The model contained herein is the national civil protection symbol. It allows the identification of the bodies that belong to the National Civil Protection System at times of war or peace, namely its personnel, facilities, and material (equipment, supplies, and means of transport), whether internally or internationally.

This symbol is part of the distinctive international sign of civil protection envisaged and set in the Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 ​(approved by ratification by Parliament Resolution 10/92 of 1 April) concerning the protection of civilian victims of international war. Article 66(4) sets that the international sign of civil protection is to be an equilateral blue triangle on an orange background. Paragraph 7 of the same article sets that in time of peace, the sign described in paragraph 4 may, with the consent of the competent national authorities, be used for civil defence identification purposes.