In most of the countries you will find diplomatic missions, which usually refers to an embassy and/or a consulate. Diplomatic bodies represent other country’s interests in New Caledonia, with the aim of strengthening international relations between the states and providing services for their citizens in New Caledonia.

However, New Caledonia, as a special collectivity of France, does not typically host embassies because it is not an independent sovereign state. Instead, it is represented internationally by French authorities. Similarly, there may not be consulates of other countries in New Caledonia for the same reason.

Nevertheless, there might be consular services provided by certain countries for their citizens living in or visiting New Caledonia. These services are usually handled through consular sections in embassies or consulates located in nearby countries or regions, such as Australia or New Zealand.

Embassies and consulates are considered legal territories of their home countries. They are not "foreign territory" but they are protected and considered the property of the country using them, meaning that New Caledonia does not have jurisdiction over the embassy or consulate of another country.

What is the difference between Embassy and Consulate

The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations international treaty defines the diplomatic mission’s purpose and framework. The various diplomatic missions offer several services and carry out different missions. For example:

• Embassy: This is the primary diplomatic representation of a country’s government and is headed by an ambassador. An embassy is the main location for a diplomatic presence of one country in another. A country has at most one embassy in another country, and is always established in the capital city of the host country. In the absence of a consulate in a country, the embassy also has a consular section to carry out all the relevant consular services (see below).
• Consulate General: This is a diplomatic mission, headed by a consul that provides a full range of services such as: issuing passports/visas, keeping birth and marriage records, assisting expats, providing legal information, translations etc. It can be located in any major city of the host country, although often in the capital city (in certain cases, in the same building as the embassy). In major countries and large territories, you often have more than one consulate.
• Honorary Consulate: It supplements the Consulate to provide a limited range of consular services and is headed by an honorary consul. They help nationals abroad. For example, in the event of a hospital stay, missing person, death, natural disaster or another emergency. They can also issue emergency travel documents and consular declarations for which the applicant is required to appear in person.

NB: You will usually apply for a visa at the Consulate of the country you want to visit. However, if there is no such representation in New Caledonia, you can apply for a visa at the embassy.

Where to find Consulates and Embassies in New Caledonia

Not all countries have an Embassy and/or a Consulate as it depends on the political situation, the relationship with the host country, the size of the country, and the number of foreign citizens living there. In some cases, countries can share representations and you can be assisted by the services of another embassy or consular service to get the information you need.

We recommend you register/contact your country’s embassy at your destination. It is a free service provided by any diplomatic mission and it will allow them to record information about your upcoming trip abroad. It can be used to assist you in case of an emergency.

Registration will also allow you to get routine information from your nearest embassy or consulate, as citizens residing abroad.

The capital of New Caledonia, Noumea does not host any embassies.

There are, however, 10 consulates located in New Caledonia. All consulates and honorary consulates are located in Noumea.

You will find below a list of selected countries that have a diplomatic mission in New Caledonia.

Honorary Consulates in New Caledonia

Contact directly the Embassy/Consulate website for more information.

For countries with no consulates or embassies in New Caledonia, the Honorary Consulates are supervised by diplomatic representations located in other countries, often Sydney, in Australia for New Caledonia.

General Consulates and embassies in Noumea

• Australia (consular.noumea@dfat.gov.au)
• Belgium 
• Germany (noumea@hk-diplo.de)
• Indonesia (kjri.noumea@kemlu.go.id)
• Italy (consul.it.nc@canl.nc)
• Japan
• New Zealand
• Switzerland (noumea@honrep.ch)
• Vanuatu
• Vietnam