Travelling to India - Transit Visa Requirement

[chappan]

Hello,

I'll be traveling to New Delhi and here is my itinerary:

Canada --> London (Heathrow) --> Munich --> New Delhi;

While coming back:

New Delhi --> Frankfurt --> Canada

I am a Canadian Permanent Resident and an Indian Citizen. Do I need a transit visa in London, Munich or Frankfurt?

I'll be going in Lufthansa Airline all the way through to New Delhi and same airline all the way back to Canada. I contacted Lufthansa's support and they said that they didn't have updated information and suggested me to contact different high commissions to get this information. Sounded ridiculous to me.

I'll greatly appreciate any help with this matter.

Thank you!

 

[ghatot201]

No you don't need transit visas for any of those countries.

Below is the information for heathrow. You don't need transit visas if you fall under one of these categories.

1) a valid visa for entry to Canada or the United States of America and a valid airline ticket for travel via the United Kingdom from another country or territory to the country in respect of which the visa is held; or
2) a valid visa for entry to Canada or the United States of America and a valid airline ticket for travel via the United Kingdom from the country in respect of which the visa was held to another country or territory; or
3) a valid airline ticket for travel via the UK as part of a journey from Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the USA, if you are transiting the UK no more than 6 months after the date when you last entered Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the USA with a valid entry visa for that country; or
4) a valid USA I-551 permanent resident card issued on or after 21 April 1998; or
5) an expired I-551 permanent resident card issued on or after 21 April 1998, accompanied by a valid I-797 extension letter issued by the Bureau of Citizenship; or
6) a valid Canadian permanent resident card issued on or after 28 June 2002; or
7 ) a valid common format category D visa for entry to a state in the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland; or
8) a valid common format residence permit issued by an EEA state or Switzerland under Council Regulation (EC) number 1030/2002; or
9) a valid UK residence card; or
10) a valid EEA family permit issued by the UK government; or
11) a diplomatic or service passport issued by the People's Republic of China; or
12) a diplomatic or official passport issued by India; or
13) a diplomatic or official passport issued by Vietnam;

 

[rizmayo]

Hello,

I'll be traveling to New Delhi and here is my itinerary:

Canada --> London (Heathrow) --> Munich --> New Delhi;

While coming back:

New Delhi --> Frankfurt --> Canada

I am a Canadian Permanent Resident and an Indian Citizen. Do I need a transit visa in London, Munich or Frankfurt?

I'll be going in Lufthansa Airline all the way through to New Delhi and same airline all the way back to Canada. I contacted Lufthansa's support and they said that they didn't have updated information and suggested me to contact different high commissions to get this information. Sounded ridiculous to me.

I'll greatly appreciate any help with this matter.

Thank you!

This member passed through Heathrow smoothly, you can contact him:
http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/transit-visa-requirement-for-uk-urgent-help-pls-t165094.0.html;msg2598797#msg2598797

 

[chappan]

Thanks guys. I am getting different information from different people.

Here is what I found on UK Border Agency's website:

I basically went through a questionnaire and got the below results:

"You told us that

you are a national of India.
you are coming to UK to Transit.
you are normally and legally living in Canada.

What do you need to do?

If you are coming to the UK briefly as part of your journey to another country, you will generally need to obtain a UK visa before you travel.

If you will arrive on a flight, remain in the arrival lounge of the airport without passing through immigration control, and then depart on another flight from the same airport, you should apply for a direct airside transit visa.
If you will arrive in the UK, pass through immigration control and then leave the UK within 48 hours, you should apply for a visitor in transit visa.
If you will spend more than 48 hours in the UK, you must obtain another type of visitor visa before you travel. The Visiting the UK section lists the types of visitor visa. "

 

[poison]

1. Open this URL: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/transitthroughtheuk/visa-transit-airside/
2. Expand 'Transit without visa' concession - DATV exemptions section in More Information at the bottom
3. See point # 5

Hope it helps.

 

[chappan]

Poison,

Thank you! I just responded to your PM too. I am planning to visit UK High Commission which is at walking distance from my work place. Just to be on safer side, I'll just go and clarify few things. I still have time before I leave for vacation, just in case if they asked me to apply for visa.

Regards,

 

[poison]

Sure.. go ahead! Its sounds unreasonable to me why Lufthansa does not have any information! Air Canada gave me exact same answer as UK Embassy and website. Any ways, keep us posted.

 

[chappan]

Gentlemen,

Just FYI.. I went to British High Commission today but the guy at front door told me that they don't issue visas from there and don't even entertain visa related inquiries. He suggested that I contact Toronto or Vancouver office which I did but there is not way (at least I didn't find) to leave a call back number. I sent them an email nevertheless. I also spoke with German consulate (b'coz my flight is through Munich too) here in Ottawa but I was told by German consulate that visas for Germany are handled by Austrian embassy..LOL!! I then contacted Austrian embassy and the lady I spoke with said that they don't answer visa related questions over the phone for security reasons and asked me to send them an email instead. She was very polite and professional and gave me the email address.

