Thousands of Australians finding themselves in trouble overseas are facing the prospect of new charges for government help.

On Saturday, Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop signalled a ''user-pays'' approach to consular assistance after 11,927 Australians sought help in the last financial year.

''Of course the Australian government is going to support those in trouble but there are circumstances where questions are raised why taxpayers should foot the bill,'' she said.

Ms Bishop outlined circumstances when government funding could be called into question: when people acted in defiance of local laws, travelled without insurance or ignored travel advisories.

She made her remarks after defending the government's actions on behalf of Greenpeace activist Colin Russell, and criticised him for actions in September that led to his detention.