A dummy ticket for a UK visa is optional. UKVI does not ask for a flight booking with a Standard Visitor visa application, and its supporting-documents guide lists flight and hotel bookings as less useful evidence. As of September 2026 the visa costs £135 and a decision usually takes 3 weeks. Indian applicants apply online, give biometrics at VFS Global and receive an eVisa, not a passport sticker.
- A flight booking is not a required document for a UK Standard Visitor visa.
- UKVI's supporting-documents guide lists flight and hotel bookings among documents that are less useful as evidence.
- GOV.UK tells applicants not to book travel until they have a decision.
- As of September 2026 the visa costs £135 for up to 6 months, and a decision usually takes 3 weeks.
- Since 1 July 2026 a successful applicant gets an eVisa, not a passport sticker. The ETA scheme does not apply to Indian passport holders.
On this page
- Do you need a flight booking for a UK Standard Visitor visa?
- Where a reservation still helps a UK application
- UK Standard Visitor visa fee and processing time
- Applying from India: VFS Global and the eVisa
- The UK ETA does not apply to Indian passport holders
- Ordering a dummy ticket for a UK visa file
- Before you submit anything to VFS
A dummy ticket for UK visa applications is optional. UKVI does not ask for a flight booking with a Standard Visitor visa application, and GOV.UK tells applicants: "You should not book your travel until you get a decision on your visa application." You can apply with no flight booking at all. Your funds, your job and your reasons to come back to India carry a UK file. A flight PDF does not.
The one place travel plans matter is the online form, which asks for "the dates you're planning to travel to the UK". Some applicants hold a flight reservation so that the dates on the form, the cover letter and the day-by-day plan all agree. That is the honest reason to include one, and the only one.
Do you need a flight booking for a UK Standard Visitor visa?
No. Section 13 of UKVI's guide to supporting documents is headed "Documents you should not use as evidence". It says: "Some types of documents are less useful as evidence in visit applications." The list includes "flight bookings (unless transiting)", "hotel bookings" and "travel insurance".
The same guide reminds applicants that documents do not guarantee success, and adds: "You should bear this in mind when making any bookings". GOV.UK's apply to come to the UK page goes further: UKVI "will not reimburse any travel costs or other expenses if your application is refused or takes longer than expected." The official advice, then, is to hold off paying for flights until you have a decision. Our article on whether a flight ticket is required for a UK visitor visa goes through the wording line by line.
The Standard Visitor rules ask that "you're able to pay for your return or onward journey (or have funding from someone else to pay for the journey)". That is judged from your bank statements, salary slips and ITR, not from a booking. A reservation shows a planned date. It does not show you can pay for anything.
Where a reservation still helps a UK application
A reservation helps in one narrow way: it fixes your travel dates on paper. The form asks for your planned travel dates, "where you'll be staying during your visit" and "how much you think your trip will cost". A held booking gives you a real date and route to enter there and repeat in your cover letter, without paying for a fare you could lose.
A reservation can help when
- Your form, cover letter and day-by-day plan need to show the same dates and route.
- A relative in the UK is writing your invitation letter and needs a firm arrival date.
- You are travelling as a family and want every member's file to show the same flights.
It will not help when
- Your funds, employment or ties to India are weak. It does not replace any of them.
- You want a faster decision. The usual time is 3 weeks whatever you attach.
- You are applying on the Student route, which has its own document list; see our student visa page.
Family visits and business visits use the same Standard Visitor visa and the same £135 fee as tourism; only the supporting evidence changes. Our pages on the family visit visa and the business visa cover what each one adds. Transit is the exception where GOV.UK does ask for a booking: evidence that "your outward journey from the UK has been confirmed and is within 48 hours of arrival, for example travel booking confirmation". A held reservation is not a paid ticket, so for a transit application a paid, refundable onward ticket is the safer document. The transit visa page sets out the options.
UK Standard Visitor visa fee and processing time
The Standard Visitor visa costs £135 for a stay of up to 6 months, and GOV.UK says "you'll usually get a decision on your visa within 3 weeks." The table lists the visit and transit fees that matter to Indian applicants.
| Item | Amount or timing |
|---|---|
| Standard Visitor visa (up to 6 months) | £135 |
| Long-term visit visa (2 / 5 / 10 years, up to 6 months per visit) | £506 / £903 / £1,128 |
| Standard Visitor visa for medical reasons (11 months) | £234 |
| Visitor in Transit visa | £74.50 |
| Direct airside transit visa | £41.50 |
| Priority service, on top of the visa fee | £500, where available |
| Usual decision time | 3 weeks |
| Earliest you can apply | 3 months before you travel |
The fee rose from £127 to £135 on 8 April 2026. The Home Office fees table that takes effect on 8 October 2026 leaves visit visa fees unchanged. Priority service usually gives a decision within 5 working days, but we could not confirm that it is offered for visitor visas at every centre in India, so check when you book your appointment. We do not quote a rupee figure for any fee, because the exchange rate moves.
A worked example: say you plan to fly to London on 14 November 2026. The earliest you can apply is 14 August 2026. Applying by the first week of October leaves the usual 3 weeks for a decision plus a margin for a slow case.
Applying from India: VFS Global and the eVisa
From India you apply online on GOV.UK, pay the fee, then give fingerprints and a photo at a VFS Global centre. GOV.UK's find a visa application centre tool sends applicants in India to VFS Global. It also lists VFS Global for the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain, which matters if you hold an Indian passport and work in the Gulf; our page for UAE residents covers ordering from there.
UKVI stopped issuing visa stickers (vignettes) to successful new applicants on 1 July 2026. A granted visit visa now exists only as an eVisa linked to your UKVI account. Your passport is returned while the application is still being processed, and before you travel you sign in to the account to view the eVisa. Open the account a few days before your flight and check it shows the passport you will travel on.
