Different states, along with diplomatic ones, create consular posts in each other’s territories, thus exchanging missions. Typically, such a relationship is the result of diplomacy, it is she who presumes consent to them. Nevertheless, consular offices are opened on the territory of states and diplomatic relations that do not support each other, moreover, even breaking them does not lead to breaking the consular relations. Diplomatic missions know everything that may affect the interests and rights of the accrediting state, and this applies throughout the territory of the host country. And consular posts have special competencies only in the okrug assigned to them, and only consular authorities communicate with their authorities about their affairs.
Vienna Convention
In 1963, the Vienna Convention in Article 5 outlined the main functions of consular posts. This is primarily the protection and protection in the host country of the rights and interests of all citizens of their own state - both individuals and legal entities. This is rendering assistance and assistance to compatriots, ensuring representation in judicial and any other state organizations.
Consular offices promote the development of scientific, cultural, economic and trade relations between the two countries, as well as develop friendly relations between them. Consulate workers also collect information in all possible legal ways about the events and conditions of the economic, commercial, scientific and cultural life of the host country, after which they inform their own government about this and provide such information to interested parties.
Activities
The functions of consular offices include the issuance of passports, visas, as well as the provision of notarial services and registration of acts of civil status. There are other similar obligations to provide compatriots in the host country with everything necessary. In addition, diplomatic missions and consular posts carry out many of the functions of an administrative plan. With their help, non-judicial and judicial documents are transferred, they execute court orders in accordance with applicable international agreements and in accordance with all the rules of the host country.
Diplomatic missions and consular posts provide assistance to ships and aircraft of their own state, as well as their crew. Many other functions assigned to the consulates by the represented state are also performed if they are not prohibited by the rules and laws of the host country. If there is no diplomatic relationship with this state, the head of the consular post can carry out rather extensive diplomatic functions.
Institutional Procedure
Consular offices and everything related to their location, quantity and class determine the agreement between the two countries. Unlike the diplomatic mission, the consulate does not work nationwide; it is given the limits of a particular consular district. But, as a rule, the work of the consulate covers the territories of several administrative units. The types of consular posts are also strictly divided. This is a consulate general, just a consulate, a vice consulate and a consular agency. It should be noted that in the nature of the work and in their functions they differ from each other quite little. In large industrial cities and large ports, a consulate general is usually opened, that is, where their own state has special interests. A simple consulate is established in any city of smaller size and significance. The consul general may lead all other consuls of his country in the receiving state or in a separate part thereof.
The officials of consular posts are also defined in article 9 of the same Vienna Convention. According to the names of consulates, the heads of these institutions are divided into four classes. Ascending: consular agent, vice consul, consul, consul general. In the consulate general, several vice consuls, consuls and consular attaches may be deputies and assistants to the consul general. In a simple consulate, in the same way, besides its head, usually several more employees work, who are called vice consuls or consular attaches. In addition to the officials of the consular post of the Russian Federation, other employees work there - administrative and technical personnel and maintenance staff. In addition to individual consular posts, there are departments in the structure of the diplomatic mission that perform consular functions. This means that there are consuls "separate" and there are "detached".
Honorary Consul
There are also consuls who are not statewide. These are honorary consuls, whose powers are significantly limited compared to full-time officials. Honorary consuls are usually chosen from their own citizens or citizens of the host country. They are always well-known in the area, often successful lawyers, entrepreneurs or public figures. They are not registered in the public service; consular duties are usually carried out on a voluntary basis and at the same time run their own business.
They are not supposed to be paid, but they receive maintenance through consular fees that are levied for services. In the past few decades, the institute of honorary consuls around the world has become quite widespread. In Denmark, Finland, Sweden, for example, their number is many times greater than the number of staff. Until 1976, there were no foreign honorary consuls in our country, and ours were not appointed abroad either. Now they are everywhere, and their number is constantly increasing. In 1998, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs even issued an Order and a special Regulation on the Honorary Consuls of the Russian Federation.
Head and his assistants
The head of the consular post is appointed by his own state, and is allowed to perform his duties by the host country. The first special document he receives is a consular patent. It certifies his position, category and class, district and location of the consulate, where he will work. This patent is sent to the government of the host country, where it is examined and given (or not) permission, which is called exequatur. It is usually executed in a separate document, but there are cases when a competent person imposes a permit inscription on the consular patent itself. If a state refuses to issue an exequatur, it is not obliged to disclose the reasons for this refusal to the represented state.
The remaining officials at the consulate are freely appointed to their respective posts, however, the sending state must inform the host country of each such appointment. Moreover, this must be done in advance by communicating the name, surname, class, category of each nominee. And the host state has the right to declare this person inadmissible, and it must do so before the appointed person appears in the country and takes up his duties. However, even if the host state is late with the announcement, the represented country will nullify the appointment anyway.
