Consular Assistance for Australians

Services for Australians

The Australian Consulate-General Phuket’s consular jurisdiction covers Phuket, Krabi and Phang-Nga provinces. If you require consular assistance elsewhere in Thailand please contact the Australian Embassy in Bangkok.

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Consular Assistance

We can provide assistance within the limits of the Australian Government’s Consular Services Charter.

For information in Thai: กฎบัตรว่าด้วยบริการต่างๆ ของกงสุล (Consular Services Charter).

We ask that you:

take personal responsibility for your travel choices, your safety, finances and behaviour overseas, including obeying the laws of the country you are visiting
take out appropriate travel and medical insurance that covers you for any unexpected costs
follow our travel advice at smartraveller.gov.au and local advice
protect your passport and report it promptly if it is lost or stolen
treat consular staff with respect and be honest in providing us with all relevant information when seeking our assistance
give us feedback to help us to improve our services.

What help we may provide:

Each case is unique and our assistance will depend on the circumstances and availability of consular resources. We may be able to:

issue replacement passports and travel documents for a fee
provide details of local doctors and hospitals in a medical emergency
if you are the victim of a serious assault or other crime, provide appropriate help, including details of local lawyers and details of interpreters
if you are arrested, visit or contact you to check on your welfare, provide details of local lawyers and details of interpreters if required and do what we can to see you are treated fairly under the laws of the country in which you have been arrested
provide advice and support in a wide range of other cases including the death of relatives overseas, missing persons and kidnappings
if you agree, we will contact friends or family on your behalf. In some circumstances we may contact your friends or family where we have been unable to get your consent
provide some notarial services, including witnessing and authenticating documents and administering oaths and affirmations (fees apply)
provide small emergency loans in exceptional situations (you may be required to surrender your passport and you may not be issued with a replacement until the debt is repaid).

What we cannot do:

There are a range of tasks which are outside the consular role or which we do not provide for policy reasons. These include:

guarantee your safety and security in another country or make your travel arrangements
give you legal advice, interpret or translate documents, though we may provide details of local lawyers and translators
intervene in another country's court proceedings or legal matters including employment disputes, commercial disputes, criminal cases and family law matters or child custody disputes
carry out searches for missing people, which is the responsibility of local authorities
investigate crimes or deaths overseas, which is the responsibility of local authorities
get you out of prison or prevent you from being deported
get you better treatment in prison than local prisoners, although we may raise welfare concerns with local authorities
post bail or pay your fines or legal expenses
enforce an Australian or any other custody agreement overseas or compel a country to decide a custody case
pay for medical or psychiatric services or medications
pay your pension or social security benefits
arrange visas, licences, work or residency permits for other countries
intervene in immigration, customs or quarantine matters in other countries, or
store lost property.

Who to contact:

Australians seeking consular assistance from the Australian Consulate-General Phuket may telephone +66 (0) 76 317 700 between 8.30am and 4.30pm. Alternatively email [email protected] or visit us in person.
Emergency consular assistance is available 24 hours a day by calling our Consular Emergency Centre (CEC) in Canberra on 1300 555 135 or from anywhere in the world on +61 2 6261 3305 or by SMS on +61 421 269 080

Australian Passport Services

See our Passports page.

Elections and Voting while Overseas

2023 Voice Referendum

On 14 October 2023, Australians will be asked to vote in a referendum to alter the Constitution.

In-person and postal voting services will not be available at the Australian Consulate-General in Phuket or Honorary Consulate in Chiang Mai.

Please refer to the website of the Australian Embassy in Bangkok for in-person and postal voting options:

2023 Voice Referendum (Australian Embassy Bangkok)

All eligible Australians living in or visiting Thailand will be able to vote.

To be eligible to vote, you must be enrolled. Please ensure that your enrolment details are up to date at the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) website.

If you are overseas and are unable to vote in-person, you can apply for a postal vote. Postal vote packs will be sent to you from Australia by courier, so you are encouraged to apply as early as possible. The latest date to request a postal vote is 6pm, Wednesday 11 October 2023 local time.

It is not compulsory to vote if you are not in Australia at the time of the referendum. If you will be overseas at the time and unable to vote, you can advise the AEC by completing and returning the Overseas Notification Form.

Additional information on the referendum and voting is available from the AEC website and Smartraveller.

When you go overseas you must meet requirements in order to remain on the electoral roll, and in some cases, to avoid a fine.

Voting is mandatory for Australians. However, being overseas is a valid reason for not voting.

Up to date information on elections and eligibility, and copies of relevant forms (e.g. applications for postal votes, application to be registered as an overseas elector) are available from individual electoral commission websites. We are unable to advise you or comment on the eligibility of individual voters. Eligibility is a matter for the relevant electoral commission.

Voice Referendum 2023 – please refer to the Australian Electoral Commission website for information

Electoral Commissions

See also: Australian Electoral Commission

Visa, Immigration and Citizenship Services

The Australian Consulate-General Phuket does not accept or process Australian visa, immigration or citizenship applications. These matters are handled in Bangkok. Please refer to the Australian Embassy Bangkok’s website.

Marriage in Thailand

Please see information here.

Medical Assistance

Travel insurance is essential. Accidents can happen to anyone, and medical costs overseas can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars. You should make sure your travel insurance covers all medical expenses for injury or illness, as well as theft of valuables, damage to baggage and cancellations or interruptions to flight plans. Travellers without travel insurance are personally liable for covering any medical and associated costs they incur. The Australian Government will not pay for your medical treatment overseas or medical evacuation to Australia or a third country. If you are uninsured, you (or your family) are personally responsible for covering any medical or other costs resulting from unexpected incidents or accidents.

Legal Advice

The Australian Government cannot intervene in private legal disputes overseas, including employment disputes, commercial disputes, criminal cases and family law matters or child custody disputes. We are unable to provide you with legal advice, interpret or translate documents, or intervene in another country's court proceedings. We can provide a list of local lawyers, send us an email to request this list.

Consular Assistance for Australians

Services for Australians