Frequently Asked Questions

You are a valued part of this ministry, and the relationship you have with your sponsored child is cherished. However, we understand there may be circumstances that prevent you from continuing your sponsorship and we are here to serve you.

To cancel your sponsorship or to learn more regarding some financial options that may allow you to continue your relationship with your sponsored child, please email us at info@compassion.ca or call us at 1-800-563-5437.

Due to the limitations of customs regulations, only paper items can be sent to sponsored children. Items made of paper up to 8.5″ by 11″ and up to .25″ thick can be sent on. Compassion cannot send on or return items that do not fall within these guidelines. If you would like to bless your child in other ways, please send a financial gift, which your child can use to purchase something they really need. Your money will go a lot further in the countries where we work and it will help stimulate the local economy.

Examples of what you can send in the mail include: photos, greeting cards, stickers, bookmarks, postcards, colouring pages, booklets, small calendars, scripture cards, decorative writing paper, paper dolls, and paper planes.

Items which we cannot send include: pencils, crayons, balloons, gum, jewelry, candy, magnets, clothes, toys, seeds, etc.

To set up a My Compassion account, you will need your supporter number, the one that starts with 8-.

1. Click “Register here.”
2. Click “Register”
3. Enter your supporter number and click “Validate.”
4. Confirm if you want to use the email we have on file as your username; click “Yes” or “No.”
5. Check your email (may be in junk mail) for a message from us.
6. Click the link in the email to complete the activation process.
7. Enter your supporter number and create a password (upper and lower case letters and number).
8. Click “Set up account,” which will forward you to the login screen.
9. Log in and enjoy the many features of a My Compassion account.

Sign up for a My Compassion account today.

Sponsorship costs $47 CAD per month per sponsored child. Sponsorship provides children with different learning opportunities, healthcare and social activities, including:

• Christian Teaching & Discipleship
• Bibles
• Access to Education & Literacy Training
• School Supplies
• Regular Health Checkups & Hygiene Supplies
• Dental Screenings
• Life Skills Training
• Vocational Training
• Nutritional Supplements
• Education on Proper Nutrition

Compassion’s local church partners tailor the program to address the specific needs of their communities to ensure that children have the greatest opportunity to reach their God-given potential.Together, you and the church are ensuring that the gospel is shared, people are discipled, lives are changed, communities are transformed and poverty ends

To graduate from Compassion’s Child Sponsorship Program, sponsored children need to have at least completed primary school, a vocational training course and possibly secondary education as well. The expected age at which children may complete the program varies from country to country depending on the education system, but will be between 16 years and 22 years. A child may leave the program earlier if their family moves from the area, if the home situation improves, or if the family chooses to withdraw their child from the program. Every teenager with Compassion has a plan for their future, including their likely date for finishing the program. You are welcome to write to your older sponsored child asking about what is contained in their copy of ‘My Plan for Tomorrow’.

For more details on the process, check out this article: When do you graduate from Compassion’s program? 

Once you have signed into your My Compassion account, hover over your name in the top right corner. Select “Tax Receipts” from the dropdown menu options. Scroll down to see your available tax receipts and choose “Download” next to the receipt you’d like to view.

Children and families receive no cash. Benefits are only ever in the form of goods and services, carefully designed, delivered or purchased according to their needs.

Note: Child and family gifts (donations) are allocated exclusively to the child / family you are supporting. The Compassion centre staff will involve the family in purchasing gifts that are appropriate and meet specific needs.

If you are interested in learning more about how Compassion Canada handles finances, click here.

Yes. Writing online means your letter bypasses our local postal service and will already be in digital format so we can forward it directly to the Country Office. From there, Compassion staff translate, print and deliver the letters (and photos, if included) to your child.

Write a letter today from your My Compassion account .

Looks can be deceiving. The photographs do not show the conditions in which these children live or the hunger and abuse many experience. Compassion believes in maintaining the dignity of the poor. For this reason, as much as we are able, we try to ensure the children are photographed in clean clothes.

Learn more about why your sponsor child may not “look poor”. 

Absolutely! Please email us at info@compassion.ca or call us at 1-800-563-5437. Tax receipts are also available for you to download in your My Compassion account. For each year, tax receipts are issued no later than February 28th of the following year.

