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Stanford
International Affairs
checklist

Forms + Checklists

Travel Checklist

Click through to view a list of required forms and to-dos prior to your international travel, as well as what to do upon return. Also included are common Questions and Tips about international travel.

At least 6 months before...

Read Stanford's International Travel Policy

  • Stanford's International Travel Policy impacts students, faculty, and staff traveling on Stanford-sponsored or Stanford-organized travel abroad. 

Review the U.S Department of State travel advisory and country information page for your destination(s)

  • Crisis24 provides nuanced overall travel risk ratings as well as health and medical risk ratings while the U.S. Department of State issues a travel advisory for every country in the world, in addition to detailed country information pages with important safety, security, and immigration information for travelers.

Verify that your travel plans comply with Stanford's International Travel Policy

  • Undergraduate students on Stanford-sponsored or Stanford-organized trips are prohibited from traveling to countries, regions/provinces, and/or locations where the "Overall" Crisis24 risk rating is “High” or “Extreme,” or where there is other reliable information regarding significant health or safety risks for either the country, province, or city of intended travel. To determine a location’s risk ratings, review the Elevated-Risk Destinations, check the Crisis24 Horizon Platform by selecting "Location Intelligence" and entering your destination, or reach out to Global Risk, globalrisk@stanford.edu.

    No university funds or resources may be used, university sponsorship provided, or academic credit awarded, in support of travel to these locations. All individuals engaging in university-sponsored travel must comply with all applicable travel policies.

    For undergraduates only: if you are not in compliance with Stanford's International Travel Policy, discuss your options with your program sponsor. See Travel Exceptions Criteria, and Process and Timeline for more information.

     

  • Faculty, staff, graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars: Stanford University strongly recommends against, but does not prohibit, travel to Elevated-Risk Destinations. Travelers who opt to undertake such travel are encouraged to seek advice from Global Risk to develop appropriate risk mitigation strategies.

    The final decision about traveling to a destination lies with the individual making the trip. However, the University reserves the right to require the execution of an appropriate release or waiver before permitting such travel.

    Travel to countries with ongoing conflicts and/or significant safety concerns that pose a danger to personnel may require additional notification and registration of travel itineraries prior to departure and may result in additional costs to individual travelers and the sponsoring unit. Faculty, staff, graduate students and postdoctoral scholars are therefore strongly encouraged to consult with Global Risk well in advance of their travel dates to obtain advice on how to minimize risks to themselves and to their research.

Get a passport or check passport validity

  • For U.S. citizens, a passport application can take approximately four to six weeks to process. For non-U.S. citizens, check with your consulate for current processing times. Some countries require that a traveler’s passport be valid for six months after the date you enter the country. 

    To find out what those requirements may be, select your destination country and refer to the “Entry/ Exit Requirements” section on the U.S. State Department Country Specific Information page.

Apply for a visa (if required)

2 months before your trip

For students: Take the International Travel Preparation course on Canvas

  • This self-paced Canvas course for students covers travel preparation, health, safety and security matters. Upon finishing the course, students will be able to complete important pre-departure tasks and plans in preparation for international travel.

This includes using a range of external resources to identify and evaluate health and safety concerns specific to their destination, practicing safe travel behaviors, and identifying services and resources available through Stanford in case they need help.

To enroll:

  1. Students who are taking this course as a program pre-departure requirement will receive an enrollment link from their travel sponsor.
  2. Students who wish to self-enroll in the course may go to the link below.

Read guidelines on Stanford's International Travel Assistance Program

International Insurance Coverage

  • Stanford University provides insurance for unforeseen medical and security incidents that travelers may encounter while abroad. This insurance, via Zurich, is provided at no cost to the traveler on Stanford-sponsored or Stanford-organized travel. This policy does not have deductibles or copays, but there may be circumstances in which travelers will be expected to pay for medical care out of pocket and seek reimbursement. Travelers can access this coverage through calling Crisis24 +1 (443) 716-2305. There are exclusions under the Zurich policy, and we advise travelers to familiarize themselves with the policy summary prior to travel. 

