CONTENT|CONTENU

Who We Are and What We Do

• What Are Consular Services?
  
• Information Before You Leave
  
• Assistance Once You Are Abroad
  
• Emergency Assistance

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The Consular Services Bureau is committed to helping Canadians prepare for foreign travel and to providing you with a variety of services once you are abroad. We believe that preparation is the key to successful travel.

Millions of Canadians live in or visit countries all over the world, for business and for pleasure. Smart travellers learn about their destination before leaving Canada and are prepared to deal with problems or emergency situations that may arise. This site provides an abundance of information about foreign destinations, about how to prepare for your departure from Canada, and about the variety of services offered to Canadians abroad.

 

What Are Consular Services?

"Consular" is the word used to describe the services that a country provides for its citizens abroad. Canada's consular services operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through a network of more than 260 offices in over 150 countries. The network includes embassies, high commissions, consulates, consulates headed by honorary consuls, and offices. These offices provide different levels of services to Canadians abroad. The different types of offices are fully explained in the Description of Canadian Government Offices Abroad section.

In some places, Australian diplomatic officers provide consular services to Canadians.

You can contact us by telephone, e-mail, fax or mail. One of the world's most sophisticated communications and computer systems enables us to communicate with you anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

The Government of Canada strives to deliver timely and effective consular services, characterized by empathy, courtesy, fairness, and dependability. If you wish to make a complaint about the quality of consular service you received while abroad, please fill out our Client Feedback Form(pdf version also available).

 

Information Before You Leave

We provide a broad range of information concerning conditions in other countries, as well as advice to help Canadians prepare for international travel.

• The Country Travel Reports present information on safety and security conditions, health questions and entry requirements for approximately 200 travel destinations.
  
  
• The Global Issues page features a variety of information highlighting situations around the world of particular interest to Canadians living or travelling abroad, including a list of upcoming elections.
  
  
• The daily e-mail Travel Updates, which you can subscribe to electronically, provide updates to Global Issues and Country Travel Reports.
  
  
• The safe-travel publications help travellers prepare for a problem-free and healthy journey. All publications can be downloaded in HTML or PDF format or ordered free of charge.
  
  
• The Drugs and Travel Information Program aims to create greater awareness about the consequences of getting involved with drugs while abroad and to discourage travellers from taking such risks. It also tries to educate people about how to take appropriate precautions when travelling with medication.
  
  
• The Outreach Program unit organizes promotional campaigns, performs seminars and participates in major travel and trade shows aimed at the Travel industry and Canadian travellers throughout Canada. Following is a schedule of upcoming activities. We look forward to seeing you at our booth or presentation and answering all your travel-related questions.
  
  

Assistance Once You Are Abroad

With more than 260 points of service in 150 countries worldwide, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada is ready to assist Canadians travelling, working, studying, or living abroad.

Before you leave Canada, it is important to know which services we do and do not provide and to realize that not all Canadian government offices abroad provide the same services. The following list includes some examples of consular services. The $ symbol indicates which services are provided for a fee.

Services Offered by Consular Officials

In emergencies

• Arrange help in a medical emergency by providing you with a list of local doctors and hospitals.
• Arrange for a medical evacuation if a necessary treatment is not available locally ($).
• Provide advice and contact information on local police and medical services to victims of robbery, sexual assault, or other violence.
• Provide assistance in cases of missing persons or the abduction of a child to another country (see our publication International Child Abductions: A Manual for Parents).

When legal issues arise

• Provide you with a list of local lawyers.
• Provide you with sources of information about local laws and regulations.
• Seek to ensure you are treated fairly under a country’s laws if you are arrested or detained (see our publication A Guide for Canadians Imprisoned Abroad).
• Notarize certain Canadian documents ($).

When other issues arise

• Replace a lost, stolen, damaged, or expired passport ($).
• Transfer funds if urgent financial assistance is required ($).
• Contact relatives or friends to request assistance in sending you money or airline tickets.
• Contact next of kin, with your authorization, if you have had an accident or are detained by police.
• Accept citizenship applications for approval by Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
• Provide advice about burying a Canadian abroad or assist in repatriating the remains to Canada.
• Advise police in Canada to contact next of kin in case of death.
• Request that local authorities investigate suspicious circumstances in the event of an alleged or apparent crime or death (although consular officials cannot interfere in a local investigation or legal matter).

Services NOT Offered by Consular Officials

When legal issues arise

• Intervene in private legal matters.
• Provide legal advice.
• Obtain a criminal record check on your behalf.
• Post bail or pay fines or legal fees.
• Get you out of prison.
• Take possession of an abducted child.
• Enforce a Canadian custody agreement overseas or compel a country to decide a custody case.
• Investigate a crime or death.
• Ask local authorities to give preferential treatment to Canadians.
• Issue letters of guarantee.

When other issues arise

• Make travel arrangements.
• Compensate or reimburse you for delayed or cancelled travel.
• Pay your hotel, medical, travel, or other expenses.
• Store personal effects or search for lost items.
• Acquire local permits or licences on your behalf, including foreign visas or work permits.
• Assist with job hunting.
• Help you find accommodation.
• Accept mail on your behalf.
• Issue pension or social security benefits.
• Perform marriage ceremonies.
• Pay the burial, cremation, or repatriation costs of a deceased Canadian.
• Coordinate and pay for search-and-rescue efforts to locate missing Canadians.

Emergency Assistance

The Emergency Operations Centre of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. An experienced officer is always available to respond to emergency calls from anywhere in the world.

• For calls originating in Canada and the U.S., call 1 800 267-6788 or (613) 944-6788.
  
• Canadian citizens outside Canada can call collect from abroad where available to (613) 996-8885.
  
• Some countries also have toll-free lines to contact the Operations Centre in Ottawa.