Support on a volunteering project abroad does not arrive all at once: your organisation prepares you before you leave, an on-arrival training session meets you in the host country, and a mentor supports you through the activity. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, "specific quality and support measures are foreseen: the General Online Training, language learning support, the Training and Evaluation Cycle, mentoring and recognition of learning outcomes". The Guide says participants "receive continuous counselling and guidance before, during and after the activity period". According to Youth Works Hub, the stage you are at decides which support is useful to you, so this page stays short and sends you to the guide that answers each stage in full. Last updated: October 2026.
Your support at a glance 📌
🧳 Before you go: any visa or residence permit you need, your enrolment in the insurance and, if your activity is cross-border, a preparation session with your organisation.
🌍 First weeks: the on-arrival training introduces you to the host country and helps you adapt to cultural and personal challenges.
💚 Staying well: the mentoring meetings should focus on your personal wellbeing.
🧑🏫 Your mentor: personal support through mentoring should be provided to every volunteer, and an Erasmus+ Youth Exchange has group leaders who support participants on site.
What has to be arranged before you go? 🧳
Before you go, the preparation is practical: any visa or residence permit you need, your enrolment in the insurance and, if your activity is cross-border, a preparation session with your organisation. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, "it is crucial that the support or host organisation adequately prepares the participant prior to departure". The Guide says "preparation should take place at least one month before departure and should be tailored to the individual needs of the participant".
The preparation session is about practical matters rather than theory. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, the session covers "the basics of conflict prevention and crisis management". The Guide also says the session has to give participants "practical and technical information on matters such as insurance, visa, pocket money and working hours".
According to the Info Kit for Volunteers in Humanitarian Aid, you might need a visa or a residence permit, and the Info Kit strongly recommends making the request well in advance, because the process may take several weeks or months.
Insurance is arranged while you are still at home. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, "The enrolment to the insurance must be done before the departure of the participants". The Guide says "The enrolment covers the duration of the activity, including travel days".
Our guide on your first steps as an ESC volunteer goes through the agreement, the visa, the insurance and the training sessions one by one, with the conditions attached to each.
What happens when the new country stops feeling new? 🌍
The on-arrival training is the programme's answer to the first weeks in a new country. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, "The main objective of the on-arrival training is to introduce the participants to the host country". The Guide says the training "helps the participants adapt to cultural and personal challenges", and that it allows participants "to get to know each other and to build a network".
The same session prepares you for the friction that comes with a new place. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, participants should also receive "guidance on conflict prevention and crisis management", and the session equips them with "communication skills, including aspects of intercultural learning".
According to the Erasmus+ Programme Guide 2026, "The lack of language competences is one of the main barriers to participation in European education, training and youth programmes". According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, "Language learning support is available for participants carrying out a solidarity activity in the framework of the European Solidarity Corps", and the support "takes the form either of a grant (150 EUR linguistic support) or of an online course via the Online Language Support", depending on the Action. Our page on the Online Language Support explains how to reach the platform.
What the Guide calls cultural and personal challenges is the stretch most volunteers describe as culture shock and homesickness. Our guide on culture shock and homesickness abroad explains what the two are, how they differ and which habits help.
How do you stay well while you are away? 💚
Your wellbeing is written into the mentoring part of the programme. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, the mentoring meetings "should focus on the personal wellbeing of the participants". The Guide lists as possible topics of mentoring meetings "personal wellbeing, wellbeing in the team, satisfaction with the tasks, practicalities, etc.".
According to the Info Kit for Volunteers in Humanitarian Aid, which is written for volunteers in humanitarian aid projects, you may ask your host organisation to facilitate communication between you and the local environment if a conflict situation arises. The same Info Kit says that in the event of a conflict situation you should be supported by the participating organisations, and that you should cooperate actively to avoid communication problems. The same Info Kit says you can decide to interrupt your volunteering period if a serious incident or conflict situation cannot be resolved in other ways, and that this step should always be the last resort.
Health needs follow a separate route. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, the insurance coverage "has its own exclusions and ceilings", and the coverage "is meant to cope with urgent and necessary care which cannot wait until the end of the activity period and the return home of the participant".
Our guide on mental health and wellbeing on a project covers what this support does, where it stops and what to do about the part the programme does not provide.
Who looks after how you are doing? 🧑🏫
Every volunteer should have a mentor. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026,"Personal support through mentoring should be provided to all participants in volunteering activities". The Guide says mentoring "consists of regular meetings between the mentor appointed by the host or support organisation and the participant, within as well as outside the place where the activity takes place".
Young people with fewer opportunities who cannot carry out the activity with normal mentoring may need a stronger version of the same support. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026,reinforced mentorship "is an intensified mentoring process that might be necessary to support young people with fewer opportunities, if they are not able to implement an activity independently or with normal mentoring or tutoring support". The Guide says reinforced mentorship "involves closer contact, more frequent meetings and more time allocated to the implementation of tasks", with support during project activities and outside working hours. Our page on inclusion support explains who qualifies and what the measures cover.
In an Erasmus+ Youth Exchange the person supporting you on site is the group leader. According to the Erasmus+ Programme Guide 2026, "Group leaders monitor and provide support to participants to ensure the qualitative learning process during the core activity", and group leaders "enable a safe, respectful and non-discriminatory environment and protection of project participants".
Our guide on your ESC mentor describes what the role covers and what it does not.
Where do you go from here? 🗺️
The guides linked above answer the practical questions of each stage in full, and this page is the shortest way to the one you need now. If you are still looking for a project, Youth Works Hub lists the open calls for both programmes: youthworkshub.org/category/esc-projects for European Solidarity Corps volunteering, and youthworkshub.org/category/erasmus-projects for Erasmus+ youth projects. According to Youth Works Hub, the volunteers who find the support fastest are the ones who read the stage they are in before they need it.
Frequently Asked Questions ❓
Is the pre-departure training mandatory for every volunteer? 🧳
No. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, the pre-departure training is mandatory only for participants in cross-border volunteering activities, and the Guide says the preparation "should take place at least one month before departure and should be tailored to the individual needs of the participant".
What can you do if the problem is with your mentor? 🔄
According to the Info Kit for Volunteers in Humanitarian Aid, you can ask the participating organisations to get another person appointed as your mentor. The same Info Kit says you should know in advance who the contact person is for conflict situations with the mentor.
Does the insurance cover everything? 🏥
No. According to the European Solidarity Corps Guide 2026, the insurance coverage "has its own exclusions and ceilings", and the coverage "is meant to cope with urgent and necessary care which cannot wait until the end of the activity period and the return home of the participant".