So, here we are, no information so far. I have sent an email to both British Consulate as well as Austrian consulate. Will update as soon as I hear back from them. If any of you know how to get in touch with a human over the phone at British consulate, please let me know.


Regards,

 

[rizmayo]

Gentlemen,

Just FYI.. I went to British High Commission today but the guy at front door told me that they don't issue visas from there and don't even entertain visa related inquiries. He suggested that I contact Toronto or Vancouver office which I did but there is not way (at least I didn't find) to leave a call back number. I sent them an email nevertheless. I also spoke with German consulate (b'coz my flight is through Munich too) here in Ottawa but I was told by German consulate that visas for Germany are handled by Austrian embassy..LOL!! I then contacted Austrian embassy and the lady I spoke with said that they don't answer visa related questions over the phone for security reasons and asked me to send them an email instead. She was very polite and professional and gave me the email address.

So, here we are, no information so far. I have sent an email to both British Consulate as well as Austrian consulate. Will update as soon as I hear back from them. If any of you know how to get in touch with a human over the phone at British consulate, please let me know.


Regards,

Wow, I really hope you are saving a lot of money taking this flight, because the headache just seams to be too much.
regards,

 

[chappan]

Actually no, this is one of the expensive ones. My main target was shortest travel time and this one had the least travel time of 23 hours each way. There were some flights which had 23 hrs of travel time one way but 47 hrs return or 35 hrs return. I definitely didn't want to spend 23 hours at the airport.

The one I have bought has 2 stops while going but only one while coming back, at Frankfurt. There weren't many options from Ottawa. May be there are from Toronto or Vancouver.

 

[rizmayo]

Actually no, this is one of the expensive ones. My main target was shortest travel time and this one had the least travel time of 23 hours each way. There were some flights which had 23 hrs of travel time one way but 47 hrs return or 35 hrs return. I definitely didn't want to spend 23 hours at the airport.

The one I have bought has 2 stops while going but only one while coming back, at Frankfurt. There weren't many options from Ottawa. May be there are from Toronto or Vancouver.

If cost is not the issue, have you looked at Emirates? They don't have a long transit time.

Qatar Airways could be a good option, if you book the Montreal - Ottawa flight separately in Air Canada.

Regards,

 

[chappan]

May be next time. I have booked my tickets now. It's just a little frustrating but I'll probably be able to handle the situation. Since I still have some time before I leave, I'll do my full research and post here briefly so others can be benefited too. All in all, it's utter BS that a transit visa could be required even though traveller won't be leaving the airport.

 

[banrad]

Chappan,

That's what an airport transit visa is for, namely for foreigners to transit through an airport without leaving the transit zone at the airport/terminal. There's nothing weird about this type of visa being required. It's pretty much standard across Europe and North America.

However, as you have a Canadian PR card, it will do instead of s transit visa for the UK or the Schengen area (Frankfurt & Munich in Germany) if you don't need to leave the transit zone to change your flights. For future, just beware that the US, unlike the European Union countries, doesn't recognize a Canadian PR card instead of a valid transit visa if you have a stopover at an airport in the USA!

Just check the websites of the airports in question and make sure you won't need to get out of the transit zone to catch your connecting flights. If you browse this forum, you'll see there's been many posts covering the same issue.

I wish you a safe flight!

 

[chappan]

Here is what I have found regarding whether transit visa would be required or not at Munich airport:

This is from German Embassy Website:

Citizens of the following countries need an airport transit visa:

India (I am not listing all the countries to keep this post short)

Exceptions:

The following travelers do not require an airport transit visa (even if they are citizens of a country mentioned in the list above):

- holders of a valid Canadian Permanent Resident Card
- holders of a valid Canadian visa
- travellers who leave Canada after having used a Canadian visa and still have legal status in Canada (Your status in Canada is legal until the date stamped in your passport when you entered Canada. If you have a work/study permit your status is legal until the permit expires.)

Airport transit privilege does not apply and you will need a tourist visa:

If you have to pick up your baggage and/or have to check in again (please verify with your airline)
If you have to pass the passport control (please verify with your airline)
If you are transiting through two or more airports in Germany or another Schengen countries (for example: Toronto-Paris-Frankfurt-India or Toronto-Frankfurt-Munich-India)
If you hold an open ticket
If your stay in the international transit area exceeds 12 hours

Regarding the bullet point that is bold above, I was a little concerned because I thought UK was also one of the Schengen countries but I found later online that UK and Ireland are the only two countries that didn't sign Schengen agreement.

All in all it looks like that I will not need transit visa, neither in London nor in Munich. I'll update the thread once I hear back from both embassies.