Apply and pay online
Complete the GOV.UK form up to 3 months before travel. It asks for your planned dates, where you will stay and what the trip will cost.
Attend your VFS Global appointment
Give biometrics and hand in or upload your supporting documents. Ask about priority service here if you need a faster decision.
Wait for the decision, usually 3 weeks
Do not pay for flights in this window. UKVI will not reimburse costs if the application is refused or delayed.
Check your eVisa
Once granted, sign in to your UKVI account and confirm the visa details before you book and fly.
For the full list of papers to put in the file (bank statements, ITR, NOC, leave letter), see our UK visitor visa documents checklist.
The UK ETA does not apply to Indian passport holders
An ETA is not an option on an Indian passport. The Electronic Travel Authorisation is for nationalities that can visit the UK without a visa, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain, the USA, Canada, Australia and European countries. It costs £20 (since 8 April 2026), and from 25 February 2026 carriers check for it before departure. India is not on the list, and eligibility follows your passport, not where you live. An Indian applicant in Delhi or in Dubai needs the full Standard Visitor visa.
A UAE or Saudi passport holder on the same trip may only need the £20 ETA. An Indian passport holder does not qualify wherever they live, so confirm your own case at gov.uk/check-uk-visa rather than following what a co-traveller needed.
Ordering a dummy ticket for a UK visa file
If you decide a reservation belongs in your file, Dummy Tickets Visa (DTV) books it in the airline's reservation system for the names, route and dates you enter on the booking form. It has a PNR you can look up on the airline's "Manage booking" page while the hold is live, and it arrives as a PDF itinerary; the sample dummy ticket shows the layout. It costs ₹699 per passenger, one-way or return, and one order covers up to 9 passengers on the same itinerary.
Delivery is by email or WhatsApp, typically 10–20 minutes after payment is confirmed, or on the date you pick in the "When do you want to receive it?" field. It is a reservation, not a paid ticket, and it cannot be used to board. DTV is not affiliated with UKVI, VFS Global or any airline.
Ask for delivery the day before your VFS appointment rather than weeks ahead. A reservation is a temporary hold, and DTV does not publish a fixed validity period because it depends on the airline.
Before you submit anything to VFS
Run through these five checks the day before your appointment.
- Decide whether you want a flight reservation at all. For a Standard Visitor visa it is optional.
- The travel dates on the form, the cover letter and any itinerary are the same.
- If you include a reservation, the PNR opens on the airline's own website, and the PNR check guide shows how.
- Bank statements, salary slips, ITR and your employer's NOC are in the file, since these are what UKVI weighs.
- After the decision, the eVisa shows in your UKVI account against the right passport.
Some destinations treat flight documents very differently from the UK. New Zealand, for example, asks for a ticket out of the country or money to buy one; our visa guides by country set out each rule.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use a dummy ticket for a UK visa application?
You can include a flight reservation, but UKVI does not ask for one, and its supporting-documents guide lists flight bookings among evidence that is less useful. Some applicants hold one so the dates on the form, the cover letter and the day-by-day plan agree. It will not make up for weak funds or ties, and no flight document decides a Standard Visitor application.
Does a UK visa application also need a hotel booking?
No. Hotel bookings are on the same list of less useful evidence as flight bookings. The form still asks where you will stay, so you need an answer: a relative's address in the UK, or a hotel you plan to use. A hotel reservation can give you a named hotel and dates to write down without paying in advance.
What if I book real flights before my UK visa is approved?
You carry the risk. GOV.UK says "You should not book your travel until you get a decision on your visa application", and UKVI will not reimburse travel costs if the application is refused or takes longer than expected. If you want flight details on paper before the decision, a reservation or a fully refundable fare avoids paying for a ticket you may not use.
Do I need a return ticket to enter the UK as a visitor?
For the visa, the rule is that you can pay for your return or onward journey, or that someone else will pay for it. That is shown with bank statements, not a ticket. You will need a paid ticket to board your flight anyway, because a reservation cannot be used to fly. Our guide on return tickets at UK entry covers the border side.
Should I tell UKVI the flight is a reservation and not a ticket?
Yes. Describe it as a flight reservation or planned itinerary in your cover letter, never as a purchased ticket. A reservation held without payment is exactly that, and saying so costs you nothing, because UKVI does not expect you to have bought a ticket. GOV.UK tells you not to book travel until you have a decision.
Do I need an ETA if I already have a UK Standard Visitor visa?
No. The ETA is a separate permission, £20 since 8 April 2026, for nationalities that can visit the UK without a visa, such as UAE, Saudi, US, Canadian and most European passport holders. Indian nationals are not on that list. An Indian passport holder applies for the Standard Visitor visa, whether applying from India or from the Gulf, and the visa is the only permission needed.
How soon before my VFS appointment should I get a reservation?
Ask for delivery the day before your appointment. A reservation is a temporary hold, and how long it stays live depends on the airline, so a booking made weeks earlier may have lapsed by the time you submit. Check the PNR on the airline's own website before you go. Our guide on when to book a dummy ticket explains the timing.
- GOV.UK: Standard Visitor visa
- GOV.UK: apply for a Standard Visitor visa
- GOV.UK: apply to come to the UK
- GOV.UK: guide to supporting documents for visiting the UK (updated 25 February 2026)
- GOV.UK: visa processing times, applications outside the UK
- Home Office: immigration and nationality fees from 8 October 2026
- GOV.UK: get a faster decision on your visa
- GOV.UK: find a visa application centre
- GOV.UK: check when you can get an ETA
- GOV.UK: updates on the move to eVisas
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.