have never lived in the country to establish a voting residence through a parent, legal guardian, spouse, or another qualifying family relationship. Other states do not allow it. The eight lawsuits covered here challenge some of the state laws that currently allow this type of voting.
No. The lawsuits focus on people who have never personally lived in the state where they are seeking to vote.
If you previously lived in the U.S. and are voting from abroad using your own former U.S. residence, these eight cases generally are not challenging your eligibility. For most Americans abroad, their voting residence remains the last U.S. address where they lived before moving overseas.
Yes. U.S. citizens file a return on worldwide income regardless of where they live, and the litigation does not affect that. The filing obligation and the voting question are governed by entirely separate law.
Not automatically. Voting for federal offices from abroad does not by itself change your tax status. Voting in state or local elections can be relevant to state residency or domicile in some states, but it is only one part of a broader tax analysis.
That distinction is especially important for people who have never lived in the U.S., since the federal voting and tax protections that apply to other overseas voters may not fit their situation in exactly the same way.
Yes. U.S. tax rules are generally based on citizenship, not where you were born or where you live. A U.S. citizen living abroad must generally consider worldwide income when determining whether they are required to file a federal income tax return. That does not mean every U.S. citizen abroad will owe tax. The foreign tax credit, foreign earned income exclusion, and other provisions can reduce or eliminate U.S. income tax in many circumstances.
This article covers active litigation and reports the positions of the parties without endorsing any of them. Case postures are current as of August 13, 2026, and several are subject to appeal or further rulings. State income tax rates are the latest published figures and can change. Nothing here is tax or legal advice. For guidance on your own state tax position, work with a qualified tax professional with expertise in U.S. taxes for Americans living abroad.
Featured In
