Stay calm and cooperate with official identity checks. Carry your original passport or residence permit. A stop for an identity check is not necessarily an arrest.
If you are detained, take these practical steps. These are requests to make, not guarantees about what authorities will provide.
- Ask why you are being held and which authority and station are handling your case.
- Clearly ask the authorities to notify your country's embassy or consulate immediately. Do not assume they have already done so.
- Ask for a local lawyer and an interpreter if you do not understand the language. Ask for translation and legal advice before signing documents you do not understand.
- Tell the authorities promptly about injuries, essential medicines or urgent medical needs. Tell your lawyer or consular staff about mistreatment or discrimination.
- If permitted, tell a trusted person where you are and how to contact your lawyer.
State your nationality and exact location, including whether you are in federal Iraq or the Kurdistan Region, when seeking help. Ask your mission which office covers you. Do not assume procedures or access are identical. Consular help in Iraq can be severely limited. If authorities treat you as Iraqi, access to foreign consular help may be restricted. Do not expect an embassy to secure your release or override local courts.
Sources: FCDO Iraq safety advice, Canada's Iraq advisory, Canada's detention guidance and guide for detained Canadians. Canadian consular services described in these guides apply to Canadians. Other nationals should check their own government's services.