bhaskarbhat5587

Hi,

I hope someone who has recently traveled from India to the USA on a tourist visa via Frankfurt can weigh in on this. My mom is planning on visiting her brother in the USA in June and currently Lufthansa has a suitable itinerary via Frankfurt but we are unsure if she needs a transit visa. The website of the German Mission says Indians do need one but exceptions may apply for those with a valid US visa. However, it isn't clear who qualifies for those exceptions.

Thanks.

janisj

welcome to Fodors. I'd maybe register and ask your questions on FlyerTalk (it is a very active website operated by he same people as Fodors but you need a separate registration/log on). The members on that site are amazing in the depth of knowledge about all things air travel/entry requirements. I know of a few Fodorites who are also members at FT but they may not see your thread here

balthy

Traveldocs website states this for transiting thru Germany for Indian passport holder with a US Visa:


TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS

• Airport Transit Visa (ATV) is not required provided passengers hold a valid visa either for Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Liechtenstein, Ireland, Japan, Romania, the United Kingdom or the United States or when returning having used the visa.

And this page from a German embassy website says the same thing:

https://uk.diplo.de/uk-en/02/visa/ai...-visas/2442170«

The following individuals are exempt from airport transit requirements:

• Holders of valid visas issued by an EEA country (the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) or visas issued by Japan, Canada or the United States of America»

Seems pretty clear that those who qualify for the exceptions are those with a US visa.

bhaskarbhat5587

Thanks, Balthy, for your response.

I was looking on the website of the German Mission in India. I can't post URLs as I am a new member but you should be able to find it with a search.

Under the Airport Transit section of the FAQs, it lists countries that need a transit visa and some of the countries listed have an asterisk next to them. At the end, it says exceptions may apply to these countries and then there are the list of exceptions, including the transit visa exemption. India doesn't have that asterisk which is what confused me.

bhaskarbhat5587

Thank you. Will do that

balthy

The page I posted has EXACTLY the same info as any of the 5 German Mission websites in India, here’s a URL for you as an example with the text relevant to India pasted beneath it.

https://india.diplo.de/in-en/service...345308-6-panel

“Nationals of the following countries do not have the transit privilege and therefore require an airport transit visa (category A) for transit at a German airport:
• India
Exceptions from the requirement to hold an airport transit visa:
• Holders of valid visas from the EEA countries (the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) and visas issued by Japan, Canada and the United States of America.”

It’s very clearly stated but yes repost same question to FT and see if experts come up with something
different to the info on the German Missions in India websites or Traveldocs which is what is used by many airlines to check entry requirements. Or contact one of the missions yourself if you are still in doubt.

vigneshwarthrive7639

if there is a valid US visa then no need for any transit visa in frankfurt. If you are feeling more doubtful ask the customer care of the air tickets website. where you booked the flight to know any relative information which they had at present.