Most countries worldwide have some form of internal rank, roughly parallel to the diplomatic ranks, which are used in their
foreign service or
civil service in general. The correspondence is not exact, however, for various reasons, including the fact that according to diplomatic usage, all Ambassadors are of equal rank, but Ambassadors of more senior rank are typically sent to more important postings. Some countries may make specific links or comparisons to
military ranks.
Australia Officers from the
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) are graded into four broad bands (BB1 to BB4), with the Senior Executive Service (SES Band 1 to SES Band 3) following above. Ambassadors, High Commissioners and Consuls-General usually come from the Senior Executive Service, although in smaller posts the head of mission may be a BB4 officer. Generally speaking (and there are variations in ranking and nomenclature between posts and positions), Counsellors are represented by BB4 officers; Consuls and First and Second Secretaries are BB3 officers and Third Secretaries and Vice Consuls are BB2 officers. DFAT only posts a limited number of low-level BB1 staff abroad. In large
Australian missions an SES officer who is not the head of mission could be posted with the rank of Minister.
Brazil The Brazilian Foreign Service (
Serviço Exterior Brasileiro) is made up of three careers: the Diplomat Career, the Chancery Officer Career and the Chancery Assistant Career. • Assistente de Chancelaria (
Chancery Assistants / Attaché) are career civil servants with a minimum high-school degree who provide technical and administrative support in Brazil and in Brazilian representations abroad. • Oficial de Chancelaria (
Chancery Officers / Attaché) are career civil servants with a minimum university degree who contribute for the formulation, implementation and execution of acts of technical analysis and administrative management, necessary for the development of Brazilian foreign policy. • Diplomata (
Diplomat) are career civil servants responsible for diplomatic and consular activities, in their specific aspects of representation, negotiation, information and protection of Brazilian interests in the international field. There are no ranks in the Chancery Assistant or Chancery Officer careers, nor a hierarchy between careers. However, when working abroad, it is common for Chancery Assistants and Chancery Officers to be assigned to sensitive functions, such as the Vice-Consul, and/or as Head of Sectors such as administration, accounting, communications, processing of political, commercial, diplomatic or consular information. There are six ranks in the Diplomat career, in hierarchical order: • '''' ("Third secretary") • '''' ("Second secretary") • '''' ("First secretary") • '''' ("Counsellor") • '''' ("Minister, second class") • '''' ("Minister, first class", usually referred to as 'Ambassador') '''' is the honorary dignity conceded permanently when a Minister of First Class assumes a Post overseas. It can also be a temporary assignment, when carried on by a lower-rank diplomat or Brazilian politician of high level.
China The ranks of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China are defined by the Law on Diplomatic Personnel Stationed Abroad, passed in 2009 by the
National People's Congress: • Attaché (
Simplified Chinese: 随员;
Pinyin:
suíyuán) • Third Secretary (三等秘书;
sānděng mìshū) • Second Secretary (二等秘书;
èrděng mìshū) • First Secretary (一等秘书;
yīděng mìshū) • Counselor (参赞;
cānzàn) • Minister (公使;
gōngshǐ) • Ambassador (大使;
dàshǐ)
Egypt The following ranks are used in the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: • Diplomatic Attaché • Third Secretary • Second Secretary • First Secretary • Counselor • Minister Plenipotentiary • Ambassador
France There are five ranks in the French Diplomatic Service: (in ascending order) • '''' • ''
(du cadre général
or else du cadre d'Orient'') • ''
(du cadre général
or else du cadre d'Orient'') • '''', the most common rank for
heads of mission, but it also applies to some ministers-counsellors in important embassies • '''', an honorary dignity There are two additional ranks for ICT specialists (also in ascending order): • '''' • ''''
Germany The German Foreign Service uses a rank system that is connected to that of the rest of the civil administration and to military ranks through a common pay table. All ranks also occur in female form.
Greece The Greek Foreign Service uses a system initially modelled after military ranks. All ranks correspond to the Diplomatic Branch's rank and pay by law, albeit their functions are largely different.
