UK- bound Indian Travelers Can Transit Through Netherlands Without Schengen Visa

Dutch flag carrier KLM Royal Dutch Airlines said that passengers flying from India to the United Kingdom can transit through the Netherlands without obtaining a Transit Schengen Visa.

The statement comes after a week of confusion for Indian travelers after several of them were denied boarding on flights from India to the UK that had a stopover in an EU nation, including the Czech Republic, France, Germany, or Spain.

The airline in a statement issued earlier this week said, travelers flying with KLM from India with a stop in Amsterdam did not need to produce valid Transit Schengen Visas, but simply their valid UK visas.

“Indian nationals travelling to the United Kingdom do not require a transit/Schengen visa while transiting Amsterdam Schiphol, provided they hold a valid visa for the United Kingdom and comply with all applicable conditions in transit and entry conditions at destination. Passengers are personally responsible to ascertain eligibility,” the statement said.

Passengers flying with Lufthansa or Air France with a layover in Frankfurt, Munich, or Paris, however, will still need to obtain a transit Schengen visa.

Last week we reported that passengers travelling from India to the UK on European Union (EU) carriers such as Lufthansa, Air France, and KLM via their hubs in Frankfurt, Munich, Paris, and Amsterdam, respectively, are being denied boarding at the origin in India if they do not have a transit/regular Schengen visa.

This follows the European Union’s decision (Brexit Impact) to require non-EU citizens to have a valid visa in order to fly to the UK on transit flights.