Flag protocol is a reflection of precedence or rank of the officials attending the event or meeting. Flags hang in the same order. The basics of flag protocol are simple:
- Determine the precedence or rank of the poles.
- Determine the precedence or rank of the flags.
- Place flag 1 on flagpole 1, flag 2 on flagpole 2 and so on.
Source: Protocol to Manage Relationships Today (Amsterdam University Press, 2020)
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In order to determine the order of the flagpoles that stand in front of a building, one stands with their back to the building.
Source: Protocol to Manage Relationships Today (Amsterdam University Press, 2020)
A general overview of the order of the most common flags as used in most countries:
- National flag of the country.
- Foreign national flags (in alphabetical order in case of multiple countries).
- Flags of international or multilateral organisations (UN, EU, NATO, etc.).
- Flag of the state or province (in protocol order in case of multiple states/provinces).
- City flag.
- Organisation or company flag.
- Other flags (e.g. Olympic flag or LGBTQ+ flag).
Source: Protocol to Manage Relationships Today (Amsterdam University Press, 2020)
