On 14 December 1948 the Conservative Political Centre's Overseas Bureau Committee held its inaugural meeting, as a sub-committee of the Advisory Committee on Policy and Political Education (later, the CPC Advisory Committee) under the chairmanship of Marjorie Maxse, Vice-Chairman of the Party. The Conservative Overseas Bureau Committee was formed as the executive body which would supervise the work of the Conservative Overseas Bureau. It was composed of representatives from the Conservative Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, specialists in Dominion and foreign parties, India, France, Latin America and imperial affairs, and representatives from the Organisation and Publicity Departments within Conservative Central Office, and the Conservative Political Centre. Additional representatives were subsequently found from the Parliamentary Imperial Affairs Committee, the Women's Central Advisory Committee, the Conservative Research Department and the Independent Unionist Peers. Its chairman was appointed annually by the Party Chairman.

The Conservative Overseas Bureau Committee held its last meeting on 28th November 1972, at which point the Bureau was reconstituted as the International Office, and the Committee became known simply as the Conservative Overseas Committee. In 1984, it merged with the Conservative Overseas and Commonwealth Council to become to Conservative Foreign and Commonwealth Council.