Consular protection is the help an EU Member State can provide to its citizens in case they need assistance abroad. Typically, consular protection can include cases such as:

• A need for emergency travel documents;
• A serious accident or serious illness;
• Relief and repatriation in case of an emergency;
• Being a victim of crime;
• Arrest or detention;
• Death.

In Colombia, Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Romania, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden have a resident Embassy, while Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Slovakia, and Slovenia do not.

6 non-resident Member States are represented by honorary consulates. Likewise, a network of 68 honorary consulates of resident Member States and consular agents^[1]cover the entire country, especially the largest cities outside Bogotá.

• You can contact your resident Embassy/Consulate/Honorary Consul able to provide consular protection.
• If your EU Member State has no resident Embassy/Consulate/Honorary Consul able to provide consular protection] in Colombia, you can turn to another EU Member State for consular protection, noting there are specific arrangements for your consular protection.

Indeed, any EU citizen abroad whose own Member State has no local representation is entitled to receive consular protection from the diplomatic or consular authorities of any other EU Member State. In that case, EU citizens are entitled to benefit from consular protection under the same conditions as the nationals of that other EU Member State.

The Embassy of the Netherlands, for example, issues emergency travel documents for citizens who are not represented in the country. In the case of Finland, Honorary Consuls cannot issue passports, nor emergency passports, but can offer assistance to other European citizens.

You can find the contact details of the Embassies/Consulates/Honorary Consuls of the EU Member States that can provide consular protection, as well as existing agreements between EU Member States for consular protection in Colombia in the attached table.

There are two bilateral agreements between EU Member States to provide consular protection in Colombia:

• Nationals of Luxembourg are represented by Belgium.
• Nationals of Slovakia are represented by the Czech Republic.

[1] Honorary Consuls and consular agents have different functions and competencies. Honorary Consuls are volunteers who can provide a more accessible and responsive service to nationals who are in their area of consular competence because they are abroad, especially in places that are difficult to reach. They provide information and assistance to people experiencing difficulties abroad. Honorary Consular Agents have a slightly reduced role to that of Honorary Consuls. They are the first point of contact in case of emergency.