TRIP FINANCE POLICIES

Many times the story of what God does through a mission trip starts before you even get on the plane! We love the accounts we hear about God doing the “impossible” to provide the money and get someone to the mission field! We are also here to help you through the process, whether you need fundraising ideas, a list of donors to send thank you notes, someone to pray with you, or just a current update on where you are in the process.

Here is an outline of Global Encounters’ policies and schedules related to the finances of your trip.

Schedule of Payments

The specific dates for your team will be sent to you with your initial invoice, but this is the general schedule.

  • $250 non-refundable deposit - once you are accepted for the team, you will need to send in your initial deposit. This is not an application fee. The $250 applies to the cost of your trip. It's OK if you don't have the money right away. In fact, you are welcome to apply for the trip even if you aren't 100% certain you can participate. However, just keep in mind that we cannot hold your place on the team until the deposit is received.

  • $800 payment - this will be due about 5 weeks before your departure date.

  • Final payment - the final payment equals your trip cost + flights minus the $1150 you have paid so far. The amount of this final payment varies depending on the price of your flights. (Flight costs change based on departure airport, day that you fly, and whether you want to fly with a team leader or not. We will call you to discuss options and prices before the tickets are booked.)

Donations

If you are raising support and happen to raise more than enough for your trip (Wow! Good job!), we will set aside the extra for you for a later mission trip. We will keep these funds on hold until the end of the next calendar year after your mission trip. If they are unused at that point, we will roll them over to the scholarship fund or general budget. If you have paid personal money toward the trip and then later raised enough donations to more than cover the remaining balance, we can refund the money that you have paid toward the trip. For example, if you have a balance of $200 remaining on your trip when we reach the final payment deadline, and you pay that $200, then a $50 donation comes in a week later, we will refund you $50.

Late Payments

If you know you are going to be late on a payment, contact the Office to work out a revised payment schedule. As long as there is a plan in place and you follow through on it, we will work with you and no late-payment penalties will apply, although the trip does need to be close to paid in full before your departure date. If you do not have an approved late-payment plan, the following fees will apply:

  • 1-30 days delinquent - the greater amount of $25 or 6% of the overdue balance.

  • 31-60 days delinquent - the greater amount of $35 or 10% of the overdue balance.

  • 61+ days delinquent - the greater amount of $75 or 15% of the overdue balance, plus an additional $35 for every subsequent month during which we do not receive a payment toward the overdue balance.

  • All outstanding balances must be paid in full (including any late fees) before application for a future Global Encounters trip will be considered.