What You Need to Know

• Please provide a complete visit request with at least eight weeks’ advance notice prior to the visit date. Visit requests with less than eight weeks’ advance notice will be considered on a case by case basis, and approvals are limited.
• Visits are arranged for a single day, Monday through Friday, during regular business hours.
• Compassion will arrange just the day of the visit with your sponsored child. You will need to make all of the arrangements for the rest of your travel and time in country, which may include flights, lodging, documentation (such as passports and visas), insurance, and any necessary immunizations. Please check out our Visit Preparation Page for links that will be helpful for planning your travel; an experienced travel agent may also be helpful.
• After you have requested a visit, a Compassion representative will send you an email with links to complete your visit registration and required documents. When these steps have been completed, your Visit Specialist will submit your request to our local field office and make arrangements for your visit day. Although no visit date can be guaranteed in advance, Compassion will make every effort to arrange your visit accordingly. If you decide to make travel arrangements (such as purchasing flight tickets) in advance, and your visit is subsequently declined by our field office, Compassion is not responsible for your costs.
• When your visit has been approved and you have confirmed the details, Compassion USA will provide you with contact information for your in-country visit host.
• Visitors are responsible for all expenses that are incurred during the planning and execution of a visit. Compassion will notify visitors of any expenses that need to be paid prior to the visit, and any expenses that need to be covered during the visit. Please review our Compassion Visit Expense & Cancellation Policy for more information.

Compassion’s Child Protection Policy

Please read our Trips and Visits Child Protection Policy if you are considering traveling with us, as it guides interactions between sponsors and children occurring on our group trips or Custom Visits. It is meant to protect the children in our child development centers from abuse as well as protect visitors from any wrongful allegations.

In accordance with our Child Protection Policy, Compassion requires the following be completed before a Custom Visit:

• Register for your Custom Visit. Your registration will be initiated once we receive your visit request form, and all Custom Visits must be planned through our office in the USA.
• Watch a short video in preparation of your visit
• All adult visitors (18 and older) who are meeting a beneficiary of a Compassion program must complete and pass a background check prior to their visit. Each adult visitor will be responsible for payment of the nonrefundable, non-tax-deductible fee. Background checks are processed electronically to our third-party vendor. (Please note that international checks, if needed, will impact the cost of the background check)
• Both adults and minors must sign our Code of Conduct Form. For minors, a guardian is required sign on their behalf. If the minor is able, they should also sign these documents.

Instructions and specific links for these requirements will be provided after registration for your visit.

Compassion’s Code of Conduct

In accordance to our Child Protection Policy, both adults and minors must sign our Code of Conduct Form. While you are in-country, please adhere to these guidelines, which are taken from the Code of Conduct:

• Always engage with children in open, visible areas and be sure a church or Compassion staff member is present.
• Never take a child into a hotel room or other private area.
• Visitors may not seek or accept accommodations at the Compassion student center or church partner, with the family of any sponsored child or student, at a staff member’s home, or with a member of the community. Overnight stays are strictly prohibited.
• If you witness child abuse or think a child might be in danger, report it to your host/translator or your Custom Visit Specialist.
• Be sure that your appearance, language and behavior demonstrate respect for the children, their families and their culture.
• Engage with children in age-appropriate ways, and refrain from any behaviors that might be considered inappropriate or flirtatious. For example, while asking/allowing a young child to sit on your lap might be appropriate, asking/allowing a teenage girl to do the same would not be appropriate.
• You are not allowed to visit a Compassion center or a child’s home outside your set itinerary. Any attempt to visit a child and/or family on your own may result in dismissal from the trip/visit and termination of your sponsorship account.
• Do not give cash directly to any child, family or Compassion center staff member.
• Do not exchange any personal contact information (including email address, phone number, physical address or social media contact information) with Compassion-assisted children or their families.

Please note that if Compassion determines that any of these guidelines have been violated, whether deliberately or inadvertently, we may, in our sole and exclusive discretion, cancel or immediately terminate a visit.

Thank you for following these important guidelines. They are meant not only to protect the children we serve, but also to protect you from wrongful allegations of misconduct.

• Visitors are responsible for determining the best ways to make your travel safe and enjoyable. This includes planning what you would do in the event of emergencies or natural disasters, and informing trusted friends or family members of your travel plans. You are the best judge of whether you feel comfortable and capable of traveling on your own in the developing world.
• Compassion cannot assist you with emergencies or natural disasters outside of your scheduled visit with your sponsored child. If an emergency occurs during your scheduled Compassion visit, and you are unable to reach your designated emergency contact, we will make reasonable efforts to reach your designated emergency contact. You are solely responsible for any emergency situation that arises outside of the time of your Compassion visit. We recommend registering your trip with the State Department and signing up for their travel notifications.

Your expenses will include an amount to be paid before you depart for your trip (total due prior to departure), and an amount to be paid during your visit (estimated in-country costs). We are committed to providing the expenses to you as quickly as possible, yet thank you for understanding this is dependent upon the complexity of your visit as well as the capacity of our field office staff, especially during heavy travel seasons. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we expect to send the invoice to you at least two weeks prior to your departure. If you decide to make travel arrangements (such as purchasing flight tickets) in advance, and your visit is subsequently declined by our field office, Compassion is not responsible for your costs. Please note that payments are directly paying for your visit costs, which is not considered a charitable activity and are therefore not tax deductible.

As the field office prepares for your visit, they will provide a total of expenses that you will pay before your visit. These expenses may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Background Checks: Each adult (18 and older) visitor will be responsible for payment of the $40.00 non-refundable, non-tax-deductible fee.
• Service Fee: This nominal fee of $25 covers up to two visitors; for additional guests, there is a fee of $10 per person. This amount helps cover administrative costs, including registration and electronic signature fees, materials, communications, and staffing.
• Transportation for your sponsored child and companions, and possibly your visit host, to reach the visit location: This may include public or private transportation, and fuel.
• Meals and lodging for your sponsored child and companions, and possibly your visit host: This may be necessary if your child travels over a long distance to meet you.
• Communications between the field office staff and your child’s local Compassion staff necessary for the arrangement of your visit: This typically includes the cost of a phone card.

In addition to the expenses paid prior to your departure, our field office will provide an estimate of expenses that you will need to be prepared to pay during your visit. These expenses may include, but are not limited to:

• Host and translator services: Compassion requires a trained host to be present at each visit, even if you do not need a translator. In most cases, your visit host may also act as your translator.
• Transportation during your visit: This may include a taxi or rental vehicle utilized on your visit day.
• Meals during your visit: This may include lunch or dinner for you and your guests, your host, your child and those accompanying your child visit.
• Activity Costs: This may include entrance to the zoo, a park, or other special activity during your visit.

Special Note for Group Visits: Compassion will provide a separate invoice for each sponsor meeting a child, and it will be the sponsor’s responsibility to pay for their own expenses. Groups that would prefer to submit one payment for all visiting sponsors will have their request considered on a case by case basis.

We ask that sponsors carefully consider any decision to cancel a visit, as a sponsored child may already be aware of the visit plans and be extremely disappointed if the visit is cancelled.

If it becomes necessary for you to cancel your visit, please contact us immediately so that we may communicate with our field office. In the event of a cancellation, sponsors are responsible for paying any service fees, as well as expenses that our field office has already incurred to arrange the visit.