The British government is urging the sizable UK population here, and elsewhere, to register to vote in its upcoming EU referendum.

Voting will take place on Thursday June 23rd.

Those eligible will have to be registered by June 7th to vote in the referendum.

The British embassy in Dublin is advising UK expats in Ireland to register sooner rather than later, so they can be sure they are registered in time.

They are being advised to register by May 16th and can do so online.

Are you a UK expat? Make sure you exercise your right to vote in the upcoming #EUreferendum. Register online at https://t.co/NSIZ60RIrt

— British Embassy (@BritEmbDublin) April 14, 2016

For those temporarily abroad on election day, you can arrange to vote by post or by proxy (i.e. get someone else to vote for you).

But the British government says these arrangements must be made in advance.

For those who have moved abroad permanently, they can register as an overseas voter for up to 15 years after leaving the UK.

This is an option as long as they are a British citizen, and they were registered to vote in the UK within the previous 15 years.

The 2011 Census of Ireland shows 288,627 people listed the UK as their place of birth.

Overall, there are 5.5 million UK citizens estimated to be living overseas and potentially eligible to vote in the referendum.