Dummy ticket UK: a flight reservation for UK residents applying abroad

If you live in the UK and need a flight reservation for a visa application, a dummy ticket from the UK costs about US$8.50 per passenger, paid by PayPal or card. Dummy Tickets Visa (DTV) books it in the airline's system and sends a PDF with a PNR by email or WhatsApp, typically 10–20 minutes after payment is confirmed. It is a reservation, not a paid ticket.

Whether you need one depends on where you are going. Schengen checklists in the UK ask for a travel reservation. The US and Canada do not require a flight booking, and Ireland does not list one. If you want a visa to visit the UK itself, see our UK visa guide instead.

Dummy ticket UK orders: price and payment

From the UK you pay in US dollars: about US$8.50 per passenger, one-way or return. Pay by PayPal, or by debit or credit card through PayPal's card checkout. Your card issuer converts the charge into pounds at its own rate. A hotel reservation is about US$8.50 per hotel, per passenger, and a multi-city itinerary about US$8.50 per two flights, per passenger.

The form asks for each traveller's name exactly as in the passport, date of birth, nationality, route and travel dates, plus an email address or WhatsApp number. We do not need a passport scan or an account, and up to 9 passengers fit on one itinerary. You can also pick the day you want it under "When do you want to receive it?". Weekends, holidays and busy periods can add delays.

How long a reservation stays live depends on the airline, so we do not publish a fixed validity. Ask to receive it the day before your appointment, and look up the PNR on the airline's website before you hand it in.

Where UK residents apply for a Schengen visa

If you legally live in the UK, you apply in the UK, not in India. The European Commission's guidance sends applicants to the consulate for the country where they legally reside, whatever passport they hold. Your main destination decides which country's consulate, and where you live in the UK decides which centre.

The provider is not always the one you used in India. Germany takes applications through VFS Global in India but through TLScontact in the UK. Two examples, checked on the official pages in September 2026:

The German Missions' page sets out the split, and BLS's Spain site warns that an application "will not be accepted" if you live outside the consulate's area. For France, Italy, the Netherlands and the other states, take the provider and centre from that consulate's UK page. Our Germany visa guide covers the rest of a German file.

One rule changes when you apply from the UK. The 2024 EU decision that gives Indian nationals a two-year multiple-entry visa after two lawfully used visas covers people living in India and applying there. From the UK the standard EU cascade applies. Multiple-entry Schengen visas explains both.

Proving UK residence: your eVisa, not your BRP

Your proof of UK residence is your eVisa. GOV.UK says "All BRPs have now expired and have been replaced by eVisas", so an old BRP card no longer shows valid status.

Some checklists still mention both. The Dutch tourism checklist for the UK (undated; read in September 2026) accepts "a British residence permit, valid for at least 1 months after you leave the Schengen area" or "a printout of your eVisa showing your immigration status, issued by UKVI". It adds: "The eVisa must be valid for at least 1 month after you leave the Schengen area." Since no BRP is still valid, the eVisa printout is the document you can actually give.

The employer letter and payslips

Expect to show a letter from your UK employer and recent payslips. This letter does the job an NOC does for an applicant in India. The Dutch checklist asks for "a recent, official and signed letter" from your employer that gives your name, position and salary and the company's registration details, plus "pay slips for the last 3 months".

Other consulates word this differently, so check yours. Ask your employer to date the letter close to your appointment and to state your approved leave, because the officer will compare it with your travel dates. For drafting it, see how to write an NOC letter for a visa, and adapt it to a UK letterhead and company number.

What the Schengen checklist says about your flight

The Dutch checklist asks for a reservation, and its wording needs a careful read. Under the heading "Travel reservation" it says you must show "a reservation of your trip and your travel plans", and that you can do this with "proof of a return ticket to the United Kingdom or proof of onward travel". For onward travel its examples include "confirmed travel tickets to the next destination".

The page does not say whether a return ticket must be paid. A DTV reservation is a held booking with a PNR and a return to the UK, but it is not a paid or confirmed ticket. If your consulate or its centre tells you it needs a paid or confirmed ticket, a reservation does not meet that wording. Buy a refundable fare instead; reservation or refundable ticket compares the cost and risk. Our Schengen visa guide covers the fee and the rest of the file.

US, Canada and Ireland from the UK: flight booking optional

None of these three asks for a flight booking with a visitor visa, so an itinerary is optional support at most.

• United States. You can interview in London as a UK resident. On the State Department's table updated 17 September 2026, the next B1/B2 appointment in London was about 1 month away, against 6.5 to 12 months at posts in India. The State Department tells applicants not to buy tickets until they have a visa. See our US visa guide.
• Canada. IRCC lists one UK visa application centre, in London, run by VFS Global. Its estimate for a visitor visa applied for from the UK was 23 days on 22 September 2026. Flight details are a recommended document, not a required one. See our Canada visa guide.
• Ireland. Ireland is not in Schengen. Indian nationals who live in the UK need an Irish visa, but under the Short Stay Visa Waiver Programme rules long-term UK residents "will not have to pay a visa fee". The visa waiver itself is not open to UK residents. Ireland's document list does not include a flight booking. See our Ireland visa guide.

Typical routes from the UK

A return from your nearest UK airport to your main destination and back is the usual shape, because Schengen checklists look for your return to the UK. Heathrow (LHR), Gatwick (LGW), Manchester (MAN), Birmingham (BHX) and Edinburgh (EDI) are the usual starting points. The card below shows the format.

If you fly into one city and home from another, such as Manchester to Rome and Paris to Manchester, that is two flights and costs the same as a return. A route with more flights is priced as a multi-city itinerary. Our booking desk chooses the airline and flight. You can name a preferred airline in the notes box, but that is a request, not a promise.

Before you apply from the UK: a checklist

• You are applying to the consulate for your main destination, at the centre that covers where you live.
• Your eVisa is printed and stays valid past your return by the margin your consulate asks for.
• Your employer letter and last 3 months of payslips are ready.
• Your consulate accepts a reservation; if it asks for a paid ticket, you have a refundable fare instead.
• The dates match your form, insurance and any hotel booking.
• Every name is typed exactly as in the passport, and you call the document a flight reservation if asked.

Indians living in other countries will find their pages in our guide for Indians abroad. When your file is ready, place your order.

Frequently asked questions

Last reviewed 27 September 2026 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.