    If you do not call Crisis24 for assistance, you will be expected to pay for any treatment you receive. You should retain all receipts and documentation of care in order to file a claim with Zurich.

    Travelers should contact their personal medical insurance provider (e.g. Cardinal Care) to understand their international medical coverage for exclusions under the Zurich policy and are required to maintain coverage for the duration of their time abroad. If a traveler is seeking routine or preventative medical treatment abroad, they will be expected to pay for these services and seek reimbursement from their personal medical insurance provider.

Schedule a Travel Medicine Consultation and obtain necessary vaccinations

Ensure a supply of medication for the duration of your trip and check that it is legal to bring into your destination country

  • If you have prescription medication, plan ahead and obtain prescriptions from your primary physician for the entire duration of your stay if possible. Some medications may not be readily available overseas. Some medications that are common in the U.S. may not have the same status in other countries and may even be illegal. Check the U.S. State Department Country Information page for restrictions.

Sign Stanford's Assumption of Risk form and return it to your travel sponsor

  • Any student planning to travel off-campus on Stanford-sponsored or Stanford-organized trips must read and sign Stanford's Assumption of Risk form and return the signed form to the department or center sponsoring their travel. (Not sure if you need to sign the form? Check out the decision tree.)

For international students or scholars: Get a travel signature

A few weeks before...

Read and understand guidelines for international expenses (graduate students)

  • For travelers who are traveling on University business, you may submit a request for reimbursement via an expense report within Stanford's Expense Requests System.
  • If there is a departmental administrator who has "SU Expense Requests" authority and handles expense reports that result in a reimbursement, you can submit your invoices or receipts to the administrator to process the reimbursement request.

  • If you submit a request via Expense Requests, you need to enter a business purpose and attach/upload supporting documentation. Business purpose includes the reason for the expenditure and explains how it supports Stanford University business and addresses Who, What, Where and Why. Please refer to the Guidelines for Writing Clear Business Purpose.

    The U.S. Department of State provides an online guide where you can look up foreign per diem rates by location. The Expense Requests system will display domestic and foreign per diems based on city within the system.

    Additionally, please read the Expense Guidance for Business Meals that includes additional regulations and guidelines that pertain to expenses for alcoholic beverages, location of the business meal, and meals provided to a spouse.

Identify specific challenges in the country(ies) to which you will travel and develop a contingency plan

Research international phone and data plans

  • Roaming (calls or using data services outside of your cellular provider's coverage area) charges can get very expensive. Call your cell phone provider to find out what kind of international phone plans they have for your destination country. Each cell phone provider is different and plans may vary depending on your provider. Alternatively, you can bring an unlocked phone that accepts a foreign SIM card, or purchase a local cell phone and SIM card upon arrival, or rely on wifi where available. 

Create a communication plan including key contacts

  • Create a communication plan and share it with family and relevant Stanford staff so that they know how you plan to keep in touch, and how often. Include relevant contact details for destination country, home country and Stanford contacts and method of communication.

Make paper copies of all travel documents and communication plan

  • Before you go, make copies of your passport, visa, and the fronts and backs of any credit cards you might bring with you. Also copy other important documents such as flight and hotel information, documents regarding prescriptions, medical conditions and vaccination records, and your communication plan. Leave copies with a trusted friend or family member or someone in your department and pack a copy of each in your luggage in case you lose the originals.

Register your trip with the U.S. Department of State's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP)

Book Your Trip Using the Stanford Travel Program

  • Booking through the Stanford Travel Program allows Stanford to contact you and offer assistance in the event of a major emergency or changing circumstances related to your travel destination. If you have booked your trip through the Stanford Travel Program (e.g. Egencia, Key Travel, Stanford Travel Connect, or Student Universe), your itinerary is automatically registered and you do not need to do anything further.

1 week before your trip

Notify financial institutions of your travel plans

Call your banks and credit card companies to let them know that you are traveling, and for how long. Failure to alert your issuer can result in a hold on your account due to suspected fraud, leaving you in a bind when you need your card the most.

Upon return from international travel