Visitor Access Request (VAR) Process
This process applies to external affiliates, guest collaborators, volunteers, minor volunteers, academic visitors, visiting associates, and visiting professors. If the external affiliate, guest collaborator, or volunteer (and minor volunteers regardless of duration) will be on campus for more than ten days, the sponsoring division/department must initiate a visitor request through VAR.
VAR email notifications will be sent from caltech@service-now.com.
Before starting Step 1, follow any internal procedures your division or department may require.
Step 1: Initiate request
- Determine visitor type.
- Gather visitor's name, email, description of activity, name of sponsor and/or delegate
- Submit visitor request by going to VAR located under Administrative Services in access.caltech
Step 2: Sponsor/delegate completes application
- Click on the link from the Caltech VAR email
- Review existing information, make updates if necessary, complete the additional questions, and submit
Step 3: Visitor completes application
- Visitor receives email from Caltech VAR with visit request information and a link to VAR
- Visitor creates a VAR username and password
- Visitor completes questions and submits
Step 4: Division/Department Reviews Requests and Approves or Rejects
- Division/Department receives email Caltech VAR with information related to the visit request and link to VAR
- Division/Department reviews request and makes a recommendation to approve or reject. Please note: the Division/Department reviewer may send request back to visitor, sponsor, or initiator for more information.
- Once request is approved, it moves forward to HR
Email reminders will be sent to sponsor/delegate, visitor, or division/department approver on the fourth day if no action has been taken.
Step 5: HR Reviews Request
- HR reviews the request and may contact the sponsoring Division/Department with questions. If needed, HR will send the request back for further information.
- If no questions, request is approved
Step 6: VAR Compliance Review
- Request will go to the following based on their responses if applicable to their area
- Once request is approved, it moves to HR
- If request is not approved by any of the compliance groups, they will contact the division/department sponsor
Step 7: If approved, HR Final Steps
External Affiliate, Guest Collaborator, Volunteer:
- HR initiates contact to complete required forms
- Once the visitor has returned the required forms, HR Record is updated, and Division/Department is notified of approval including Caltech UID
- Division/Department can begin the onboarding process
Academic Visitors – Visitor, Visiting Associate, Visiting Professor:
- HR will notify Division/Department of compliance approval
- Division will begin internal division process and approval required at this point and proceed with DPM recommendation
Next Steps
This is a required process to help the Institute review visitor requests and ensure compliance with research and business activities.
This process applies to external affiliates, guest collaborators, volunteers, minor volunteers, academic visitors, visiting associates, and visiting professors.
This process can be initiated by a Caltech employee with access credentials from the sponsoring division/department.
Before starting the process, please identify the visitor type and collect the following information: visitor's name, email, description of activity, and the name of their sponsor and/or delegate.
For helpful tips on determining the visitor type, please review the information under visitor type on our website. If you have questions about the visitor types, please contact human resources at 626-395-3300 or email HRinfo@caltech.edu.
You should start the VAR process if an external affiliate, guest collaborator, or volunteer will be at Caltech (either remotely or on campus) for more than ten days. The visitor request must be reviewed and approved before the visitor arrives at Caltech.
For academic visitors, please refer to the Faculty Handbook.
You can access VAR by logging into access.caltech.edu with your Caltech credentials and navigating to Administrative Services. Please refer back to the division/department to see if there is someone who can make the request for you.
This process may take 2-3 weeks for visitors. Minors generally take 4-6 weeks to ensure compliance with mandated reporter requirements and compliance checks.
If you have any questions regarding VAR, please contact human resources at 626-395-3300 or email HRinfo@caltech.edu. If you have questions regarding your visitor assignment or appointment, please contact your division/department sponsor.