Other Key Considerations

Clear communication with sponsors is essential, particularly with regard to faculty time abroad. It is important that, early in the process, you discuss any potential expectations for MIT personnel presence abroad with your sponsor.

While extended stays are often acceptable for students and staff, they present unique challenges in areas that include taxes and supervision. Tax laws vary by country and MIT personnel working outside the U.S. may be subject to income tax in that country, as well as the U.S. For more information on what to consider during extended stays and to initiate the approval process for international travel expected to exceed 30 days, please reach out to the International People Placement (IPP) team.

Many countries require a visa to enter the country. MIT has a preferred vendor, A Briggs, that provides support for obtaining visas.

You should become familiar with the requirements and risks of international travel, and consider whether your planned activity might present any safety concerns, especially for students. It is also important to consider potential issues related to social, cultural, or political conditions.

Key resources include:

• The Department of State (DoS) website.
• MIT’s international travel risk policy and list of high-risk travel destinations.
• MIT Health’s Travel Health Clinic, including their Medical & Health Needs Assessment for International Programs (PDF).
• MIT Business Travel Accident Policy, the MIT Study Abroad Student Health Insurance , and the MIT Office of Insurance.
• MIT’s MIT’s Environment, Health, and Safety Office’s field research trip flow chart and planning documents.
• International SOS (ISOS).

For more resources, please refer to our Preparing to travel safely Jump Start.

It is important to determine whether your project will bring international visitors to MIT, how many will come, and how long they will stay.

Department administrators provide assistance with such visits in coordination with the International Scholars Office (ISchO) and the International Students Office (ISO). For very large collaborations, they will need advance notice to process visas and to assess MIT’s capacity to absorb visitors based on available lab space, offices, and housing.

International visitors require significant coordination among the ISchO, ISO, and departmental administrators. It is essential to provide adequate lead time for preparation. Some factors to consider include:

• Where will they be physically located and is there sufficient space?
• What visas and approvals are needed?
• Who will be monitoring their activities?
• Will visitors be taking classes, teaching, or conducting research?
• Will they receive payment or stipend and will there be tax implications?
• What kind of access will they have to information and facilities?
• Are there training requirements?
• Are there potential export control issues?
• Have registration fees for visiting students been budgeted?
• Who is responsible for the visitor’s health insurance?
• Are sponsors and visitors aware of the need to assign intellectual property (IP) rights to MIT via the Inventions and Proprietary Information Agreements (IPIA) forms?

For additional information, speak with your dean’s office, the ISchO, the ISO, or the Technology Licensing Office (TLO) for IPIA questions.

• It is important to understand the full financial picture of a project — the funds needed both to support the activity and to assure that MIT is kept whole.
• PIs often find that they are asked to put a dollar value on a project before it is well defined and costs fully understood. A best practice (especially but not exclusively for major international engagements) is to build in a project definition period of six months or so for both MIT and the sponsor to assess priorities, feasibility, and costs.
• Additional taxes or legal fees must be considered along with the overhead rate for non-research activities, contributions to the endowment, and other potential MIT internal costs specific to each project.
• MIT’s legal and tax specialists from the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) and the Office of the Vice President for Finance (VPF) can help determine other tax and legal implications. MIT may hire an outside expert for further assistance.

• Export controls are federal regulations that restrict access to and the flow of certain materials, devices, data, and technical information to entities outside the U.S. and to foreign nationals inside the U.S.; export control issues may also affect international travel. MIT complies fully with all U.S. export control laws and regulations — noncompliance can have serious consequences on an individual and institutional level.
• Any project with international components should be reviewed by MIT’s Export Control Officer. If you have questions or would like to request a review, please contact the Export Control Office.
• For information on other federal requirements and research security and compliance, review this discussion guide and visit the Office of the Vice President for Research’s Foreign Engagement page.

• Is MIT-owned IP or sponsor IP going to be used in the project?
• What kind of intellectual property might be created (software, patentable IP, etc.) in the project?
• What intellectual property rights will the sponsor expect?
• Are sponsor personnel anticipated to be on campus to collaborate on the project?

Administrators in multiple offices can help you negotiate and implement an international project agreement. Deans or department heads may also need to approve the project, and large and/or complex agreements may need to be reviewed by the International Advisory Committee (IAC). For any project involving China, Russia, or Saudi Arabia, an additional faculty and administrative review is required to help manage risks.

MIT is very careful about the appropriate public use of its name by others. In general, announcements about any project take place only after an agreement is in place and the text must be approved in advance by  the Institute Office of Communications (IOC).