Minor Application Form

General Terms and Conditions of Participation “MINORS” 2019

These general terms and conditions are subject to the provisions of Act 7/1998, of 13 April, on general contracting conditions, and of Royal Legislative Decree 1/2007, of 16 November, approving the redrafted text of the General Consumer and User Protection Act and other supplementary Acts, and are binding on the parties, together with the special terms and conditions which may be agreed and those which may be established for each specific programme.

• Registration and form of payment: Registration entails the payment of a 500 $ deposit which will be deducted from the total cost of the programme. This amount will be refunded if the registration is not accepted. Due to the limited number of places, applications will only be accepted in order of submission. No application will be processed if the deposit has not been paid in advance. Academic Year Programmes are governed by their own specific terms and conditions. Registrations are personal and non-transferable.
  The remainder of the total cost of the programme shall be paid 40 days before the programme starts. STEP reserves the right to cancel the registration in a programme if payment has not been received by the due date. The remainder may be paid in cash, by cheque or by means of a deposit in bank account. No student will travel if the programme has not been paid for in full before departure. Price Review: All prices are subject to change up to 20 days prior to departure if transport prices and/or exchange rates change. Prices have been calculated in US dollars using the rate of exchange as in force on 12 January 2018 for currencies not included in the US dollars zone.
• Cancellation, failure to appear and/or withdrawal by the participant: If a participant decides to cancel the Programme, written notice must be given to STEP. The participant shall be entitled to a refund of any amounts paid to STEP. Nevertheless, the following shall apply: (these cancellation conditions are not applicable to the Academic Year Programme, see specific terms and conditions). a) Any cancellation implies the loss of administrative expenses and any other expenses in which STEP may have incurred.
  b) In the event of cancellation by the participant once the ticket for the flight or for any means of transport has been issued, the participant will lose the cost of the ticket no matter what the reason for the cancellation may be.
  c) To summarize sections a) and b) above and for the user’s convenience, STEP has established that the maximum costs of a cancellation will be the following:
  • In all events: 500 $.
  • Between 30 and 15 days prior to departure: 35% of the total amount.
  • Between 14 days and 24 hours prior to departure: 60% of the total amount.
  • 24 hours or less prior to departure: 100% of the total amount.
  If the participant, for whatever reason, fails to appear at departure or withdraws from the programme once it has started, he/she shall not be entitled to any refund. Nevertheless, in the event of cancellations due to a serious cause beyond their control (e.g. illness, accident…), STEP shall act in good faith and shall refund the highest possible amount.
• Alterations and incidences of the Programme. STEP undertakes to provide all the services included in STEP’s programme under the established terms and conditions. However, the following must be taken into account: a) If before the start of the Programme, STEP has to modify considerably any of the essential elements of the contract, the participant shall be notified immediately. He/she may then terminate the contract, at no charge, or accept a modification thereof. In the latter event, STEP will specify the modifications made as well as their effect on the price of the Programme.
  b) The participant must notify his/her decision as soon as possible and, in any case, within three days as of the notification of the modification. If the participant fails to notify his/her decision to STEP within three days, it shall be understood that he/she accepts said modification.
  c) Should STEP have to cancel any of the Programmes for reasons which are not attributable to the participant, or should the participant decide to terminate the contract for the reasons stated in sections a) or b), STEP shall offer the participant another Programme of the same or higher quality or shall refund the participant the whole amount he/she may have paid for the Programme within 14 working days.
  d) Should STEP decide to cancel a programme for any reason, except in cases of force majeure, the registered participants will be entitled to a reasonable compensation for any damages caused within the limits which are stipulated in section 2 herein in compliance with the principle of reciprocity.
  e) STEP will not be under any obligation to compensate the participant in the following cases: - When the cancellation of the Programme is due to force majeure or sufficient cause. The latter is understood as those unusual circumstances which are beyond the control of the person concerned and whose consequences could not have been prevented by the exercise of due diligence.
  - When the cancellation of the GROUP Programme is due to the fact that the minimum number of people registered in the Programme has not been reached, this cancellation must be notified to the participant at least one month before the programme starts. The minimum number of participants in Young Group programmes abroad is 20 students.
  f) The divergences and/or claims which, in the opinion of the participants, may arise during the course of the Programme must be notified to the Organization in charge of the programme in the country of destination, so that a satisfactory solution may be offered immediately. If the solution proposed by the Organization in charge in the country of destination is not satisfactory for the participant, he/she will have 30 days from the conclusion of the programme to submit a written claim to STEP. After obtaining the appropriate documents, STEP will in turn have 30 calendar days to respond to the claim made by the participant. The term of 30 calendar days will start as from the day after the claim is submitted to STEP.
  g) In the event of a claim, STEP undertakes to act with the greatest diligence in order to find the most satisfactory solution for the participant. In the event of a dispute, both parties, with express waiver of any other jurisdiction to which they might have recourse, agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the Courts and Tribunals of Bilbao.
