A dummy return ticket is a round-trip flight reservation, out and back, held in the airline's system without paying the fare, with a PNR you can check on the airline website. Dummy Tickets Visa (DTV) charges ₹699 per passenger, the same as one-way. Schengen checklists used in India ask for a round-trip booking, so pick a return date that matches your leave, hotel and insurance.
- A dummy return ticket is a round-trip reservation with a PNR, at ₹699 per passenger, the same as one-way.
- Schengen checklists used in India, such as Spain's and Slovakia's, ask for a round-trip booking.
- Pick the return date from your approved leave, then match the hotel check-out, insurance and application form to it.
- A Schengen short stay is limited to 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across all 29 countries.
- An open-jaw trip, into one city and home from another, is booked as two flights on the multi-city option, also ₹699.
On this page
A dummy return ticket is a flight reservation for both legs of your trip, out and back, held in the airline's reservation system without paying the fare. Dummy Tickets Visa (DTV) sends it as a PDF with a PNR you can look up on the airline's website. It costs ₹699 per passenger, exactly the same as a one-way reservation.
It is a reservation, not a paid ticket: there is no e-ticket number and it cannot be used to board. Its job in a visa file is to show the date you plan to come home, and that date has to agree with your leave letter, hotel and insurance. Most of the work is choosing that date well.
For UK, US, Canadian and Australian visitor visas, a flight booking is generally not a required document, and the UK's supporting documents guide lists flight bookings among documents that are less useful as evidence. Some applicants still include a return reservation so the travel dates they type into the form match a plan an officer can check. Read the guide for your destination before you order.
Why most visa files need a return flight
A short-stay visa is permission for a visit that ends, and a return flight is the plainest evidence of when it ends. Where a visitor visa checklist asks for a flight at all, it usually asks for both directions.
The Schengen checklists used in India say so directly. Spain's Embassy in New Delhi lists "Flight bookings (roundtrip)" and adds that it is "advisable not to buy the air ticket until the visa has been granted". Slovakia's Embassy asks for a "Confirmed booking (travel itinerary) of roundtrip air ticket" with fixed dates of no more than 90 days, and notes "There is no need buying the travel ticket until visa has been granted". The Dutch checklist for India asks for a reservation for travel to and from the Schengen area and says "You do not need a paid travel ticket."
The EU's handbook for consular staff backs this up: "A paid return ticket should not be required upon lodging". If your trip has no fixed end, such as study or a job abroad, a one-way reservation may fit better, and our guide to choosing one-way or return walks through that decision.
Choosing a return date that fits the rest of your file
Start from your approved leave and fit everything else inside it. An officer can lay your return date next to four other documents, so each one should agree with it.
| Document | Date to look at | How the return flight should relate |
|---|---|---|
| Leave letter or employer's NOC | Last day of approved leave | You land back in India before it, ideally with a day to spare |
| Hotel booking | Check-out date | The return flight leaves on the check-out date |
| Travel insurance | End of cover | Cover runs at least until the day you fly home |
| Visa application form | Intended date of departure | The same date as the return flight |
Say your NOC from your employer approves leave from 10 to 25 October. You fly Delhi to Paris on 11 October and land the same day. The hotel runs from 11 to 23 October, the return flight leaves Paris on 23 October and lands in Delhi on 24 October, and your insurance covers 11 to 24 October. You are home a day before your leave ends, and every date sits inside the one before it.
For a Schengen visa the insurance must cover the whole stay; our guide to Schengen travel insurance explains the minimum cover. If you are ordering a hotel voucher too, our flight and hotel booking page shows how to line up check-in and check-out with the flights. Slovakia's Embassy says an approved visa "will be issued according to the dates on the booking", which is one more reason to use dates you really plan to travel.
The 90/180 rule and your return date
For a Schengen visa, your return date has to keep you within 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across all 29 Schengen countries together. The European Commission puts it as "only stay for a total of 90 days, every 180 days" (the rule as of September 2026).
Days from an earlier trip still count while they fall inside the 180-day window. Say you spent 20 days in Italy in June 2026. For a trip that starts in October 2026, those June days are inside the last 180 days, so you begin the trip with 70 days available, not 90. Our 90/180-day rule guide works through more examples, including how the window rolls forward day by day.
Outside Schengen, the stay you are allowed is set by the visa you apply for. Whatever the country, pick a return date inside that limit.
Open-jaw returns: into one city, home from another
An open-jaw return flies you into one city and home from another, such as Delhi to Paris and Rome to Delhi. It suits a trip that moves across a region by train or road.
