The Protocol Office is a service to the Directorate. An average of 160 dignitaries visit CERN each year from approximately 60 nations. Since the birth of the Organization in 1954 CERN has been proud to welcome about 90 Heads of State, 40 Heads of Government, and about 700 Ministers, 750 Ambassadors and Heads of International Organisations, and 200 groups of Members of Parliament to mention but a few.

At any given time there are 30 programmes for visiting dignitaries under preparation who may be taking part in an event on the site or spending a few hours or a full day visiting the research facilities.

The role of the Protocol Office is to manage all aspects of the presence of the dignitary on the CERN site from protocol to logistics through researching the content of the programme and ensuring the involvement of the relevant CERN Staff and Users in close collaboration with the Delegates to CERN Council and Missions.