Sponsoring a child through non-profits

I have recently been led to sponsor a child in another country through a non-profit organization (like World Vision or Compassion International.) The money is given to the organization who uses it to supply the needs of the child you are sponsoring. There is also correspondence sent back and forth between the sponsor and the child, mostly small-talk and encouragement. I talked to my husband about it who has a security clearance, and he seems to think that donating to these charities can make him lose his clearance. Can someone please tell me if this will cause him to have problems? Thank you!

As long as it is a legitimate foundation and there is no attempt to bring the child into the U.S. there should be no concerns. Just ensure he documents precisely the information on his next periodic reinvestigation so that there is no question about the intent.

Great, thank you so much for the reply! This is something I felt strongly to do and it is encouraging to hear that it should be fine. One more question, though, if you don’t mind-- He is actively being reinvestigated as we speak. The reinvestigation started about a year ago and both of us have already spoken to the investigator. If I chose to do this before the investigation is officially over, do we need to contact the investigator to let her know now? (This seems like a yes to me, but I am not sure as I haven’t gotten this far into the conversation with my husband yet.)

No, the reinvestigation is based on the information on his application at the time it was submitted. If he is worried he can submit an SF86C to his Security Officer who should submit it to the adjudicating agency. That way he is covered if it comes up later.

Great, thanks again!

What if your parents sponsored a child from China. This was part of an exchange program and I did list the kid as a foreign contact. Is this a red flag? This was when I was in high school or in Community College but falls within the 7 year time frame.