Hungary The ranks at the Hungarian Foreign Service are the following.: • Segédattasé – Assistant Attaché • Attasé – Attaché • III. osztályú titkár- Third Secretary • II. osztályú titkár – Second Secretary • I. osztályú titkár – First Secretary • II. osztály tanácsos – Second Counsellor • I. osztályú tanácsos – First Counsellor • Rendkívüli követ és meghatalmazott miniszter – Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary • Nagykövet - Ambassador
Italy In
Italy, ranks and functions are not exactly connected: each rank can cover several functions. Moreover, several exceptions apply. • '''' ("Secretary of Legation in probation period"): 9-month training period at the beginning of the career (no other functions) • '''' ("Secretary of Legation"): second secretary at an embassy, head of vice-consulate, vice-consul • '''' ("Counsellor of Legation"): counsellor at an embassy, consul (head of a first-class general consulate) • '''' ("Counsellor of Embassy"): first counsellor at an embassy, consul • '''' ("Minister Plenipotentiary"): ambassador (as for functions), minister-counsellor at an embassy, head of a Directorate at the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs • '''' ("Ambassador"): ambassador (thus both as for the rank and for the functions), General Secretary or head of a Directorate at the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs There are about 30 people who hold the rank of Ambassador. Therefore, most of the about 150 Italian embassies or permanent representations are held by a Minister Plenipotentiary: traditionally, ambassadors are appointed to the most important representations, such as
London,
Paris,
Washington,
New Delhi and
Peking embassies and representations to the
UN in
New York City and the
EU in
Brussels.
Mexico After the merger of the Consular and Diplomatic Corps, the current grades of Mexican career diplomats are (in ascending order) • '''' ("Diplomatic Attaché"): title held during the one-year training program at the Diplomatic School and an internship in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. • '''' ("Embassy Secretary, Third Secretary"). • '''' ("Embassy Secretary, Second Secretary"). • '''' ("Embassy Secretary, First Secretary"). • '''' ("Counsellor"). • '''' ("Minister"). • '''' ("Ambassador"). There are additional ranks for Administrative specialists and Staff, this civil servants are also part of the Mexican Foreign Service. • '''' ("Administrative Coordinator") • '''' ("Administrative Attache A"). • '''' ("Administrative Attache B"). • '''' ("Administrative Attache C"). • '''' ("Administrative Attache D").
Portugal In ascending order, the five ranks of the Portuguese diplomatic career are, as defined in the Statute of the Diplomatic Career (
Estatuto da Carreira Diplomática): • '''' ("Embassy Attaché") • '''' ("Embassy Secretary") • '''' ("Embassy Counsellor") • '''' ("Minister Plenipotentiary") • '''' ("Ambassador") Ministers Plenipotentiary who have been in that rank for three or more years are called "Minister Plenipotentiary, First Class" (
ministro plenipotenciário de 1.ª classe), those who have been in the rank for less than three years are called "Minister Plenipotentiary, Second Class" (
ministro plenipotenciário de 2.ª classe). Embassy Secretaries who have been in that rank for six years or more and in the diplomatic career for eight years or more are called "First Embassy Secretary" (
primeiro-secretário de embaixada), those who have been in the rank for three years or more and for five years or more in the diplomatic career are called "Second Embassy Secretary" (
segundo-secretário de embaixada), and those who have been in that rank for less than three years are called "Third Embassy Secretary" (
terceiro-secretário de embaixada). Diplomatic ranks are not to be confused with diplomatic positions (posts).
Singapore The Singapore Foreign Service also has a merged Diplomatic and Consular Corps. Its career diplomats and diplomatic support staff are split across two discrete career schemes, namely: (a)
Foreign Service Officers; and (b)
Foreign Service Administration Specialists.
Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) FSOs are selected through multiple rounds of highly competitive written and observational psychometric and neuropsychological evaluations. Being one of the most exclusive and sought-after roles in the entire Singapore Civil Service, FSO candidates are typically drawn from graduates of the world's top universities. This is especially the case for candidates vying to be emplaced on the extremely competitive Political Track, of which only around 20 are recruited nationwide annually. Regardless, most candidates who are eventually selected, possess degrees with First Class Honours from the world's top fifty universities (e.g. the
University of Oxford or the
University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, many of the Ivy League institutions in the United States, or Singapore's two most prestigious universities - the
National University of Singapore and the
Nanyang Technological University).
Foreign Service Administration Specialists (FSASes) FSASes, on the other hand, while still selected through some manner of written and observational assessments, are typically those bearing more conventional educational qualifications. These include graduates from top universities but without "good" honours, or from private and mainstream universities. A large number of FSASes also include Polytechnic graduates (who possess Diplomas). Given the above, FSOs typically occupy the managerial positions, while FSASes generally perform more operational roles. [Note: FSOs are typically the diplomats, while FSASes serve as support staff.] Officials from both schemes occupy billets at both the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as Singapore's Overseas Missions (Embassies/High Commissions/Consulates-General/Consulates) - which number over 50.