On the DTV booking form, the Return option has one origin and one destination, so book an open-jaw under Multi-city with two flights. Two flights cost ₹699 per passenger, the same as a standard return. Add a flight between the two cities and it becomes three flights, priced at ₹699 per two flights, so ₹1,398 per passenger.
| Trip | Option on the form | Flights | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delhi–Paris, Paris–Delhi | Return | 2 | ₹699 |
| Delhi–Paris, Rome–Delhi | Multi-city | 2 | ₹699 |
| Delhi–Paris, Paris–Rome, Rome–Delhi | Multi-city | 3 | ₹1,398 |
Your file should also show how you get from the first city to the second, whether by train, car rental or a flight. The multi-city itinerary page covers longer routes.
A return reservation is not a paid return ticket
A reservation shows a planned return; it does not pay for one. That difference matters in three places.
- At the airport. You cannot board with it. Buy your real ticket once the visa is granted.
- At a border or check-in desk. Some countries and airlines ask for a paid or confirmed return or onward ticket, and a held reservation does not meet that wording. Our page on the return ticket for immigration covers those checks.
- After the visa is issued. The same EU handbook allows a consulate to ask for a paid ticket in exceptional circumstances once the visa has been issued. If that happens, buy one. A refundable fare limits the risk, as our comparison of a reservation and a refundable ticket explains.
If an officer asks what the document is, say it is a flight reservation. That is what it is, and it is what these checklists ask for.
How to order a dummy return ticket
Enter each passenger as in the passport
First name, surname, date of birth and nationality, for up to 9 travellers who fly out and back on the same dates.
Choose "Return"
Enter From, To, the departure date and the return date. For an open-jaw trip, choose Multi-city and enter two flights. Name a preferred airline in the notes box if you have one.
Pick the delivery date and pay
Answer "When do you want to receive it?" with the day before your appointment. Pay by UPI QR code in India and send the payment screenshot on WhatsApp, or by PayPal, debit or credit card from anywhere else.
Check both flights on the airline website
The PDF arrives by email or WhatsApp, typically 10–20 minutes after payment is confirmed, with delays possible at weekends, on holidays and in busy periods. Enter the PNR and surname on the airline's "Manage booking" page, as our PNR check guide shows, and confirm both legs appear.
- The return date falls inside your approved leave
- The hotel check-out is the same day as the return flight
- Your insurance covers every day up to the return flight
- The application form shows the same arrival and departure dates
- For Schengen, your total days stay within 90 in any 180
- The PNR opens on the airline website and shows both flights
When those six points agree, order your return reservation.
Frequently asked questions
Does a return reservation cost more than one-way?
No. DTV charges ₹699 per passenger for one-way or return, or about US$8.50 if you pay from outside India by PayPal or card. A couple with a return reservation pays ₹1,398 and a family of four pays ₹2,796. An open-jaw trip booked as two flights on the multi-city option is also ₹699 per passenger.
Can the return date be changed after I order?
Message us on WhatsApp with your order ID and the new dates, and we will tell you the quickest way to get a reservation that matches them. Orders are final once the reservation has been issued, so a change does not come with a refund. If your leave dates are not settled yet, wait until they are before you order.
Will the return flight still show on the airline website at my appointment?
A reservation is a temporary hold, and how long it stays live depends on the airline. DTV does not publish a fixed validity period. Choose delivery for the day before your appointment and check the PNR on the airline website before you submit it. Our guide to how long a reservation stays live explains more.
Can travellers with different return dates share one order?
No. One order holds up to 9 passengers on one itinerary, so everyone on it has the same flights out and back. If one person comes home earlier, place a separate order for them at ₹699 per passenger. Their hotel check-out and insurance dates should then follow their own return date.
Which airline will the reservation be on?
The booking desk chooses the airline and flights for your route and dates. You can name a preferred airline in the notes box on the booking form, but it is a request, not a promise. The PDF shows the airline, flight numbers and dates for both legs, so you can check them against your plan before you submit.
Can I travel on a dummy return ticket?
No. It is a reservation held without paying the fare. It has a PNR but no e-ticket number, so an airline will not board you on it. Once your visa is granted, buy a ticket from the airline or a travel agent. Our article on travelling with a dummy ticket covers check-in in detail.
- Embassy of Spain in New Delhi: Schengen visas
- Embassy of the Slovak Republic in New Delhi: Schengen visa
- Netherlands Worldwide: checklist for a Schengen visa for tourism, India
- European Commission: visa policy (90 days in any 180)
- Visa Code Handbook I for consular staff (Commission Implementing Decision C(2024) 4319 final)
- GOV.UK: guide to supporting documents, visiting the UK
Last reviewed by the DTV Editorial Team. Visa requirements change, so confirm the current checklist with the embassy, consulate or official application centre before you apply. A reservation supports a visa file and cannot guarantee a visa decision.