Terms and conditions

Congress Registration / Payment

The registration deadlines are as follows:

Early Bird registration until 12.07.16, 24:00 CET
Standard registration until 02.09.16, 12:00 CET
Onsite registration from 03.09.16

Only fully completed and signed registration forms will be accepted. The registration will only be confirmed upon receipt of payment in full as well as a proof of status if required (please refer to paragraph "Proof of Status"). If the registration form and/or the full payment and/or the proof have not been received before the deadline indicated, the registration will be cancelled OR the next registration fee will automatically be charged.

To be registered under the ERS Gold Member fee or ERS Member through National Society Agreements fee, the full membership number must be provided by the published deadline. Furthermore, the delegate must have an active membership at the time of registration. No refunds will be made for delegates who acquire or renew their membership after the registration has been confirmed. Please verify that your membership is active and includes the eligibility to the preferential Congress fees prior to registering for the Congress. For further assistance, please contact members@ersnet.org.

All registration and course fees are exempt of British VAT. Payment by bank transfer is only possible until 26 July 2016, 24:00 CET. The registration fee for active participants includes admission to the Scientific Sessions and the Exhibition. The Postgraduate Courses, Educational Skills Workshops, Meet the Expert Sessions, Professional Development Workshops and Challenging Cclinical Ccases Ssessions are not included in the registration fee.

The official Congress language is English and no translation will be offered.

Proof of Status

To register for the Under 35, Allied Health Professional or Scientist (PhD, non MD) fee, the required proof must be forwarded by the published deadline (together with the registration fee).
A Proof of Status is an official letter written by the head of department – hospital, company or academic institution, which confirms the status of the applicant. The document must be issued in English on the organisation's official letterhead.

When letters, certifying status, are sent after the early bird / standard registration deadline, the next registration fee will be applied even if the online registration was completed within the deadline.

Letter of Confirmation/Payment Receipt/Invoice

A letter of confirmation/payment receipt/invoice will be sent by email after the ERS 2016 Registration PCO has received a fully completed and signed registration form, the related full payment and if applicable the required proof of status.

Name Badge Pre-Mailing

The ERS offers individual participants who have registered before 26 July 2016, the complimentary service of sending the delegate name badge prior to the Congress by postal mail. In the event that a delegate has requested this service, and either fails to notify the ERS 2016 Registration PCO that the name badge has not arrived or fails to bring the name badge to the Congress, a handling fee of 50 EUR will be charged to print a new name badge. Notification of name badges which have not arrived will only be accepted by email or fax and only until 26 August, 2016. After this date, any claims will be handled as a lost name badge (please see below).

Registration Name Change / Lost Name Badge

A handling fee of 50 EUR will be charged for every name change to an existing Congress registration. Name changes will only be accepted by email or fax indicating the new and old name and only until 02 September, 2016. After this date, all name changes must be carried out onsite and a written notification of the person being replaced must be presented.
For a lost name badge a fee of 50 EUR will be charged.

Cancellation Policy / Refund Policy

Notification of cancellation must be made in writing and sent to the ERS 2016 Registration PCO by email or fax by 26 July 2016, 24:00 CET. The refund of the registration fee, less a 25% administration charge, will be made after the Congress. No refunds will be made for cancellations after this date. Any refund claims must be sent by 26 July, 2016. The cancellation policy also applies to Postgraduate Courses, Challenging clinical cases sessions, Educational Skills Workshops, Professional Development Workshops and Meet the Expert Sessions. No refunds will be granted for unattended sessions or early termination of attendance.

As mentioned below (please read "Visa Requirements" below), it is the sole responsibility of the participant to take care of his/her visa requirements. Exceptionally, in case of a visa application rejection, refunds will be made provided that the visa application was filed in due time (before 12.07.16) and provided that a document from the Embassy is sent immediately after the rejection to the ERS 2016 Registration PCO. These two conditions are cumulative. Please note that a notification sent to the ERS 2016 Registration PCO after the Congress will not be accepted.

Modification of the Programme

The ERS reserves the right to modify the programme, which is published as an indication only.

