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I am applying for a Schengen visa from the French embassy/consulate in DC. This visa will be for a duration of 15 days, for the purpose of tourism. I have collected all my documents (hotel bookings, proof of employment, bank stms, pay stms, etc).

However, I am stuck on the whole Airline booking thing. based on what i have read online, i need to book a round-trip ticket without paying for it. There are 2 ways i can do this - Travel agency OR Websites.

I cannot find any travel agency near me that is willing to book a ticket and hold it without any payment. And i have no idea if websites like 'visareservation' are legit.

Any ideas on how i should proceed here?

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As per the French Government's Visa website here you need to have a pre-booked return ticket. A lot of travel agents are able to reserve seats for you, which can be cancelled at a small fee if your visa application gets denied. Additionally, you may also book fully refundable flight tickets that are expensive for the visa. If your visa gets denied, you simply have to cancel these tickets. If your visa is approved, you can cancel these tickets and book a cheaper non-refundable ticket on the same flight.

Website like "visareservation" are not legitimate sources to get tickets from. As shown here, the tickets that these websites provide are not valid reservations, and submitting them in your application will raise flags that may lead to your visa being denied.

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  • Interesting. Good to know about visareservation. I might have to go with a refundable ticket, as travel agents are not really a thing here in the states.
    – Quest Monger
    Commented Jun 7, 2018 at 9:42
  • Additionally, keep in mind that while certain changes are acceptable to your actual travel plans compared to what you submitted in your application, you cannot apply for a Schengen visa giving a specific itinerary and then use it for a completely different purpose. Example: applying for a French Schengen visa to travel in Paris, instead using the visa only to travel in Copenhagen.
    – crayarikar
    Commented Jun 7, 2018 at 9:47
  • RIght. I dont intend to do that. I just checked refundable ticket prices, and they are astronomical. Search continues...
    – Quest Monger
    Commented Jun 7, 2018 at 9:52
  • Many airlines offer business class fares that are refundable and often cheaper than flexible economy tickets.
    – crayarikar
    Commented Jun 7, 2018 at 10:08
  • @crayarikar what is the exact meaning of pre-booked return tickets?
    – user3148290
    Commented Aug 22, 2018 at 11:58

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