Flight Itinerary
A full schedule on headed paper. No airline reference behind it, and it does not claim one.
£12.00 per person
Proof of onward travel
A verifiable onward ticket.
It is a reservation, and the desk can look it up.
Fly into some countries on a one-way ticket and you will be asked to show onward travel, usually at check-in before you have even left. What answers it is a real airline booking held in your name with the fare unpaid, carrying a reference the agent can look up. It is not a ticket, and this page is straight about where that matters.
Why an airline asks.
The rule belongs to the country. The cost of getting it wrong belongs to the carrier.
A number of countries make onward or return travel a condition of entry for visitors. The check usually happens long before you land, because if you are refused entry the airline that carried you is generally the one that has to fly you back and may face a fine on top. So the agent at the desk is protecting their employer, and they will make the call in about fifteen seconds.
That is worth knowing because it tells you what the document is for. It is not filed with anybody or assessed at leisure. It is looked at once, quickly, by somebody who wants to see a booking that exists.
What to do about it.
In this order.
- 01
Check the country's rule
The requirement belongs to the country you are entering. Read its own entry requirements first.
- 02
Check the airline's rule
Carriers apply it at check-in, and some are stricter than the country they are flying to.
- 03
Book onward travel you actually want
If you know your next move, a real ticket is the simplest answer and it is worth having anyway.
- 04
Otherwise hold a reservation
A real onward booking, held unpaid, with a reference the desk can look up. It holds for anything from about 48 hours to about two weeks.
The airline decides at the counter, and we cannot promise what any carrier will accept. If the country or the airline requires a purchased ticket, a reservation does not meet that.
What it costs.
The reservation is the one that carries a reference. The itinerary does not.
Verifiable Flight Reservation
Carries a real airline reference an assessor can look up, held for a limited window.
£22.00 per person
Real Flight Ticket
The flight itself, issued by the airline. Their refund terms, not ours.
The airline’s fare, plus our fee
Not available at the momentLearn more about the Real Flight Ticket
What a reservation gives you here.
A real booking, held unpaid, that somebody can look up.
A verifiable flight reservation is a seat held with an airline in your name, with the fare outstanding. It carries the airline’s own booking reference, so anyone who wants to check it can, on the airline’s own website. That is the version worth having at a check-in desk, because the question being asked is whether a booking exists.
Our other document, the flight itinerary, sets out real scheduled flights but holds nothing and carries no reference. It is cheaper, and it is the wrong tool for this particular job.
Either way, order it close to the day. A held reservation lasts as long as the airline allows, which is anything from about 48 hours to about two weeks. Check it yourself before you go to the airport.
Nothing here guarantees visa approval, entry, or acceptance by an embassy, airline or border authority. Requirements are set by the authority assessing your application and can change, so check yours with them directly. Read the product disclaimer.
Common questions.
Evidence that you intend to leave a country again, usually asked for when you arrive on a one-way flight. Some countries require it as an entry condition, and airlines check it at the departure gate because they carry the cost if you are refused entry on arrival.
Start with a route.
Everything else follows from it.