• Insurance Policy: Programmes may include a comprehensive insurance policy under the conditions of the insurance policy underwritten by STEP with an insurance company, but the participant may also underwrite any other additional insurance. The documents of the programme include an insurance policy which should be read carefully. STEP acts as a mere intermediary between the insurance companies and the participants in any of our programmes. For any claim, the participant must contact the insurance company. If a loss is not covered or surpasses the limits of the coverage, the costs shall be borne by the participant and/or his/her father, mother or legal guardian.
  Participants are responsible for their money and personal belongings
• Medical and/or surgical treatment of the participant: If a participant under age requires medical treatment and/or admission to hospital and/or surgery and STEP or their representatives have not been able to contact his/her parents or legal representatives, STEP is authorized to take the steps which are considered to be in the best interest of the participant’s health.
• Participants: Any kind of disorder or physical or psychological incidence, as well as its medical history and treatment, regarding the participant, must be provided to STEP before registration, together with the appropriate translation into the language of the country of destination. Likewise, any other circumstances of the participant which may affect the programme must also be notified to STEP in writing. STEP reserves the right to cancel the registration.
• Practices and customs of the countries in which the Programmes take place and rules to be complied with during the course of the Programmes. The participant must adapt to the way of living and the customs of the country where the Programme takes place. The code of behaviour of the countries of destination, the practices and customs, the meals, timetables, distances and in general, the lifestyle of the countries in which the various Programmes take place usually differ from the way of living and usual customs in our country. In this regard, the participant must adapt to them. The participant undertakes to abide by the laws of the country of destination as well as any other rules (including discipline policies) of the various Organizations, Schools, Centres, Colleges, Universities, Families, etc., which collaborate with STEP in the programme. STEP will give the participant a copy of the Rules applicable to each programme in which those regarding discipline are included. If the Participant fails to comply with the laws of the country of destination or in the event of a serious breach of discipline and bad behaviour, the participant may be expelled from the programme and returned home and all expenses incurred for the return (flight, companion, transfers, etc) as well as any compensation for damages caused to third parties and the refund to STEP of any expenses met by them as a consequence of the behaviour of the said participant will be borne by him/her or his/her parents or legal guardians. STEP shall not refund any amount for the remaining part of the programme.
  The characteristics of the host families vary depending on the country of destination and in some cases they may not coincide with the traditional family model of a couple with children. Schools try to place just one Spanish speaking student with each family. However, STEP, reserves the right to place two of their students in the same home in exceptional cases or due to force majeure. Sometimes the participant stays with more than one host family throughout the programme.
  Schools do not have classes on the official holidays in each country. These shall not be rescheduled or refunded. Initial placement tests and guidance take place during class times.
• Passports, visas and documents. All the participants booking STEP programmes, including children, must have their personal documents (individual passport, identity card) in order, in accordance with the regulations of the country where the programme takes place and the expiry date must be later than the date of conclusion of the programme. Visas, when required by the legislation of the country where the Programme takes place, will be obtained by the participant himself/herself.
• Technical organization of the journeys: The technical organization of the journey to the destination where the various programmes take place is carried out by the agency CICMA 958. Transport companies will be solely and exclusively responsible for their actions (including any possible changes of date, delays, modifications, accidents or loss of luggage during the outward and return journey). STEP only acts as an intermediary between the participant and the travel agencies. If the participant so requests it, he/she will be informed of the name, telephone number and address of the travel agency in charge of the technical organization of the journey. Payment for excess baggage at airports will be borne by the participants.
  Dates of departure and return: Departure and return dates are provisional and they may vary by a couple of days from those which appear in the brochure.
  Permission to travel during the course of the programme: The parents or legal guardians give permission for the participant to travel on public and private transport during the course of the programme
• Authorization to use the image of the participants: STEP is given express permission to use in the future all those photographic materials and materials of any other kind in which the participant may appear, for promoting or advertising their programmes, provided there is no prior express objection by the participant. However, this tacit authorization may be withdrawn at any time by the participant, but damages caused to STEP, if any, will have to be compensated.
• Personal data will be incorporated into a file (held and owned by STEP Language Services SL.) for the commercial and operational needs of STEP. By accepting these general terms and conditions you consent to having them processed and used for those ends. You are also informed of the possibility of exercising the rights of access, rectification and cancellation in the terms established in the current legislation at the following address: C/ Rodriguez Arias, 23–5º– 5 48011 Bilbao, in accordance with the provisions of Organic Act 15/1999 of 13 December on Personal Data Protection.
• Acceptance of the General Rules, Terms and Conditions and Characteristics: Registration in a programme implies reading and accepting all the previous General Rules, Terms and Conditions and Characteristics of the programme which appear in our specific brochures and registration forms.