Consular services for Albanians at home and abroad are set to enter a new digital phase, with Albania’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs preparing to launch a Virtual Diplomatic Presence, a single digital platform designed to provide information and consular services even in countries where Albania has no physical diplomatic representation.

The announcement was made Sunday by Foreign Minister Ferit Hoxha, who described the country’s transformation of consular services as a success story driven not only by technological modernization, but also by efforts to improve the way services are delivered, including their quality and speed.

According to Hoxha, between 2017 and 2026, Albanian authorities administered 1.378 million consular services. From 2019 through June 2026, more than 4.3 million legalization procedures were processed, while more than 203,000 e-Visa applications have been registered since 2021.

Hoxha said the ministry’s goal is to further simplify procedures and bring public services closer to citizens.

“We are specifically working on the creation of a Virtual Assistant that will have no working hours, will respond at any time to questions from anywhere, and will guide applicants toward the appropriate service,” Hoxha said in a video message posted on social media.

The ministry also plans to introduce QR codes for every consular service, allowing citizens to evaluate the service they receive and submit complaints when necessary.

“The citizen should not only be the beneficiary of the service, but also its evaluator. In other words, we want to know how we are performing and how we can improve,” Hoxha said.

The planned Virtual Diplomatic Presence is intended to provide a single digital point of access to consular information and services for Albanian citizens living in countries where Albania does not maintain a diplomatic mission.

“We want to move from the practice where citizens go to the state, to one where the state goes to the citizen and is always close to them,” Hoxha said.

Irida Laçi, director of Consular Affairs at the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, said that 32 consular services are currently available online. Of those, 22 do not necessarily require citizens to appear in person, while documents can also be sent by mail when the nature of the service allows it.

The planned digital expansion marks another step in Albania’s efforts to modernize its consular system and make public services more accessible to citizens, including those living abroad.