Turning 18 is the licence. Voting is the drive.
Five steps from birthday to ballot. Every link below goes to the Election Commission of India's own portals.
You can register before you even feel ready
You need to be an Indian citizen and 18 or older on the qualifying date. There are four qualifying dates every year (1 January, 1 April, 1 July, 1 October), so you can apply as soon as you turn 18 — and you can even apply in advance of the next qualifying date after your 18th birthday.
Open the ECI voter portal →File Form 6. It takes about ten minutes.
Form 6 is the new-voter enrolment form. File it online at the ECI voter portal with one photo, one proof of age, and one proof of address. No queues, no agent, no fee.
File Form 6 online →Check that your name is actually on the roll
Registration is real only when your name appears in the electoral roll of your constituency. Search the roll by name or EPIC number. If details are wrong, Form 8 fixes them.
Search the electoral roll →Your EPIC arrives. The digital one is instant.
After approval you get an EPIC (Elector Photo Identity Card). You can also download the e-EPIC as a PDF from the portal and carry it on your phone.
Download e-EPIC →Find your booth, press the button, watch the slip
Your polling booth is printed on your voter information slip and listed on the portal. Carry your EPIC or another approved photo ID. Inside, you vote on an EVM; the VVPAT window shows a printed slip of your choice for a few seconds, so you can see your vote registered exactly as you cast it.
Find your polling station →All procedures per the Election Commission of India (voters.eci.gov.in, electoralsearch.eci.gov.in). This page summarises official process for education; the portals are always the authority. Nothing here is legal advice, and go-vote.in never tells you whom to vote for — only that you should.