How do I know if I need a transit visa when the ticket is purchased online?

score:18

Accepted answer

As you've noticed, visa rules can be extremely complicated, and there are often differences that hinge on very specific details. They're also subject to change at any time. As a result, virtually every airline disclaims all responsibility for visa requirements. For example, this from Delta's contract of carriage (most airlines have similar language, including Saudia):

Each passenger desiring transportation across any international boundary will be responsible for obtaining all necessary travel documents and for complying with all government travel requirements. The passenger must present all exit, entry and other documents required by the laws, and, unless applicable laws provide otherwise, shall indemnify the carrier for any loss, damage, or expense suffered or incurred by such carrier by reason of such passenger's failure to do so. Carrier is not liable to the passenger for loss or expense due tothe passenger's failure to comply with this provision. Carrier reserves the right to refuse carriage to any passenger who has not complied with applicable laws, regulations, orders, demands, or requirements or whose documents are not complete. No carrier shall be liable for any aid or information given by any agent or employee of such carrier to any passenger in connection with obtaining such documents or complying with such laws, whether given orally or in writing or otherwise

In other words, visas are entirely the passenger's problem, and even if someone from the airline helps you, they're still not responsible for providing accurate information. Also, if you cost them money because you don't have the required travel documents, the airline can make you pay for it.

Customer-hostile indeed, but no airline wants to be responsible for their passenger's visas, so that's the system they've created, and us wanting a better one isn't going to change anything. You can book through a travel agent, who may assist you in understanding visa rules, though there's no guarantee they'll provide accurate information either.

It's best to lookup visa rules on a country's official websites, usually that of their immigration department and/or the website of their consulate in your home country. You can also check the databases used by airlines for visa information: IATA's Timatic and the newer ICTS's TravelDoc. These are the systems that will be used at the airport check-in counter to see that you have the proper travel documents; you can consult them in advance before booking your flight to see what will be required.

For your example of a Pakistani singer being denied entry at Hyderabad, a check of Timatic would have revealed this rule before it was too late: "Nationals of Pakistan are only allowed to enter or transit through India if arriving at Chennai (MAA), Delhi (DEL) or Mumbai (BOM)."

The situation is simplified because many flights will transit common hub airports, where the visa policy is well-known (and less complicated than Saudi Arabia; few countries care about the passenger's gender or have seasonal bans). The Schengen area transit visa policy is a bit complicated, but applicable to many popular transit points, and the UK has a system to check if you need a transit visa. Add the fairly liberal transit visa policies of Istanbul and Dubai, plus Hong Kong, and the strict policy of the US (you must have documents to enter the US, even if you're just transiting), and you have the rules for many of the largest transit hubs in the world.

We also receive many "do I need a visa?" questions here at Travel.StackExchange, and if you have questions about some of the more complicated rules, you can come here and ask them before you book your ticket.

Upvote:0

And take care between possible discrepancies between IATA's Timatic and ICTS's TravelDoc : https://twitter.com/mica_jacobs/status/1123913055941873667

I've submitted this issue to Timatic and Traveldoc. I'll keep you posted if they reply.

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