Return ticket and bank statements: are these the most important criterion for passing the UK border check? How to prepare well in advance?

Question

For a visa-requiring national who has obtained UK visa and is on an 8-day trip to the UK, what are the most important documents and criteria that can speed up the border control?

Is it true that those who have already obtained a visa (entry clearance), even though visa-requiring nationals in the first place, will have a less formal and less detailed interview at the border upon entry to the UK?

In general, what are the most important things that the IO would like to see?

• Paid return ticket
• Paid hotel booking
• Bank statements

Are these enough?

Answer 1

Bank statements will be overkill. IOs know that all of the documentation for your situation at home has already been scrutinized before the visa was issued, and they don't have time to start second-guessing that.

The single most important factor to smoothen the landing interview as a visa-bearing tourist is to act and look like a tourist. If you can explain with confidence when and how you're going to leave, where you're staying, how you will get there, what your plans for the visit are, and so forth, most of the potential trouble is already overcome.

Tourists will generally be expected to have some paperwork with them regarding their return tickets, accommodation bookings, and so forth. There's no need for accommodation to be pre-paid if you have the means to pay on arrival; either cash or an international credit card will do.

If your purpose is something else than tourism, having your story straight is still the most important factor. In that case, it may or may not be natural for you to have something that documents your purpose -- but that will depend on what that purpose is.