Victoria state office

About us

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Victoria State Office (VSO) provides a range of services including:

• supporting portfolio Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries
• assisting with protocol and other issues affecting the local Consular Corps
• assisting the department with its activities in metropolitan and regional Victoria
• trade advocacy and outreach, business liaison and public diplomacy activities
• assisting the Victorian State Government with its overseas work
• consular services.

For emergency consular assistance, please call the 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre: +61 2 6261 3305 or 1300 555135 (local call cost within Australia).

For travel advice, check the Smartraveller website.

For questions about immigration and visas to visit Australia, please contact the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC).

We cannot provide visa information for other countries. Contact the relevant foreign embassy or consulate in Australia for visa advice.

For information on exporting from, or investing in, Australia, contact Austrade.

Protocol

The Victoria State Office provides protocol services to the Consular Corps. These services include processing of arrival and departure notifications, diplomatic visa renewals and issue of identity cards, airport facilitation for foreign dignitaries and liaison and representation at Corps’ functions. For more information please view the department’s Protocol Guidelines.

Consultations and public events

Australian Ambassadors, High Commissioners and Consul-Generals regularly undertake consultations in Victoria. The visitors and events list includes details of forthcoming visits and relevant contact officers. Please note that while all requests for appointments with visitors to the office will be considered, visit programs may already be finalised.

The Victoria State Office conducts public events and consultations on trade and foreign policy issues in metropolitan and regional Victoria. These events feature guest speakers, such as Ambassadors, High Commissioners and Consul-Generals, high profile overseas visitors and specialists from the department.

Refer to the visitors, event and consultations list for the details of upcoming events.

Alternatively, download a database registration form [DOC 120 KB] | [PDF 31 KB] to be added to our events mailing list.

Speakers

The Victoria State Office can arrange for someone from the department to address your school, business, organisation or community group on:

• foreign policy
• trade negotiations and the benefits of trade
• consular services
• careers in the department.

Email the Business Relations Officer for more information: lisa.chadderton@dfat.gov.au

Publications

The department offers a range of publications designed to provide information on Australia, Australian foreign and trade policies and the economic and political climate in other countries. To browse, download or order departmental publications please visit the publications page.

Australian Passort Office - Melbourne

You can lodge your application for an Australian Passport at an Australian Post outlet.

In certain circumstances you may lodge at our Passport Office.

Lodgement is by appointment only.

Please phone the Australian Passport Information Service on 131 232 for enquires regarding your application and to schedule your appointment.

Notarial services

Authentications and Apostilles

Overseas governments sometimes need proof that Australian Documents, or the signatures of Australian officials on documents, are genuine before they will accept them. We are able to service these documents with the required Apostille or Authentication stamp, by validating the official signature, stamp or seal, against records held on our data base. This is a legal process and we will only issue Stamps once we are satisfied that the signature, stamp or seal on a document is not fraudulent. Instances of attempted fraud in the past means that we need to be cautious about issuing an Authentication or Apostille .

You should check with the government of the country concerned to find out which stamp is required and on which documents (if any) you need to have serviced This advice can only be provided by the overseas government you are dealing with, or with those countries that have embassies and/or consulates in Australia.

Certificates of No Impediment (CNI)

If you are a citizen or permanent resident of Australia and seeking to marry overseas, the laws of some countries require that before a foreigner may marry within their jurisdiction, he or she must provide a Certificate of No Impediment (CNI). However, some countries will only accept certificates issued by their local Australian Embassy or Consulate (Overseas Mission). Consequently confirmation with the relevant authorities in which the marriage is to take place, must be sought. You can refer to the appropriate Overseas Mission website under "Service for Australians" for information on their requirements.

In the event that the foreign authority will accept a Certificate of No Impediment, the application form can be printed from the smartraveller.gov.au website Marriages Overseas please contact us for further information regarding our lodgement requirements.

Processing and Lodgement Requirements

The processing turnaround time for documents is Two (2) working days.

You can lodge your documentation at our office.

We are located at:

Australian Passport Office (Notarial Unit)
Level 13, Casselden Place
2 Lonsdale Street (corner of Spring Street)
Melbourne VIC 3000

Office hours are from 8.30am to 3.00pm Monday to Friday. No appointment is necessary.

Alternatively you can post your documents to us, together with your payment and a Notarial Service Request

• Notarial Services Request Form (.pdf)
• Notarial Services Request Form (.doc)

Documents should be mailed to:

Australian Passport Office
Notarial Unit
GPO Box 1588
MELBOURNE VIC 3001.

Frequently asked questions

Please refer to our frequently asked questions for further information.

How we can assist your business

Download this brochure [PDF 567KB]

The Victoria State Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) plays an important role in making sure that the Australian Government is in touch with the needs of Victorian businesses.

We liaise closely with the Victorian Government and other Commonwealth agencies to deliver quality services to your business.

Are you exporting or planning to export?

To assist analysts and decision makers in business, in-depth economic analysis of particular markets or sectors is available at www.dfat.gov.au/eau

Statistical market information and publications on Australia's trade, as well as comprehensive economic and trade fact sheets on 150 of Australia's trading partners, are available at www.dfat.gov.au/publications/statistics.html

Are your business practices consistent with Australia's application of international sanctions?