Cancellation of the Conference

In the eventuality that the ERS Congress cannot be held or has to be moved or changed due to:

• Any reason(s) beyond its control that prevent or substantially hinder the planned holding of the Congress
• Unforeseen political and economic events, acts of God, national emergency, national mourning or any other event of "Force Majeure"
• Its statue as medical association compelling ERS to consider particularly the potential health risks (e.g. pandemic flu) of the Congress to participating doctors and their patients

The ERS cannot be held liable by participants for any damages, costs, or losses incurred, such as transportation costs, accommodation costs, financial losses, etc. Under these circumstances, the ERS reserves the right to either retain the entire registration fee and to use it for a future ERS Congress, or to reimburse the registration fee after the deduction of costs already incurred for the organisation of the ERS Congress and which could not be recovered from third parties.

Letter of Invitation

Participants requiring an official Letter of Invitation should contact the ERS 2016 Registration PCO.
To receive a Letter of Invitation, participants must be fully registered to the Congress and payment in full has to be submitted. The attention of the participants is drawn to the fact that the Letter of Invitation has to be requested sufficiently in advance and that the Letters of Invitation will not be sent after 02 September, 2016. The Letter of Invitation does not financially obligate the ERS in any way. All expenses incurred in relation to the ERS Congress are the sole responsibility of the participant. Any costs for express mailing of documents must be covered by the participant.

Visa Requirements

It is the sole responsibility of the participant to take care of his/her visa requirements. Exceptionally, in case of a visa application rejection, refund will be made provided that the visa application was filed in due time (before 12.07.16) and provided that a document from the Embassy is sent immediately after the rejection to the ERS 2016 Registration PCO. These two conditions are cumulative. Please note that a notification sent to the ERS 2016 Registration PCO after the Congress will not be accepted.

Children

The minimum age for a participant is 18 years old. Children under the age of 18 will not be allowed access to any part of the Congress. Children are not permitted to participate in the congress programme or to enter the exhibition. A childcare service is available for parents use and children will only be allowed access to the registration area and the childcare service area.

Accompanying Persons

Due to changes in the pharmaceutical industry code of conduct, the ERS is no longer able to grant access to the Congress for accompanying persons. The Congress is only accessible to certified healthcare professionals, associated press, industry representatives and other stakeholders in the science, management and prevention of lung disease.

Patient involvement
Patients are welcome at the Congress as professional representatives of patient organisations or to participate in workshops and sessions for which they have been invited to contribute only. Due to international law and industry self-regulation patients are not permitted to enter the exhibition.

Congress App provided by Spot Me

The European Respiratory Society will be partnering with SpotMe this year to provide the very best interactive Congress experience available. This highly effective Congress networking app is available for free for all ERS delegates and will allow them to navigate the programme, network, access session materials, use the interactive floor plan and exhibition map, interact with faculty, access CME points, collect Congress materials, watch missed sessions and much more. Full access to the app is available by invitation-only and delegates will need to provide an active, individual email address to receive, download and use this essential Congress tool.

Please ensure that you provide this information when you register yourself or customers to avoid disappointment onsite. This data will not be passed on or used for any other purpose other than allowing delegates to use this service during the Congress.

Data Protection and Sharing of Contact Details

All data provided may be used (saved, stored, processed, transmitted and deleted, but not modified) and shared with partners/suppliers in compliance with the Privacy Policy to allow for my booking(s). Furthermore, the data provided may be shared with the host society or a sister society (medical society). ERS may film, photograph or take television or video footage in public spaces during the ERS International Congress. By agreeing to these general terms and conditions, participants agree that any images in which they may appear may be used in relation to the promotion of future ERS events and on the ERS website.

The ERS and the official ERS Registration PCO periodically shares contact details of participants with third parties that may use these details to contact delegates regarding activities at the conference or other communications which may be of interest. Active participants' badges will contain a barcode/QR code, which will act as an electronic business card, enabling visitors to leave their contact details for exhibitors quickly and easily. Data protection is warranted in accordance with the Swiss Data Protection Act and the Tele Service Data Protection Act.

The right of the participants to film, photograph or take television of video footage during the Ccongress is prohibited, unless a written authorisation is granted by ERS.

Liability

The ERS is not responsible for any bodily or material damage (including theft) sustained by participants during the ERS Congress, which is not directly the fault of the ERS. Each participant is responsible for his or her own insurance in such events.

Fulfilment and Jurisdiction

Any litigation stemming from the above general terms and conditions and contract will be tried in Lausanne, Switzerland where the Swiss law is exclusively applicable.