Consular services
A. What services are offered by Belgian consular officers?
- You are Belgian and you are travelling temporarily abroad, consult the section: travelling abroad.
- You are Belgian and you live permanently abroad, consult the section Consular administrative assistance.
Consular administrative assistance abroad is provided by more than a hundred Belgian general consular posts and career consular posts.
General consular posts and career consular posts are mainly located in the capital [or other cities] of the countries covered by the exercise of their consular duties. These sometimes extend to other neighbouring countries where Belgium does not have consular representation.
They provide public services for Belgians abroad.
Since the entry into force of the consular code on 15/06/2014, administrative assistance is only provided to Belgians who are registered in the consular population register. Administrative assistance to Belgians who are not registered in these registers is limited to the issue of provisional travel documents if the issuing conditions are fulfilled.
As a Belgian domiciled overseas, it is advisable to always contact the Belgian general consular post or the career consular post in your country before contacting the FPS Foreign Affairs in Brussels.
For consular information, please visit the Dutch and French version of our website.
B. What services are NOT offered by Belgian consular officers?
- Intervening in private affairs (for example, hotel bookings, the payment of hotel bills, storing your luggage, finding accommodation, the payment of medical expenses, customs’ transactions, fines, legal fees, bail payments, fetching back an abducted child or accommodating a minor, the enforcement of a Belgian civil order in a third country, or obliging another country to settle a family dispute, inquiries into crimes or deaths, etc.).
- Ensuring that you benefit from preferential treatment in hospitals, by a doctor, in the case of imprisonment, for excursions or visits, or even ensuring your release from prison or intervening in legal proceedings.
- Ensuring that you get a job, obtaining your resident's permit or your work permit or an extension of your visa.