The status of Heads of Consular Posts in the United Kingdom is regulated by the Consular Relations Act 1968 giving effect to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR) of 24 April 1963.
In order to appoint a new Head of Consular Post, the mission concerned should send a Note Verbale to Protocol Directorate notifying them of the proposed appointment. As specified by Article 11(1) of the VCCR this Note should certify the Head of Consular Post’s capacity, full name, address (if an Honorary Consul), category, consular district and the seat of the consular post. The candidate’s Curriculum Vitae should also accompany the Note Verbale. Honorary Consuls should either reside or work in the town or city which will be the seat of the consulate, they must also be a permanent resident of the United Kingdom.
Protocol Directorate will then issue a Secretary of State’s Exequatur, formally recognising the Consul or Honorary Consul in question and signed on behalf of the Secretary of State by the Diplomatic Mission’s Team in Protocol Directorate. Once the exequatur has been issued, the mission will be invited to submit a Form 1 (notification of staff) and Form 2 (application for an FCDO identity card). As specified in Article 12(3) of the VCCR, “the head of a consular post shall not enter upon his duties until he has received an exequatur”.
Please allow a minimum of 3 weeks for an official reply from Protocol Directorate.
Where a new Consular Post is to be established, permission must be sought from Protocol Directorate. This should be obtained via a Note Verbale requesting authorisation for the establishment and include an explanation of why a new consular post is necessary.
King’s Exequatur for Career Consuls
Protocol Directorate does not require the submission of Letters of Commission, signed by the sending mission’s Head of State. If, however, a Letter of Commission is submitted, Protocol will issue a King’s Exequatur. The King’s Exequatur is signed by His Majesty The King and the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs. It is not standard Protocol Directorate policy to retain Letters of Commission, and these will be returned to the Consul in question if requested. Unlike the Secretary of State’s Exequatur, The King’s Exequatur is not required for a Consul to assume duties.
Please allow a minimum of 12 weeks for a King’s Exequatur.
Procedure for appointing a new Consul to British Overseas Territories
Requests for the appointment of Consuls to the Overseas Territories should also be sent to Protocol Directorate, who will consult the Overseas Territory concerned. The procedure and timeframe is the same as that outlined above regarding the United Kingdom.
Protocol Directorate does not issue FCDO ID cards to Consuls based in Overseas Territories, and no Form 1 need be submitted when they are appointed.