Rank on Post FSOs are posted to Singapore's overseas missions at the rank of Second Secretary, while FSASes are posted according to their substantive grades (typically ranging from Assistant Mission Support Officer to Attache - although in rare cases some senior FSASes may be promoted up to the rank of Third/Second/First Secretary). [Note: FSOs and FSASes are on discrete career tracks. Hence, even the rare FSAS who holds a senior diplomatic rank on post, will not enjoy a similar substantive grade or pay to that of an FSO.] Regardless of rank, personnel are typically split across three tracks: (a)
Political, (b)
Administration and Consular, (c)
Administration and Technical. Officers on the Political track take precedence over the rest, as all Heads of Mission (HOMs) or Deputy Chiefs of Mission (DCMs) are generally Political Officers. [Note: The Political track is reserved exclusively for FSOs.]
Other ministries and agencies Personnel seconded from other government agencies receive different protocol-based suffixes and titles from those in the Foreign Service, which differ from the wider public and military services' ranks/grades and titles. For instance, a First Secretary (Economic) would represent a middle-manager of Senior Assistant Director-rank from the Ministry of Trade and Industry. While such persons may hold diplomatic status temporarily, they are not considered to be part of the career Foreign Service.
Spain After the merger of the Consular and Diplomatic Corps, the current eight grades of Spanish career diplomats are (in ascending order): • '''' ("Trainee Diplomat"): title held during the one-year training program at the Diplomatic School. • '''' ("Embassy Secretary, Third Class") or Secretary. • '''' ("Embassy Secretary, Second Class") • ''''. ("Embassy Secretary, First Class") • '
or ', lowest grade to be appointed Consul-General. • '''' ("Minister Plenipotentiary, Third Class") commonly known as Minister, lowest grade to be appointed Ambassador. • ''''. ("Minister Plenipotentiary, Second Class") • ''''. ("Minister Plenipotentiary, First Class") • '''' ("Ambassador of Spain"): not all Spanish Ambassadors hold this grade, which is limited by law to 3% of the total Corps.
United Kingdom His Majesty's Diplomatic Service differentiates between officers in the "Senior Management Structure" (SMS; equivalent to the Senior Civil Service grades of the
Home Civil Service) and those in the "delegated grades". SMS officers are classified into four pay-bands, and will serve in the
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in London as (in descending order of seniority)
Permanent Under-Secretary (O-10), Directors-General (O-9), Directors (O-8), and Heads of department or deputy directors (O-7). Overseas Ambassadors and High Commissioners (in Commonwealth countries) are generally drawn from all four SMS bands (and the D7 delegated grade) depending on the size and importance of the mission, as are Consuls-General, Deputy Heads of Mission, and Counsellors in larger posts. (Deputy Heads of Mission at the most significant Embassies, for example those
in Washington and
in Paris, are known as Ministers.) In the "delegated grades", officers are graded by number from 1 to 7; the grades are grouped into bands lettered A‑D (A1 and A2; B3; C4 and C5; and D6 and D7). Overseas, A2 grade officers hold the title of Attache; B3‑grade officers are Third Secretaries; C4s are Second Secretaries; and C5s and D6s are First Secretaries. D7 officers are usually Counsellors in larger posts, Deputy Heads of Mission in medium-sized posts, or Heads of Mission in small posts.
United States In the
United States Foreign Service, the personnel system under which most U.S. diplomatic personnel are assigned, a system of personal ranks is applied which roughly corresponds to these diplomatic ranks. Personal ranks are differentiated as "
Senior Foreign Service" (SFS) or "Member of the Foreign Service". Officers at these ranks may serve as ambassadors and occupy the most senior positions in diplomatic missions. The SFS ranks, in order from highest to lowest, are: Members of the Foreign Service consist of five groups, including
Foreign Service officers and
Foreign Service specialists. Like officers in the U.S. military, Foreign Service officers are members of the Foreign Service who are commissioned by the President. Foreign Service specialists are technical leaders and experts, commissioned by the Secretary of State. Ranks descend from the highest, FS‑01,
equivalent to a full
Colonel in the military, to FS‑09, the lowest rank in the U.S. Foreign Service personnel system. (Most entry-level Foreign Service members begin at the FS‑05 or FS‑06 level.) Personal rank is distinct from and should not be confused with the diplomatic or consular rank assigned at the time of appointment to a particular diplomatic or consular mission. In a large mission, several Senior Diplomats may serve under the Ambassador as Minister-Counselors, Counselors, and First Secretaries; in a small mission, a diplomat may serve as the lone Counselor of Embassy. == Consular counterpart ==