Imagine suddenly having to have a German transit visa to connect in Frankfurt. Or a Dutch visa to connect in Amsterdam. It seems ridiculous.
I was really surprised to learn that I'd need a transit visa to connect in the US.
I was really surprised to learn that I'd need a transit visa to connect in the US.
> Citizens of the following countries are required to have airport transit visa when they are passing through the international transit area of airports in Germany: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Iran, Iraq, Jordan*, Lebanon, Myanmar/Burma, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria and Turkey.
Comparing USA and EU: The EU has 501,064,211 people, according to the same source. Like - 160% of the US. And, as others pointed out in this thread: Large parts of it are part of the Schengen treaty(?) and therefor rather easy for travellers.
I do think you oversimplicate things here..
Thanks.
http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en/howtoapply/infs/inf20transit#23...
Even though they say that entry is "at the Immigration Officer’s discretion and there is no guaranteed right of entry", I've used this concession twice (I'm a citizen of Armenia) with no problems, and have never heard of anyone being refused entry.
The first time I used the concession was when I was flying NYC -> Heathrow (arriving at 2am), followed by Gatwick -> Prague (departing at 10pm). Not only did this allow me to take advantage of a cheap EasyJet fare, but I managed to fit in a full day of sightseeing in London into the 24 hour allowance.
Let me recount my last year experience. My friend and I had to travel to Portugal for a summer intern from India. To keep transit headaches to minimum, I booked flights such that transits occur in Istanbul. No visa crap, just walk across to international transit and board the next flight. My friend on the other hand made a mistake to fly Lufthansa, and transit through Frankfurt.
Now, we were given a National Schengen Visa, one that was although granted under Schengen agreement, was valid only in Portugal and no other place. However, it allowed transit through other countries only while going to Portugal, and not while returning. Thus, my friend was detained in Frankfurt on his way back, searched and interrogated for 4 hours, and put on some Schengen no-fly list. OTOH, I walked like king in Turkey and enjoyed their hospitality.
So there you have it, all 1st world nations are assholes, including US, and I find it little hypocritical when somehow only US gets picked for it. I guess US is equal in discrimination of all people in transit.