Consular offices of the Russian Federation
The state bodies carrying out external relations of our country within the respective consular district in the host country on behalf of the Russian Federation are consular posts that are part of the Russian Foreign Ministry and are subordinate to the head of the diplomatic mission of the Russian Federation. On the territory of the Russian Federation, their functions are quite numerous. This is not limited to applying for consular services, issuing passports, legalizing documents and claiming them. Invitations are drawn up here, decisions are made regarding the issuance of a Russian visa, and all kinds of consulting and information services are provided. Also, children who were adopted by foreign citizens are registered, the procedure for the return of funds that were paid for the state fee by mistake is established.
The establishment of consular missions is not connected with its activities with the political parties of international relations. This is the prerogative of diplomatic missions. And consular posts serve as special bodies of external relations and are created only for the development and maintenance of legal, economic and similar ties. Theoretically and practically, the terms "consular post" and "consular post" are absolutely legitimate and almost identical. The difference is very small: the institutions are divided into consular departments in diplomatic missions and individual institutions. Their functions are the same.
Privilege
Immunities of consular posts - a set of special advantages, rights and benefits provided to official personnel to the extent agreed upon by the two countries and in accordance with the usual rules of international law, as well as the laws of the host country. From the moment the institution of the consulate began to exist, consuls have enjoyed special status, and their privileges and immunities are constantly expanding. Nevertheless, they are significantly inferior to the privileges and immunities of diplomats both in quantity and quality. The fact is that the consuls have mainly functional advantages, that is, privileges are not provided every minute, but only when performing actions as officials and clearly within the framework of official duties. But in practice, in a number of states there is a tendency for the privileges and immunities of officials of consulates and diplomatic missions to coincide.
Immunities and privileges can be divided into institutional and personal. The former include the immunity of consular premises, unless natural disasters occur, such as a fire. The service archives, correspondence, property and vehicles belonging to the consulate are also inviolable. Institutions are exempted from searches, requisitions and other executive actions, exempted from customs duties and taxes. Institutions are free to communicate with the government, consulates and diplomatic missions of their own state, have the right to hang a flag and strengthen the coat of arms on the wall, as well as on cars belonging to the consulate.
Personal immunities
Personal privileges and immunities of officials include personal integrity, freedom from pre-trial detention or arrest, unless a particularly serious crime has been committed. Consular officers may be imprisoned or other forms of restriction of liberty may be applicable to them only when enforcing a court decision that has entered into legal force. Absolutely all employees of a consular post are exempted from the administrative and judicial jurisdiction of the host country if they are in the exercise of consular functions. Private actions of these same persons may entail the application of the relevant laws of the host state.
An employee of the consular department may be called as a witness in administrative and judicial cases, but is not required to testify related to issues related to his activities, nor is he required to provide correspondence related to these issues. Officials and family members, which does not apply only to service personnel, are exempt from taxes and duties even on items intended for personal use. The immunities and privileges of consulates depend on bilateral conventions. In this way, guarantees of the normal fulfillment of duties are created, which helps to strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation between countries.
Consular Conventions
The activities of consular posts are always based on a legal basis, which are domestic legislation and international agreements. The multilateral agreement that governs the consular service of different countries is the Vienna Convention, ratified by the USSR in 1989. In recent decades, the interstate practice of concluding bilateral conventions has been developing more and more, where consular relations between the two contracting countries are regulated.
The Russian Federation currently has consular conventions with more than 70 countries. In addition, almost all states have developed their own consular charters or other regulations that are specifically aimed at resolving issues regarding these services. The first charter appeared in Russia in 1893 and was valid until 1917. The USSR adopted such a charter twice - in 1926 and in 1976. The 1976 charter is currently in force.
In Russia
In the Russian Federation there are a lot of diplomatic missions and consulates of foreign states. There are 145 of them represented in Moscow, including the states not recognized by all of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. 56 consular and diplomatic missions are located in St. Petersburg, and 131 more are in other cities of the country. For example, there are 26 of them in Yekaterinburg, and 20 in Vladivostok. Eleven are fewer in Kaliningrad, nine in Kazan, eight in Novosibirsk and Nizhny Novgorod, and seven in Rostov-on-Don. Krasnodar, Irkutsk, Astrakhan, Sochi, Murmansk, Khabarovsk, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Novorossiysk, Omsk, Krasnoyarsk, Samara, Pskov, Tyumen, Smolensk, Khanty-Mansiysk, Ufa, Volgograd, Arkhangelsk, Lipetsk, Kyzyl, Naskod, Petrozog, Magnitog, Petrozog Novy Urengoy, Ulan-Ude, Sovetsk, Elista, Cherepovets - all these cities and the Moscow region have consulates of different countries on their territory.
The fraternal Belarus is most interested in our country; it has opened fourteen representative offices on the territory of the Russian Federation. In second place is Italy, eight of its consulates work in our cities. The third step in Slovakia is seven missions. South Korea, China, France, Mongolia and Germany each have five consulates in Russian cities, and Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Hungary each have four. Japan, Turkey, Ukraine, Poland, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Spain, the UK have three representative offices in our territories, and the Czech Republic, Croatia, Finland, the USA, Slovenia, Norway, Latvia, the DPRK, Cyprus, Iran, Greece, Vietnam, and Austria have opened diplomatic and consular offices in our two cities. And another twenty-five countries - only in Moscow.