Appointing a career head of consular post

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For the purposes of these guidelines, the acronym VCCR means the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. 

The Accreditation Unit is the point of contact for implementing Canada’s formalities for the appointment and admission of career consular officers.

About the process

There is no pre-visa appointment approval process for career heads of consular post, per a decision communicated in March 1998. It follows that countries must refrain from seeking the Office of Protocol’s provisional recognition in advance of a head of post’s posting, though this approach may be adjusted on the basis of reciprocity.

Prospective career heads of consular post must however apply for and successfully obtain an official (O1) Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) prior to taking up posting in Canada. Nominees who first enter Canada with an electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) will automatically be asked to depart Canada and apply for a TRV from abroad.

As Canada does not allow an overlap/transition period between a head of consular post and their successor, prospective heads are expected to provide the following during the TRV application process:

  • The date of their successor’s scheduled departure.
  • The date on which they are scheduled to begin their functions.

Issuance of definitive recognition, provisional admission of career heads of consular post and order of precedence

Career heads of consular post are admitted to the exercise of their functions by an authorization from Canada termed a definitive recognition (also known as exequatur). Pending the delivery of the definitive recognition, the career head may be provisionally admitted to the exercise of consular functions, per article 13 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR), should the sending State so desire it. In such circumstances, the provisions of the VCCR will apply.

In terms of order of precedence,

  • Heads of consular post rank in each class according to the date of issuance of the definitive recognition.
  • If, however, the head of a consular post was admitted to the exercise of functions provisionally pending issuance of the definitive recognition, the precedence is determined according to the date of the provisional admission; this precedence is maintained after the issuance of the definitive recognition.

Sending States are not required to transmit a career head of consular post’s consular commission unless the Office of Protocol specifies otherwise.

Career heads of consular post based in Montréal dually appointed as representatives of a Member State to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)

Canada continues to accept that career heads of consular post in Montréal be dually admitted to the exercise of functions as their State’s representative to ICAO. Given the notification requirements under the Headquarters Agreement between the Government of Canada and ICAO, an accredited career head of consular post may only commence performing official functions as a Member State to ICAO once the Secretariat of ICAO has notified the Office of Protocol in writing of the appointment.

Given that they are not engaged in diplomatic acts, accredited members of the family forming part of the household of heads of consular post appointed as representatives of their State to ICAO are therefore not entitled to diplomatic accreditation and claims of diplomatic immunity.

Acceptable consular functions, scope and location of consular activities

While Canada adheres to article 5 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, it attaches equal paramount importance to Article 55 of the said Convention. It follows that heads of career consular post have a special duty to ensure that they and their staff, including any local staff, respect the laws and regulations of Canada; and that they not interfere in the internal affairs of Canada. “Foreign information manipulation and interference”, “foreign interference” and “transnational repression” (as defined below and under the Appendix of the Retrospective Report on the 45th General Election) are incompatible with the exercise of consular functions.

Foreign information manipulation and interference: An umbrella term for foreign efforts aimed at covertly manipulating the information environment to achieve strategic objectives. This manipulation can undermine public trust in democratic institutions, increase societal polarization, and disrupt the implementation of government mandates and commitments. Foreign information manipulation and interference includes disinformation, as well as many other ways that information can be manipulated.

Foreign interference: Activities conducted or supported by a foreign state/actor that is detrimental to Canadian national interests and is clandestine, deceptive or involves a threat to a person. In the context of Canadian electoral processes, the objective of foreign interference is to affect electoral outcomes and/or undermine public confidence in Canadian democratic institutions. Foreign interference can take the form of foreign information manipulation and interference (including disinformation), transnational repression, or other means.

Transnational repression: Form of interference in which foreign states attempt to advance their interests and to silence criticism and dissent. They extend their own domestic repression beyond their borders to intimidate, coerce, harass, harm, and ultimately silence critics or those deemed a threat to their rule. Transnational repression can occur via physical methods, but is increasingly being perpetuated in the digital space where it can take the form of online harassment and smear campaigns.

Further, Canada considers that activities related to tax solicitation and tax collection are incompatible with the functions of a consular post. As Canada does not consider such activities to be legitimate consular function, career heads of consular post, and their staff and contractors, are expected to refrain from conducting these.

Also, given the purely government nature of the duties of foreign representatives in Canada, and the privileges and immunities that necessarily accompany the performance of those duties, Canada also considers it inappropriate for a career head of consular post to serve on the board of directors of private companies/entities in Canada, such as non-diplomatic/consular cultural centres and teaching establishments, or to be involved in the management of such private companies/entities — their staff, property and assets. The same prohibition applies to other accredited consular staff and consular employees.

Career heads of consular post as well as accredited members of their consular staff vested with the exercise of consular functions are further expected to exercise those consular functions within the geographically delineated consular district approved by the Office of Protocol. Career heads of consular post are also responsible for ensuring that accredited consular employees (in other words, those in the administrative service of the consular post) and any locally engaged staff also restrict their functions to the consular district approved by the Office of Protocol.

In the case of dual appointees (head of post and representative to ICAO), the sending State is expected to ensure that the exercise of consular functions remains a meaningful aspect of the conduct of bilateral affairs, and that it not be relegated to a peripheral activity. It must also be emphasized that a foreign State’s consular services, activities and functions cannot be conducted on the premises of ICAO or of any other international organization in Canada without the express permission of the Office of Protocol.

Global Affairs Canada considers compliance with the above to be a condition of the career head of consular post’s assignment in Canada. In the event of non-compliance, Global Affairs Canada reserves the discretion to request the person’s recall.

Questions regarding the scope of acceptable consular functions and questions regarding consular districts should be directed to the Office of Protocol.

End of functions, final departure and acting head of post

The Office of Protocol must be formally notified of a head of post’s end of assignment/cessation of duties and their anticipated final departure date. Notifications must be submitted within 24 hours of the head’s end of functions, and the normal procedures for all departing foreign representatives otherwise apply.

In addition, the Office of Protocol’s Accreditation Unit should be notified by email of the appointment of an acting head of post before the head of post’s end of functions.

Heads of post are free to make farewell calls on other consular post, and government officials in Canadian provinces and territories by direct arrangement.

For information on the issuance of accreditation documents to career heads of consular post, pre-arrival requirements and end of functions notifications, please refer to the Office of Protocol’s Accreditation Services Guidelines.