Thank you all who have been trying to help. Appreciate it.

 

[chappan]

Hello Fellow Members,

I finally got response from UK Border Agency representatives. They pretty much reiterated what has already been said by other members on this thread. It's good that I got the confirmation. Here is their response:

Dear Applicant,

Thank you for contacting WorldBridge Service, The UK Border Agency's Commercial Partner. We appreciate your patience regarding the response to your enquiry as WorldBridge strives to provide the most accurate responses to all enquiries. Below you will find the response to that enquiry.

You transit the UK airside if you arrive here on a flight, remain in the arrival lounge of the airport without passing through UK immigration control, and then depart on another flight from the same airport: Nationalities requiring a DATV:

Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
Angola
Bangladesh
Belarus
Bolivia
Burma
Burundi
Cameroon
People's Republic of China
Colombia
Congo-Brazzaville
Democratic Republic of Congo - including travel documents issued by the former Zaire
Ecuador
Egypt
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
India
Iran
Iraq
Ivory Coast
Jamaica
Kenya
Kosovo
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
FYR of Macedonia
Malawi
Moldova
Mongolia
Montenegro
Nepal
Nigeria
Pakistan
Palestinian Authorities
Rwanda
Senegal
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Syria
Swaziland
Tanzania
Turkey
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus - the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is not recognised by the UK government. Visas are issued on an EU uniform format 'Form for affixing the visa'
Uganda
Venezuela (except those holding a passport issued by the Republic of Venezuela which contains biometric information held in an electronic chip)
Vietnam
Yemen
Yugoslavia - documents issued by the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, by present Yugoslavia authorities or by the UN mission in Kosovo
Zimbabwe

If you are a national of a country covered by the DATV system, you may be able to transit the UK airside without a visa. To qualify for this exemption:

you must arrive and depart by air; and
your onward flight must be confirmed, and must depart within 24 hours; and
you have proper documentation for your destination, including a visa if necessary.

Additionally, you must hold:

1) a valid entry visa for Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the USA, and a valid airline ticket for travel via the UK, as part of a journey to or from one of those countries; or
2) a valid airline ticket for travel via the UK as part of a journey from Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the USA, if you are transiting the UK no more than 6 months after the date when you last entered Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the USA with a valid entry visa for that country; or
3) a valid USA I-551 permanent resident card issued on or after 21 April 1998; or
4) an expired I-551 permanent resident card issued on or after 21 April 1998, accompanied by an I-797 extension letter issued by the Bureau of Citizenship; or
5) a valid Canadian permanent resident card issued on or after 28 June 2002; or
6) a valid Australian or New Zealand residence visa; or
7) a valid uniform format category D visa for entry to a state in the European Economic Area (EEA); or
8 ) a valid uniform format residence permit issued by an EEA state under Council Regulation (EC) number 1030/2002; or
9) a valid UK residence card; or
10) a valid EEA family permit issued by the UK government; or
11) a diplomatic or service passport issued by the People's Republic of China; or
12) a diplomatic or official passport issued by India; or
13) a diplomatic or official passport issued by Vietnam.

A valid US immigrant visa packet (form 155A/155B) is a 'valid visa' for these purposes, but the following documents are not valid for the DATV exemption:

an I-512 parole letter or an I-797C (notice of action) instead of a valid US visa.
a transportation letter instead of a valid US permanent resident card issued on or after 21 April 1998;
a valid travel document with a US 'ADIT' stamp saying - 'Processed for I-551. TEMPORARY EVIDENCE OF LAWFUL ADMISSION FOR PERMANENT RESIDENCE VALID UNTIL [date]. EMPLOYMENT AUTHORIZED'; and
a US visa foil endorsed, "NOT A VISA. FOIL PREPARED AT DHS REQUEST".
If you are a national of a DATV country and you hold a non-national (including refugee) travel document, you will need to get a DATV to transit the UK airside unless you qualify for one of the exemptions listed above.

Please note that this concession is operated at the UK Border Agency's discretion. Our officers may therefore prevent you from using the concession. If you are unsure whether you meet the concession's criteria, you should get a visa before you travel.

Please note that you will not be able to respond to this email. If you have additional questions submit a new enquiry via email free of charge by visiting the WorldBridge website at www.worldbridgeservice.com.

When submitting a new enquiry, please reference the case number from this particular email to ensure thorough processing. Note the case number can be found in the subject line of this email. EX: Reply from WorldBridge Service for Case Number: 00000xxx.

Thank you again for contacting WorldBridge.

Very sincerely yours,

WorldBridge Service

WorldBridge Service is happy to provide you with this information. Please note, however, that the decision to issue or refuse an entry clearance is made solely by Entry Clearance Officers at the British embassy. WorldBridge staff has no power or influence over the success of applications. WorldBridge staff may offer application information but may not offer immigration advice.