Frequently Asked Questions

About Donating

1. How can I update or cancel my monthly donation?

   To make a change to your monthly donation or to receive a receipt for your donations, you can call our donor services team Mon-Fri 9am -5pm EST at 800-932-9541 or email us at info@smiletrain.org.

2. What percentage of my donation will go to overhead?

   Our goal is to be the most well-managed and cost-efficient charity in the world. To view a percentage breakdown of our total expenses, please visit our Financials page.

   

3. What are your restrictive gift policies?

   Every donation to Smile Train makes a dramatic, immediate, and permanent impact on a child in need. Unrestricted donations allow us to help children more efficiently. At the present time, it is not possible for us to restrict individual donations to specific children. However, if restricting your gift to a specific country is important to you, please contact us at 800-932-9541 and we will do our best to accommodate your request.

4. What is Smile Train's Federal Tax ID number?

   US Tax ID #: 13-3661416

5. Why does Smile Train have multiple addresses in the US?

   Our physical office is in New York City, NY. We use a mail service in Washington, DC, where the majority of our donations are received and processed.

   Our World Headquarters is located at:
   633 Third Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10017.

   To Make a donation you can mail a check to:
   Smile Train, PO Box 96231, Washington, DC 20090-6231
   Checks or money orders should be made out to Smile Train.

6. Does Smile Train participate in the Combined Federal Campaign?

   Yes. Our registered CFC number is 10284 Additional information: https://givecfc.org/

7. What information do I need to include Smile Train in my will, retirement plan, or life insurance policy?

   Your attorney or agent will need the following information:

   Official Organization Name: Smile Train, Inc.
   Address: 633 Third Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10017
   Phone: 212.689.9199, Fax: 212.689.9299
   Smile Train is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization registered with the Federal government and within each state and was incorporated in 1999.
   Federal Tax ID #: 13-3661416.

   For more information about our planned giving program, please visit our Legacy of Smiles page.

8. Will I receive a tax receipt for my donation and how long will it take?

   If you make an online donation, you will immediately receive an email receipt. If you donate via phone or mail, we will send a receipt to the address you provided. We generate tax receipts daily. You will receive yours anywhere from 7-10 days from the deposit/processing date, depending on your location. Please call 800-932-9541 if you would like an additional tax receipt.

9. How do I remove my name from Smile Train's mailing list?

   If you would like to stop receiving Smile Train mailings at your home address, please email info@smiletrain.org. Be sure to include your name and mailing address in your message. Please note that you may still receive a few more pre-scheduled mailings from us after you are removed from the list.

Programs

Smile Train supports comprehensive care for children with clefts at 1,000+ local medical facilities around the world. Beyond surgery, this includes nutritional support, speech therapy, orthodontics, psychosocial counseling, and other essential treatments. To efficiently track and monitor the treatments we sponsor, Smile Train uses a proprietary digital patient database called Smile Train Express that allows our partners to upload patient records, enabling real-time care-quality monitoring. Although the prevention of clefts remains an area of active research, Smile Train supports studies on factors like genetics, nutrition, and the role of folic acid in reducing the risk of a cleft developing. 

About Our Patients

1. Why doesn’t Smile Train always show after-surgery photos in ads?

   We test the results of all of our advertising. Our research and analysis consistently demonstrate that including only before photos in advertisements significantly increases the amount of money we raise to help children.

2. Can I get the contact information for a child I saw in one of your marketing materials?

   Smile Train is committed to maintaining our patients’ privacy. As such, we do not release contact information for the children that we help.

3. Can I restrict my donation to help the specific child I saw in your advertisement or direct mail?

   At the present time it is not possible for us to restrict individual donations to specific children. We promise you, however, that your every donation will transform the life of a child in need. 

4. Can I receive a picture of the specific child I have helped?

   A few months after your initial donation, we will send you a picture and a story of a child we were able to help following your donation. We hope you will display the picture in your home as a happy reminder that there is a child smiling today thanks to you.

5. Can I restrict my gift to either a boy or a girl?

   To support as many surgeries as quickly as possible, Smile Train helps every child that comes to us, regardless of sex. We are unable to restrict donations to a specific gender.

6. Can I restrict my gift to a certain country?

   Unrestricted gifts allow Smile Train to fund more surgeries more efficiently everywhere on earth. However, if restricting your gift to a specific country is important to you, please contact us at 800-932-9541 and we will do our best to accommodate your request.