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I've the residence permit in country A that will expire in a week. I asked for it's prolongation on time but I'm pretty sure that administration of my country of residence will not replace it in time.

In two weeks I need to go to a country B for a several days.

To go to country B I don't need any visa, my passport is enough to stay there. As for return, my passport is not enough and I need visa (residence permit in my case).

In Timatic I read that I can travel with expired residence permit if I can provide a receipt that I asked for it's prolongation (I have this receipt).

But is this info really sure and grants me to take a flight back? I read some horrible stories that airline staff had never seen these "prolongation receipts" and sometimes doesn't allow to take a flight.

Is it possible to prove something to airline staff if I print visa requirements from, for example, emirates.com (I have another airline but I didn't found visa requirements section on their site)?

What should I do if they say that my residence permit is expired and my boarding is denied?

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  • What did the airline say when you asked them about this?
    – Greg Hewgill
    Commented Aug 23, 2017 at 21:33
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    Yes, unfortunately airline staff can mis-interpret Timatic. To mitigate this, you can arrive early in case you need to ask for another Agent to review the rules or contact their internal support. However, be aware that if the airline staff is not satisfied, they can deny you boarding.
    – DTRT
    Commented Aug 23, 2017 at 22:05
  • By phone airline says that it's ok. But I call to their central office, my friend told me that agents in country B sometimes had their own opinion when you show them rare documents that they've never seen, and one time his friend did not got to a plane due to this.
    – Vitalii
    Commented Aug 24, 2017 at 6:03
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    Taking the question literally, nothing grants you the right to be on a flight, as airline staff (and the captain in particular) can always deny you boarding.
    – fkraiem
    Commented Sep 1, 2017 at 6:45
  • FYI: If an airline erroneously refuses to check in a passenger on the grounds of incomplete paperwork (eg visa), is the passenger entitled to compensation?
    – Franck Dernoncourt
    Commented Apr 27, 2020 at 15:36

1 Answer 1

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The biggest problem is countries where English is rarely spoken (in Russia, for example, check-in staff often doesn't know it), because of Timatic only being in English.

I would advise you to print a Timatic extract (the Emirates search engine is also Timatic) and underline the relevant section with a pen.

While check-in staff is normally supposed to rely on Timatic, they do often misinterpret requirements, especially at some airports (Zurich, for example, is full of complete noobs).

So by all means arrive early, and don't be afraid to ask for the supervisor.

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  • 3
    "check-in staff is obliged to rely on Timatic" Citation needed.
    – fkraiem
    Commented Sep 1, 2017 at 1:57
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    @Jan Personal experience, lots of it
    – Crazydre
    Commented Sep 2, 2017 at 8:11
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    @fkraiem Was told this by Swissport by e-mail
    – Crazydre
    Commented Sep 2, 2017 at 8:12
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    @fkraiem what else would they go by?
    – JonathanReez ♦
    Commented Sep 2, 2017 at 22:20
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    @fkraiem the obligation is probably imposed by the employer, not by any law. So if Swissport is the employer, there's not much more to be said.
    – phoog
    Commented Sep 3, 2017 at 0:24

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