All contributions of $10 or more to Compassion Canada are tax-deductible in Canada. To be eligible for a receipt, all year-end gifts and donations to Compassion must be received by December 31st. Compassion receipts for income tax purposes are issued by February 28th of the following year. Receipts can be sent by mail or are accessible through your My Compassion account.

Compassion Canada’s CRA Business number is 11887-1516 RR0001

You can find your supporter number on most correspondence you receive from Compassion Canada, as well as in your My Compassion account. It starts with “8-”, and is followed by 8 digits.

You can also call the Contact Centre at 1-800-563-5437 and we would be happy to provide it over the phone.

Sharing Compassion is an opportunity for sponsors to share their story of sponsoring with Compassion with others so that more children can be released from poverty in Jesus’ name. It can happen anytime and anywhere. The purpose is to help bring the needs of children in poverty to the attention of caring Christians who could help them. We provide you with all the resources you need for a successful event, including an appropriate video to share and presentation ideas.

Email us today for more information or visit www.sharingcompassion.ca

When you write a letter online, we send it digitally to the Country Office. From there, Compassion staff translate, print and deliver the letters (and photos) to your child. We are unable to send emails directly to your sponsored child but our online letter writing process is the next best option.

Write a letter today from your My Compassion account.

Children love receiving letters from their sponsors, but we realize some people aren’t sure what to write to a child they’ve never met. Your letters don’t need to be long to make a huge impact. Knowing that someone cares and is thinking about them will encourage your Compassion child.

Here are some helpful ideas:

Things to share:

• Family, friends, and pets (whatever you’re comfortable with)
• Hobbies or favourite activities
• Bible verses and prayer requests
• Local holidays and special traditions
• Words of encouragement

Things to ask:

• Family and friends (ages and names)
• Favourite activities at school, church and the Compassion centre
• Their country, town or community and its local traditions
• What they hope to be when they grow up

More ideas:

• 80 letter-writing ideas;
• My favourite thing my sponsor has written me;
• Letter writing in three easy steps

Children treasure your letters, so we hope you will write one today. Writing from your My Compassion account is convenient and easy.

In the event a sponsor misses a monthly donation, Compassion has a fund that covers the sponsorship cost. We realize that credit card changes and other financial complications are an inconvenient reality for many of us. Our goal is to ensure children receive the same benefits and attend the program as usual while we try to contact the sponsor to resolve the missed donation. Please note, Compassion cannot cover a sponsorship indefinitely and if we were unable to contact the current sponsor, we would have to find a new sponsor for the child.

You can update your financial information through our secure website.

Compassion Canada is located at 985 Adelaide St S. in London Ontario.

Our mailing address is:

Compassion Canada
BOX 5591
London ON
N6A5G8

Compassion deeply appreciates the faithful emotional and financial support you give to your sponsored child. In today’s uncertain economic times your support and commitment become even more critical as our sponsored children and their families living in extreme poverty are hit even harder by the global recession and food crisis. Because we understand that sometimes personal or financial circumstances can make that monthly financial commitment very difficult for you, Compassion has various options available to assist you that can be customized according to your individual needs and financial circumstances. If you are experiencing difficulties and feel you might benefit from one of our options for sponsorship assistance or you would like to find out more, please contact our office..

You can send a family gift of $40-$1,200 CAD up to two times per year (gift limit is cumulative). You can specify that your sponsored child’s family use your gift for livestock by simply asking us to attach a Gift Instruction to your gift. However, the family is free to use the gift for their greatest need. The centre staff will talk with the child and family to help them to spend your gift in the wisest way, with the best long-term improvement for the family. You can send a family gift through your My Compassion account or by calling our office.

Read more about how impactful the gift of livestock can be!

In areas where there are thousands of families needing help and only places for a few hundred children to be enrolled at the Compassion centre, the local staff may limit sponsorship to one child per family. However, in some areas, up to three children per family may attend the project. You are welcome to contact Compassion Canada to ask if your sponsored child’s siblings are already registered with Compassion, and if so, whether they are still awaiting sponsorship.