Visitors to Scotland
What to do in an emergency
In an emergency phone 999 and tell the person you speak to whether you need the police, an ambulance or the fire services. You may need to answer some questions about why you are telephoning. Alternatively phone 112 which is the single emergency telephone number for the European Union.
Scots Law
Scotland has its own legal system which is different from other parts of the UK. The justice process part of this website explains the criminal justice system in Scotland. If you have a specific question you can ask the police.
How to report a crime
If you are a victim of crime and wish to report the crime to the police more information can be found here. If you need an interpreter to help you the police will try to organise this. The police and the authorities may need to contact you again so if you plan to leave the country, you should tell them where and when you are going. This will allow the police to tell the Procurator Fiscal (PF)Often just called the Fiscal. The Procurator Fiscal is the public prosecutor in Scotland. The PF is in charge of deciding whether someone should be prosecuted and what court the case should be heard in. The prosecution has the 'burden of proof' which means that they need to present enough evidence to prove 'beyond reasonable doubt' that an accused person is guilty. The PF prosecutes the crime on behalf of the Crown, and makes decisions in the public interest (see below). (see Crown Office). They may then bring a case forward to deal with it before your departure.
How to get support and help
If you are a victim of crime and want to speak to someone who can provide emotional and practical help and support, please contact Victim Support Scotland (VSS) on 0845 603 9213 or 0845 303 0900. If you need an interpreter to help you speak to VSS, they will try to arrange this. More information is available about Victim Support Scotland as well as other organisations that may be able to assist you.
Contacting your embassy
It may also be worth checking with your country’s embassy or consulate website to see if they will be able to offer you any kind of help.
