I Have Been Detained or Arrested
What to do if you are detained or arrested abroad: your rights, contacting your embassy, and how ILSI can support you.
Being detained or arrested in another country is frightening, and the process differs by country. These general steps apply almost everywhere and can help protect you.
What to do now
- Stay calm and do not resist, even if you believe the detention is unfair — resisting can create additional legal problems.
- Ask to contact your embassy or consulate. In most countries, foreign nationals have a right to consular notification.
- Ask for an interpreter if you do not fully understand the language being used.
- Try to contact the ILSI helpline or ask someone you trust to contact it on your behalf.
- Remember key facts: the date, time, location, and the names or badge numbers of any officials involved, if you can safely note them.
What not to do
- Do not sign any statement or document you do not understand, especially not in a language you cannot read.
- Do not admit to something you did not do simply to end questioning faster — this can be used against you formally.
- Do not assume no one is looking for you — tell your family or a trusted contact what has happened as soon as you are able to.
What ILSI can do
ILSI can notify your embassy if you have not been able to, connect you with a lawyer experienced in the local legal system, and keep your family informed with your consent. ILSI is not a court and cannot secure your release directly, but timely legal representation significantly improves outcomes in most detention cases — see find a lawyer.
Why acting quickly matters
The first hours and days of a detention are often the most consequential for the outcome of a case. Statements made early, before legal advice is available, can be difficult to withdraw later. This is why contacting your embassy and a lawyer as early as possible, even before you fully understand the charge against you, is almost always the right approach.
Supporting a detained family member
If you are a family member trying to help someone who has been detained abroad, contact the ILSI helpline for their country as soon as you learn of the detention. ILSI can help make contact with the relevant embassy and begin arranging legal representation even if the detained person has not yet been able to call anyone themselves.