Indians will soon be able to travel to & from the UK via Germany, in a significant development for Lufthansa, Air India and desi globetrotters. Germany has announced visa-free transit for Indians during Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s official visit to India. Travel agents and airlines are now awaiting the date from this will be implemented.
Once effective, desi travellers will be able to travel between India and the UK via Germany on Lufthansa. Also, Air India will be able to code share with Lufthansa to & from the UK and increase passenger numbers on its German flights.
“ Announcement of visa free transit for Indian passport holders for transiting through Germany,” govt said in a statement on the 27 outcomes of the Chancellor’s India visit. Once implemented, this move will partially undo the impact on Indian (and many other foreign) travellers caused by Brexit six years ago.
At the time of Brexit to “hurt” each others’ airlines, the UK and EU mandated a transit visa will be required for travelling to one via the other. Which means, an Indian going from Delhi to London via Frankfurt will require a transit Schengen visa to get on the connecting flight. Similarly, an Indian travelling from Mumbai to Munich via London will require a transit UK visa to take the connecting flight.
The UK is a huge market for Lufthansa and Air India. Once implemented, this development will again enable Lufthansa to fly travellers (both flying it and code share ones on Air India) from India via its hubs in Germany to the UK. There are also some other visa-free destinations also which Indians can now travel to & from by transiting from Germany, like those in the Caribbean.
Transit visa requirements must be kept in mind while booking tickets. There have been numerous cases when people booked via some unscrupulous agents or online travel agencies (OTAs) by just seeing the lowest price. For instance, travelling from India to Canada on an American carrier (for just transiting via the US) means the passengers must have a US visa.
Similarly, going from India to the US via Canada means a transit visa for the latter is required. Ditto for those travelling from India to the UK via Schengen states and the Schengen States via the UK. Soon Germany will be an exception for the UK.
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