Allegations of voter fraud in the election that saw Sophie Mirabella defeated in the seat of Indi have been referred to the Australian Federal Police.

The would-be cabinet minister's narrow loss to independent Cathy McGowan by 439 votes was a shock result in the Coalition's otherwise strong victory.

Allegations of voter fraud, including claims constituents who were allegedly living outside the electorate voted in the Indi poll, have since surfaced.

In a statement, the AEC said its Electoral Integrity Unit had examined the enrolment details of "a number of electors" in Indi and "takes any allegations of potential electoral irregularities very seriously".

"The current allegations involve 27 electors enrolled in the Division of Indi at the time of the 7 September 2013 election," the statement said.

The Australian Electoral Commission's acting electoral commissioner, Tom Rogers, has determined "questions remain regarding the accuracy of the information that the electors provided to the AEC when they were enrolled in the Division of Indi".

"As a number of Commonwealth laws may have been breached, Mr Rogers has referred the allegations to the Australian Federal Police," the statement said.

"Significant penalties apply for making a false declaration on an electoral enrolment application."

Ms McGowan has previously welcomed any investigation.

Ms Mirabella has been contacted for comment.

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