Sanctions are punitive measures designed to address situations of international concern. It is the responsibility of all Australian businesses to ensure they comply with Australian laws international sanctions.

DFAT's Sanctions and Transnational Crime Section hosts regular outreach in each State and Territory.

To participate, please contact vso@dfat.gov.au and for further information, please visit www.dfat.gov.au/un/unsc_sanctions

Do you travel overseas for business?

All business travellers should be aware of the Australian Government's travel advisory and consular information service. We strongly recommend subscribing to the update service and registering your travel plans online at www.smartraveller.gov.au

Facing an emergency overseas?

The Australian Government will do what it is able to help Australians in difficulties overseas. Information on consular services can be found at www.smartraveller.gov.au/getting_help_overseas.html.

Contact details for Australia's global network of diplomatic missions is available at www.dfat.gov.au/embassies.html

Need a foreign visa?

Contact the relevant foreign representative office in Australia www.dfat.gov.au/embassies.html

Do you regularly travel to the Asia-Pacific region for business?

To apply for an APEC Business Travel Card, which allows accredited business people to obtain streamlined business visitor entry to the economies of the Asia-Pacific region, please contact the Department of Immigration and Citizenship on 131 881 or visit www.immi.gov.au/skilled/business/apec/apply.htm

Do you represent an organisation or business with interests in Australia's international trade policy?

The DFAT Victoria State Office periodically holds public consultations and events on Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), country-specific and regional trade matters, and other trade and foreign policy initiatives.

To get involved in our events program, email your key geographic or trade interests to vso@dfat.gov.au

For a list of upcoming DFAT-hosted international visitors to Melbourne, see www.dfat.gov.au/melbourne

Keep up-to-date with international trade news and figures, information on Australia's Free Trade Agreements and information on Australia's involvement in the World Trade Organization at www.dfat.gov.au/trade

The Victoria State Office can sometimes arrange for an appropriate DFAT representative to address your organisation about Australia's:

• trade negotiations and the
• benefits of trade
• foreign policy
• consular services for business travellers

Additional resources

Victorian Consumer and Business Centre

For practical information about improving your Victorian businesses export potential visit the Victorian Consumer and Business Centre at 113 Exhibition Street, Melbourne or call 13 22 55

Business Victoria

A practical online resource designed to help Victorians start, run and grow their own businesses. Visit: www.business.vic.gov.au

Australian Passports Office

For information about Australian Passports and notarial services, contact the Australian Passports Information Service on 131 232 or visit: www.passports.gov.au

Austrade

For information about the practical aspects of exporting, contact Austrade on 13 28 78 or visit: www.austrade.gov.au

AusIndustry

For information about business development programs and grant opportunities, contact AusIndustry on 13 28 46 or visit: www.ausindustry.gov.au

Department of Immigration and Citizenship

For information about Australian citizenship and visas, including if you qualify for the APEC Business Travel Card, contact DIAC on 131 881 or visit: www.immi.gov.au

Australian Customs Service

For information about restrictions on importing or exporting goods, contact Customs on 1300 363 263 or visit: www.customs.gov.au

Visitors, events and consultations

Dates	Visitors
Australian Heads of Mission/Heads of Post visiting Melbourne
31 May 2012	TBA, Australian Consul-General (Designate) to Guangzhou
01-04 June 2012	H.E. John Woods, Australian Ambassador to Peru
04-05 June 2012	TBA, Australian Ambassador (Designate) to Chile
04-06 June 2012	H.E. James Wise, Australian Ambassador to Thailand

Appointments

If you are interested in meeting any of the above visitors, please attention all correspondence to the Visits Coordinator at vso@dfat.gov.au.

While all requests for appointments will be considered, programs may already be finalised.

Updated 18 April 2012

Victoria State Director, Mr William Fisher

The head of the Victoria State office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is Mr William Fisher, a career diplomat with the Department who has most recently served overseas as Australia’s High Commissioner to Canada (2005-08). Prior to this, he served abroad as Ambassador to France (2000-04); Ambassador to Thailand (1997-2000); Ambassador to Israel (1990-93); Consul-General in Honolulu (1983-87); Charge d’Affaires in Tehran (1982-83); Consul-General and Head of Post in Port Vila (1978-80) and in Noumea (1975-78), as well as earlier postings at the Embassy in Laos and at the Mission to the United Nations in Geneva.

In the Department in Canberra, Mr Fisher’s positions have included First Assistant Secretary, Public Affairs Division (1996-97); Consular Programs and Security Division (1995-96); and International Organisations and Legal Division (1994-95). He was Principal Adviser, Americas and Europe Division (1980-90); Head, South Pacific Section (1980-81). He also held the position of Assistant Secretary, Defence Branch of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (1987-88).

In October 2010 Mr Fisher was also appointed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs as the Australian Government’s Special Envoy to La Francophonie and to the Francophone States of Africa.

Mr Fisher is married to Kerry, and they have one daughter.