Honorary consuls

Honorary consuls are typically local citizens of the host country with careers outside of official diplomacy. They promote economic, cultural, and educational ties between the two countries. Honorary consuls help people from the sending country with consular matters, especially in emergencies. In some countries, they also have the authority to issue visas, passports, and other documents. Honorary consuls are not paid for their work, but they may get compensation for the costs they incurred while doing their jobs.

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What is the difference between carreer and honorary consults?

Honorary consuls, and those who are career consuls have different privileges and immunities. Honorary consuls are restricted to official functions and have limited privileges. They are not extended to their families. Career consuls are entitled to a greater range of privileges and immunities.

From our blog

An honorary consul in the pandemic

Geoff Berridge

On 2 July 2020 I received an e-mail from Razvan Constantinescu, the energetic Romanian honorary-consul general for the south-west of England based in Bristol and president of the Bristol Consular Corps. This told me...

Honorary Consuls – a booming trade

DiploFoundation

The Economist of 31 August 2013 carried a rare short report on the institution of the honorary consul. It read: \'Honorary consuls -  a booming trade\',  (with the subheading, \'Foreign ministries employ ever mor...

Training and courses

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Resources

2019

The Diplomacy of Ancient Greece – A Short Introduction

Employed against a warlike background, the diplomatic methods of the ancient Greeks are thought by some to have been useless but by others to have been the most advanced seen prior to modern times.... Read more...

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2007

Think global, act local: Honorary consuls in a transforming diplomatic world

This paper concentrates on the understudied subject of honorary consuls and their conduct of trade, tourism, and investment promotion. It seeks to highlight how states are using honorary consuls to extend their network for increased consular coverage; overview why loca... Read more...

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1991

Consular Law and Practice, 2nd edn

The author of this book is a member of the US State Department's Senior Executive Service, Chairman of the International Law Association Committee on the Legal Status of Refugees, and Adjunct Professor of Law at the American University. It is not a new book but is stil... Read more...

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