Executive Order 7013—Amendment of Instructions to Diplomatic Officers and of Consular Regulations

Section 5, Article 8, of the Instructions to Diplomatic Officers is hereby amended to read as follows:

Office hours.Diplomatic missions shall be kept open for the convenience of the public from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. continuously each day from Monday to Friday, inclusive, and for four hours from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturdays throughout the year, except that the Secretary of State in his discretion may authorize such rearrangement of office hours as he may deem desirable on Recount of local customs or climatic conditions in particular places or exigencies of the Service.

Exception shall also be made of all days which by act of Congress are made legal holidays in the District of Columbia, namely, New Year's Day, Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. On these days the chancery may be closed and attendance required of such personnel only as the chief of mission may deem necessary to encipher and decipher important cable messages and to attend to any other matters of urgent business.

On all national holidays of the country in which the mission is situated, the chancery may be considered as closed for the transaction of business of a routine nature; but at least one Secretary shall be detailed for duty to receive American citizens who may have urgent business with the mission, and such clerical assistance shall be available as in the judgment of the chief of mission is needed to meet the exigencies of the day.

Diplomatic officers of the United States should be ready and willing to perform the duties of their office at any time, and the hours fixed in accordance with this section must not be considered as the limit of the time within which officers may be called upon to perform their official duties. It is to be understood that, as in the Departmental service in Washington, office hours will be extended from time to time whenever the exigencies of the Service may so require.

Section 63 of the Consular Regulations is hereby amended to read:

63. Office hours. Consular offices shall be kept open for the convenience of the public from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. continuously each day from Monday to Friday, inclusive, and for four hours from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturdays throughout the year, except that the Secretary of State in his discretion may authorize such rearrangement of office hours as he may deem desirable on account of local customs or climatic conditions in particular places or exigencies of the Service.

Exception shall also be made of all days which by act of Congress are made legal holidays in the District of Columbia, namely, New Year's Day, Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. On these days the office may be closed and attendance required of such personnel only as the officer in charge may deem necessary to encipher and decipher important cable messages and to attend to any other matters of urgent business.

On all national holidays of the country in which the consular office is situated, the office may be considered as closed for the transaction of business of a routine nature; but at least one officer shall be detailed for duty to receive American citizens who may have urgent business with the office, and such clerical assistance shall be available as in the judgment of the officer in charge is needed to meet the exigencies of the day.

Consular officers of the United States should be ready and willing to perform the duties of their office at any time, and the hours fixed in accordance with this section must not be considered as the limit of the time within which officers may be called upon to perform their official duties. It is to be understood that, as in the Departmental service in Washington, office hours will be extended from time to time whenever the exigencies of the Service may so require.

That part of section 440 of the Consular Regulations, which reads "Relative rank. The order of official precedence in the Service is as follows:", is hereby amended to read: "Relative rank. The order of official precedence among consular officers is as follows:".

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT

The White House,
April 16, 1935.