Belgian Embassy in Canada – Top 5 Services
As a sovereign state, the Belgian embassy in Canada makes sure that it protects the rights of all Belgian citizens in Canada. Therefore, all citizens of Belgium can contact the embassy or the Belgian consulate in Montreal.
In fact, for all your consular services, you have to go to the consulate in Montreal. In other words, the embassy in Ottawa does not offer consular services.
However, the embassy still remains the seat of the Belgian government in Canada. As such, it still tries to make sure that your rights as Belgian are respected.
Moreover, the embassy represents the opinions of the Belgian government. Therefore, when administrative function, the embassy represents the Belgian government.
To this end, you must be aware of the location of both the Belgian embassy in Canada and the Belgian consulate in Montreal.
What an embassy means
An embassy, a high commission, a consulate all mean the same to a traveller. This is because they represent a foreign country in the host country.
Secondly, their duty is to make sure that the citizens of their country are respected. They also make sure that the citizens are safe, especially in times of war and emergency.
As such, whether a country has an embassy or a high commission or a consulate, the citizens must contact them whenever they have problems.
Sometimes, a country may have both an embassy and a consulate in the same country. In such cases, the consulate acts as a branch of the embassy.
About Belgium
Belgium is officially known as the Kingdom of Belgium. It is a country in Western Europe bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the southwest, and the North Sea to the northwest.
It has an area of 30,689 km2 (11,849 sq mi) and a population of more than 11.5 million. Thus, it is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. In fact, it is the 6th most densely populated country in Europe.
Belgium’s capital and largest city is Brussels. It has other major cities like Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi, Liège, Bruges, Namur, and Leuven.
Belgium as a sovereign state has a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government.
Furthermore, it has three highly autonomous regions: the Flemish Region (Flanders) in the north, the Walloon Region (Wallonia) in the south, and the Brussels-Capital Region.
Belgian embassy in Canada
The Belgian embassy in Canada does not offer consular services, so, whenever you need consular services as a Belgian in Canada, you have to use the Belgian consulate in Montreal.
Address of the Belgian embassy in Canada
Embassy Ottawa
360 Albert Street, 8th floor, suite 820
ON – K1R 7X7 Ottawa
Canada
T: +1 613 236 72 67
T: +1 613 769 83 35 – Emergency number only for Belgian citizens in distress, outside opening hours
F: +1 613 236 78 82
Office hours
Mon-Fri 9:00am – 12:30pm and 1:00pm – 5:00pm
Address of the Belgian consulate in Montreal
You can also contact the Belgian consulate in Montreal for your consular services with the following address.
Consulate General of Belgium in Montreal
1000, Sherbrooke Street West – Suite 1400
H3A 3G4, Montreal, QC
Canada
T: +1 514 849 73 94
T: +1 514 236 54 02 – Emergency number only for Belgian citizens in distress, outside opening.
Address of the honorary consulates in Canada
In addition to the Belgian embassy in Canada and the Belgian consulate in Montreal, Belgium has other honorary consulates across Canada.
Generally, honorary consulates have less jurisdiction than embassies and consulates. However, you can contact them when necessary. Nevertheless, you should always contact the Belgian consulate in Montreal first.
Honorary Consulate Halifax
610-90 Grandhaven Boulevard
Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3S0J4
Canada
T: +1 902 982-2463
Cell: +1 902 818-3430
Jurisdiction: Provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland & Labrador.
Honorary Consulate Quebec City
2177, Chemin du Foulon
Québec, G1T 1X5
Canada
T: +1 418 455 1277
Jurisdiction: Province of Québec, the regions of Québec, Saguenay, Lac-Saint-Jean and Côte Nord.
Honorary Consulate Toronto
c/o Aird & Berlis, Brookfield Place, 181 Bay Street, Suite 1800, Box 754
Toronto, Ontario, M5J 2T9
Canada
T: +1 416 865 3072
Jurisdiction: Province of Ontario.
Honorary Consulate Vancouver
166, West 10th Avenue
Vancouver, British Columbia, V5Y 1R8
Canada
T: +1 604 879 77 82
F: +1 604 879 72 60
Jurisdiction: Province of British Columbia & Yukon Territory.
Honorary Consulate Winnipeg
22 Collingwood Crescent
Winnipeg R2J 3L1
Canada
Jurisdiction: Provinces of Manitoba & Saskatchewan.
Honorary Consulate Hamilton
AXA XL Ltd. O’Hara House
One, Bermudiana Road
Hamilton
Bermuda
T: +1 441-524-7306
Jurisdiction: Bermuda.
Popular Consular services provided by Belgian Embassy in Canada
For the following services, you will contact the Belgian consulate in Montreal instead of the Belgian embassy in Canada. They include:
1. Belgian passport
All citizens of Belgium in Canada can obtain their biometrics from the Belgian consulate in Montreal. This is because the Belgian embassy in Canada does not perform consular services. However, if you cannot get to Montreal, you can make use of the services of any honorary consulate near you.
2. Legalization
It is also the duty of the Belgian consulate in Montreal to legalize Canadian documents for Belgians in the country. However, since this can be done electronically, you will not need to travel to Montreal.
Meanwhile, you can only legalize the following documents
Civil status documents issued by the provincial civil status services:
- Birth certificate ;
- Death certificate;
- Marriage certificate ;
- Birth registration ;
- Marriage registration or license.
Criminal record extract from the RCMP showing fingerprints, RCMP seal and the signature of the Director-General of Canadian Criminal Real Time Identification (RTID) Services.
The criminal record extracted from the city of Cobourg.
3. Notary services
Also, for notary services, you will only contact the Belgian consulate in Montreal instead of the Belgian consulate in Canada.
There are two options for obtaining a power of attorney required:
- You ask your Belgian notary to e-mail a draft of power of attorney to the following address of the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs.
- You sign a power of attorney before a Canadian notary.
4. Return To Belgium
On your return to Belgium, the Belgian consulate in Montreal will also issue you a certificate of return showing the end of your stay in Canada. So, whenever you plan to leave Canada permanently, instead of the Belgian embassy in Canada, you will go to the consulate in Montreal.
5. Registration
Although this is not compulsory, however, it is very necessary. This is because it allows you to access all consular services like applying for or renewing your passport or identity card, obtaining a consular certificate (attestation of residence, attestation of nationality, etc.), registering a newborn child, or taking part in the federal or European elections in Belgium.
However, you won’t have to register at the Belgian embassy in Canada, rather, you will do that at the Belgian consulate in Montreal.
There are two ways to register:
- online registration
- registration by e-mail
Other consular services
In addition to the above-mentioned duties, the Belgian consulate in Montreal still performs the following services. They include:
- Affidavit of support for students
- Biometrics – ‘Flying Consul’ Missions
- Change of address
- Civil status
- Consular attestations
- Consular fees
- Criminal record
- Driving licenses
- Giving a name
- Identity card (eID)
- Identity card for children under 12 (Kids-ID)
- Nationality
- Pensions
- Registration of a new-born
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a visa to go to Belgium?
Yes, you will need a visa before you can travel to Belgium from Canada. Therefore, you will need to visit the Belgian consulate in Montreal instead of the Belgian embassy in Canada for visa application information.
Does Canada have Embassy in Belgium?
Yes, there is a Canadian embassy in Belgium.
Can a Canadian go to Belgium?
Of course, any Canadian citizen with a valid visa can visit Belgium. Therefore, once you have a valid visa, you are permitted to enter Belgium from Canada.
