Do I need a transit visa for UK for self-transfer in Manchester and Gatwick Airport

Upvote:6

You are going to need a valid visa or the airlines will not take you. A "self transfer" means that the airline to the UK is only contracted to take you there, and they will not allow you to board unless you can show them you have a valid means of entering the UK.

You typically cannot use "air side transfer" services when travelling on seperate airline tickets. You will normally need to enter the UK and travel through customs etc.

You could contact the airports to clarify this. But there is also the issue of what happens if your flight to the UK is delayed enough that you miss your onwards flight - at that point you would almost certainly have to pass UK immigration and having a visa would make this much more likley to go in a way you would like.

Upvote:8

Airside transit (i.e. without legally entering the country in question) in the UK is only possible at London Heathrow Airport (source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_the_United_Kingdom). Some nationalities need a transit visa even in such case, but that's not relevant for you, since you'll be transiting at Manchester and Gatwick airports that lack airside transit.

At all other UK airports (other than Heathrow) you'll need to pass through the UK border check. Whether or not you'll need a visa (and what type of it) depends largely on your nationality. You can also check it yourself at the above mentioned Wikipedia site.

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