Egypt Tests a Smartphone App to Bring Consular Services to Citizens Abroad

Egyptians living overseas who have long queued at embassies to renew documents now can use an smartphone application to initiate consular transactions and track their progress. Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday, 21 October, that it had began testing an app called “Masri Bel Kharig,” or Egyptian Abroad, began, and it lets users start consular transactions and follow each stage until the paperwork is complete. The app is available through the App Store and Google Play.

The pilot covers 17 diplomatic and consular missions, including Prague, Rabat, Manama, Berlin, Doha, Pretoria, Rome, Abu Dhabi and Brussels, along with consulates in Houston, Hamburg, Los Angeles, Frankfurt, Chicago, Marseille, Sydney and Melbourne. The cabinet said more missions would be added in the coming period.

The ministry said more services would follow in the next phase, along with an artificial intelligence assistant to answer questions and explain procedures. It described the effort as a response to presidential directives to improve services for Egyptians abroad, and as part of a wider push to digitize government work. The app is also meant to connect with other state digital platforms.

In August, Egypt introduced an interactive consular website and promised passport processing in under two weeks and birth certificates in three to five days. In June, Egyptians abroad who had already received an automated criminal-record certificate were allowed to request another online through Digital Egypt.

Earlier, in July 2025, the government began authenticating documents through Egypt Post and said it was preparing a pilot electronic authentication platform. The ministry has also opened a central WhatsApp channel for consular questions, in addition to the hotlines run by missions abroad.

In September, the ministry announced it would send civil-status committees to countries with large Egyptian communities to issue and renew national ID cards.