Group travel

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Group trip leaders are required to register their group trip with Safety Abroad when embarking on university-sanctioned international travel. The Safety Abroad team will work with you to ensure you have completed the required steps for your group trip to meet the safety and security responsibilities prior to travel. Your group trip’s safety and security is a mutual obligation and priority.  

Determine the advisory level of your destination

Before planning travel, refer to the  Government of Canada travel advice and advisories to determine the advisory level for your destination.

For travel to Level 1 (take normal security precautions) and Level 2 (exercise a high degree of caution) destinations, follow the process below. 

Travel to destinations identified as Level 3 (avoid non-essential travel) or Level 4 (avoid all travel) is considered high-risk by the University of Waterloo and generally not allowed. You must consult with your supervisor and receive approval from the Provost through the approval procedure for high-risk travel.

Additionally, please review the Government of Canada travel health recommendations prior to travel.

If you have questions about your group trip please reach out to us at safetyabroad@uwaterloo.ca. If you would like to request a safety abroad pre-departure risk mitigation travel briefing for your group, reach out to us via this webform. 

Group Trip Leader Steps

  1. Fill out the International Travel Registration Form
  2. Receive group trip registration confirmation email from Safety Abroad 
  3. Fill out the Group Travel Registration Form and return it to Safety Abroad
  4. Remind student travellers to complete the Pre-Departure Student Training for International Travel course in LEARN

Approval

Group trips travelling internationally on a university-sanctioned activity must have approval. It is the trip leader’s responsibility to seek approval from the Chair, Director, Program Director, Department Head or relevant Faculty Dean overseeing the group trip. 

Group trips that include field work considered “significant risk” are also required to complete the Field Work Risk Management Plan. The Field Work Risk Management Plan is managed by the Safety Office and can be contacted with any questions regarding this program at safety@uwaterloo.ca  
 

Group trip registration

Fill out the International Travel Registration form to register your university-sanctioned travel to a Level 1 or Level 2 destination. Once registered, you will receive an email, typically within 2-3 business days, which will provide you with further instructions on the next steps to complete pre-departure required risk mitigation training.

When registering your travel, you will be required to:

  • provide the name and email of your approving authority,
  • provide details of your itinerary (locations and dates),
  • attest that you are fully vaccinated for your travel destination and activities,
  • attest that you have adequate travel and health insurance,
  • confirm that your emergency contact information is up-to-date in Workday or Quest
  • confirm that you will abide by the required travel safety and security practices provided to you and
  • confirm that you will contact safetyabroad@uwaterloo.ca for further direction if you cannot abide by any of the above.

If your travel activity involves "significant risk fieldwork" you must complete and submit the following forms:

To assess if your activity is considered "significant risk fieldwork", please review the safety office guidelines.

Pre-departure Training

Student Participants 

Students are required to complete the pre-departure and travel risk-mitigation activities listed below.
o    Complete the LEARN pre-departure training module, which includes information about the following:
o    Government information
o    Health & vaccinations
o    Insurance
o    Anvil Group
o    Emergency preparedness 
o    International Mobility Program (Non-Co-op) Acknowledgement, Release and Waiver form
o   Review the destination-specific Travel Risk Brief from Anvil Group, the University’s travel safety and security provider

Faculty and Staff Participants 

Review the destination-specific Travel Risk Brief from Anvil Group, the University's travel safety and security provider.
Faculty and staff are enrolled in the LEARN pre-departure faculty and staff international travel course. We encourage them to review the course modules as they provide travellers with practical and important information including:
o   Government information
o   Health & vaccinations
o   Insurance
o   Anvil Group 
o   Emergency preparedness

Please reach out to Safety Abroad if you have any questions or concerns.