As of June 12, 2022, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has rescinded the Order requiring a negative pre-departure COVID-19 test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 when boarding a flight for the U.S. This order had been in effect for over a year, and the government restrictions have impacted International travel, including church mission trips. So now that the restrictions are lifted for International travel what needs to be consider when planning your mission trips,?
Location
Even if the U.S. doesn’t require testing, checking the local COVID conditions for your mission trip destination and the local requirements is essential.
Schedule
Check your travel schedule to see if your destination or layover has requirements for test results within the last 72 hours. If you’re tested a day or two before your departure, make sure your travel commences within the window of time.
Vaccination status
Like COVID testing, proof of COVID-19 vaccinations may or may not be required at your destination. It is important to check your destination country to verify their requirements. And “vaccinated” usually requires being up-to-date on your COVID shots, not just the initial vaccination.
- An obvious point but not to be overlooked, be sure all your vaccinations are up to date. And be able to provide proof of vaccinations.
Itinerary
Don’t forget to check the requirements for any countries you have layovers or connections through. Some airports offer testing, but lines and costs may interfere with your itinerary if you’re not prepared.
Quarantine
When building out your itinerary, consider quarantine requirements. A 10-day unexpected quarantine period may impede your overall mission plan.
Know your risks
The CDC provides Travel Health Notices that will give you insight into your destination. Advisories and levels of advisory are provided, whether there is an issue with local healthcare availability, or outbreaks of other diseases like monkeypox, measles, and malaria. The site is a great resource that can help you be better prepared.
How do I manage all this?
You may feel confident that traveling to your destination doesn’t offer any additional risk. But managing the forms, proof of vaccinations, tracking fundraising, and everything else may be too overwhelming. This is why a tool like Go Method can give you the confidence to accomplish and manage all the details.
From setting up registration to processing and tracking trip payments, Go Method allows you to set up a customized process for your ministry. Give your members tools to upload and manage their documents and share their individual fundraising links to social networks. As the trip organizer, you can set up and monitor general and individual giving and fundraising links. You can also manage member checklists, and track thank-you notes sent to donors.
It may be too late to schedule a mission trip this summer, but you have plenty of time and the tools you need to get a jump on the summer of 2023’s missions with Go Method.
Carol has worked in the ACST Marketing department and managed most aspects of marketing over the last 20 years. Before ACST, she spent many years handling marketing for companies across the US, including Novell, WordPerfect, Purolator Courier, ArtToday.com, and U.S.News & World Report. Carol is a cradle Catholic who has been active her entire life (a long time!). She has served in volunteer positions within her parish, including formation instructor, lector, code red responder, and numerous other volunteer roles.
