Experience traveling on K-1 through Schengen area?

[Kel_H 41]

When my fiancé had his interview on May 18, the officer "advised" him to fly through Qatar instead of Paris. This doesn't make any sense as he'd have to fly 6 hours in the opposite direction to start, then the trip would be over 30 hours instead of just 13 hours if flying through Paris. Does anyone know why he may have given this advice? I know it's less expensive to fly through Qatar but that's all I can think of.

 

I know that a K-1 visa holder is allowed to travel directly from the Schengen area to the US, but I was wondering if anyone has actually done it since the exception was put into place? My fiancé plans to fly Algeria > Paris > New York next week (the transit through Paris is only 2.5 hours). We are nervous because he'll be flying on Air France but their travel doc site is not updated as it says "Passengers are not permitted to enter the United States using a K1 or DV1 visa if they have travelled to France with it, due to the outbreak of Covid-19." I'm wondering if this will cause them to deny him from boarding the plane?

 

I hope to hear from anyone who has had experience with this, thanks!

Edited June 8, 2021 by Kel_H
grammar in last sentence

[payxibka 10,044]

5 hours ago, Kel_H said:

When my fiancé had his interview on May 18, the officer "advised" him to fly through Qatar instead of Paris. This doesn't make any sense as he'd have to fly 6 hours in the opposite direction to start, then the trip would be over 30 hours instead of just 13 hours if flying through Paris. Does anyone know why he may have given this advice? I know it's less expensive to fly through Qatar but that's all I can think of.

 

I know that a K-1 visa holder is allowed to travel directly from the Schengen area to the US, but I was wondering if anyone has actually done it since the exception was put into place? My fiancé plans to fly Algeria > Paris > New York next week (the transit through Paris is only 2.5 hours). We are nervous because he'll be flying on Air France but their travel doc site is not updated as it says "Passengers are not permitted to enter the United States using a K1 or DV1 visa if they have travelled to France with it, due to the outbreak of Covid-19." I'm wondering if this will cause them to deny him from boarding the plane?

 

I hope to hear from anyone who has had experience with this, 

A k1 can transit Schengen 

[slavaskii 883]

That is very strange, but you're right that the K1 is permitted to fly through the Schengen Zone. However, if this hasn't been communicated to Air France (or the check-in agents in Algeria), your fiance won't be allowed on the flight and there's not much you can do about it. Unfortunately, airlines are slow to react to these changes and often just don't understand them. Your best bet is to contact Air France directly and see what they say, because they'll enter your information into the same system the check-in agent will to verify his eligibility to board. As a secondary point, make sure to verify with Air France what covid test they require for their flights. I transited through Paris recently and I swear I heard people being told they needed the full PCR for the United States, which would, also, be a misunderstanding. 

[Kel_H 41]

1 hour ago, slavaskii said:

That is very strange, but you're right that the K1 is permitted to fly through the Schengen Zone. However, if this hasn't been communicated to Air France (or the check-in agents in Algeria), your fiance won't be allowed on the flight and there's not much you can do about it. Unfortunately, airlines are slow to react to these changes and often just don't understand them. Your best bet is to contact Air France directly and see what they say, because they'll enter your information into the same system the check-in agent will to verify his eligibility to board. As a secondary point, make sure to verify with Air France what covid test they require for their flights. I transited through Paris recently and I swear I heard people being told they needed the full PCR for the United States, which would, also, be a misunderstanding. 

Thank you for that information. I forgot to mention that I did call Air France and the lady told me I would need to call the Paris airport to get my answer! She said Air France doesn’t have a customer service department, only reservations lol. I haven’t had time to delve further yet

[jayjayk 45]

On 6/9/2021 at 2:51 AM, Kel_H said:

Thank you for that information. I forgot to mention that I did call Air France and the lady told me I would need to call the Paris airport to get my answer! She said Air France doesn’t have a customer service department, only reservations lol. I haven’t had time to delve further yet

Hi! Was your issue resolved? 

[payxibka 10,044]

34 minutes ago, jayjayk said:

Hi! Was your issue resolved? 

A review of the timeline would indicate 

[jayjayk 45]

15 minutes ago, payxibka said:

A review of the timeline would indicate 

I know, I have checked it and want to hear from the OP if they had any other issues😉 

[Kel_H 41]

28 minutes ago, jayjayk said:

I know, I have checked it and want to hear from the OP if they had any other issues😉 

He didn’t end up flying through Europe because every flight I tried to select wasn’t available anymore... he just flew to Qatar then straight to NY from there.

[jayjayk 45]

11 minutes ago, Kel_H said:

He didn’t end up flying through Europe because every flight I tried to select wasn’t available anymore... he just flew to Qatar then straight to NY from there.

Thank you for answering!

[Ryan H 3,790]

Moved from Process & Procedures to Progress Reports.