This guide is for UCL staff and students travelling on UCL business. It sets out all the things you need to check, and do in order to plan a successful trip.
Further information is also available in the Travel section.
Before you start
Ensure you have permission to travel from your line manager/PI/budget holder.
All trips must be registered online to ensure you are adequately protected by UCL's insurance policies.
Are you a member of academic staff? Would you have time to visit a local school to talk briefly about UCL and your subject, on your trip? The Student Recruitment team can make all the arrangements for you. Contact international@ucl.ac.uk for more information.
- 1. Research the trip
First check the country specific guidance and make sure you have the information below on hand before proceeding to the next steps:
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Are you travelling against medical advice? Or will you be over 26 weeks pregnant at the time of (departure/during your trip)? Will you be undertaking any hazardous activities? If so please contact the insurance team BEFORE arranging insurance.
Check UK Government travel advice:
- Do you need to apply for a visa for the country you are travelling to?
- Check travel safety advice.
- Check whether you will need any vaccinations, visit UCL's Occupational Health department.
In addition:
- Decide whether you will be taking holiday along with your business trip (see Travel Insurance entitlements).
- Know whether you will need to perform a risk assessment. Find out more in our off-site working guide.
- Check the value of the equipment you will be taking – you will need this figure when you apply for your travel insurance.
- Check your documents: is your passport valid and does it have enough time left on it for the country you are travelling to?
- UCL is insured by AIG – see the website below for specific advice about the area you are travelling to, the password is the UCL policy number 0010016159.
- AIG travel assistance and travel e-risk learning website - www.mylifeline.co.uk
Holiday entitlements included in standard insurance policy
- 2. Book travel and accommodation
You can book travel and accommodation through Clarity Travel Management. Instructions on how to do this are in the 'Book travel and accommodation' task.
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Go to the 'Book travel and accommodation' task to book your trip.
- 3. Arrange travel insurance
How to register your trip and arrange travel insurance through TravelCert.
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- If this is the first time you have needed travel insurance, please go to the travel insurance task for information about policies, benefits and conditions.
- To get insurance cover register your trip.
- If you are travelling to somewhere deemed 'unsafe' or a sanctioned country you will receive an automated email "TravelCert Trip Clarification Required". The insurance team will contact you about your trip.
- 4. Arrange visas, GHIC or vaccinations
These are optional steps but please consider whether you need to arrange these.
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- Apply for a visa.
- Apply for an GHIC. You should carry a GHIC when travelling to European Union countries. This will reduce medical treatment costs for you in an emergency.
- Get any necessary vaccinations, visit UCL's Occupational Health department.
- Arrange any additional travel insurance you may need – this is for anything not covered by the UCL policy.
- Download any travel apps and register any for any services that would be useful for your trip.
- 5. Before you go
Final checklist for the travel documents you need to bring.
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Ensure you have copies/original documents:
- a copy of your insurance certificate;
- any vaccination certificates as appropriate;
- your passport (with sufficient validity);
- any visa documentation; and
- the details of any additional insurance that you have taken out.
If usual means of contact have failed, it may assist to know the Estates Security Team hold contact information on how to reach suitable UK based Department contacts, if urgently needed, on a 24 hour basis.
UCL's Security team emergency contact details:
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