Return flight ticket

[brock 0]

Male - British

Wife - US - in the US

I've recently completed (more or less) the K1 process, had a successful interview at the US embassy in London and now have my Visa, all went well, except for a 3 month delay where they did nothing with the application, something to do with workloads.

Any way, I'm now in a position to book my flight from the UK to the US (Yippee!) and live with my wife and family, but have a question about booking flights and I cannot find an answer any where.

Basically, a return flight will cost me around £160 less than a one-way ticket, so I'm trying to find out if it is Ok not to use the return portion of the tickets.

Several things come to mind.

1) Will this cause trouble at the PoE with the immigration officers? They now track all sorts of things and I'm worried that they will have a date of departure on their computer systems and it will all go "Red Alert" when I don't turn up to leave! I will be up front with the officers if they ask, it's just cheaper etc...but I really don't want to put any thing at risk at this stage if i can help it.

2) British Airways (who I intend to fly with) say I cannot do this, but they are vague, basically they say that if you don't use the return leg it will invalidate the return leg of my ticket...no big deal for me as I don't want it!

3) Has any body done this before? Real world experience would be useful to know, for example, do British Airways try to fine you or something?

4) My wife has done this, she booked a return flight from the US to UK and never used the "return to the UK portion" and never had any trouble, how ever, you do have to bear in mind that she is an US citizen had they couldn't really do anything about it at PoE - my case is slightly different.

Hope somebody can help, I've always find the website/forum a great source of reference, if not the best, and has been a great tool during my application, a whole hearted thanks goes out to everybody who contributes, runs and maintains this website.

Edited July 26, 2009 by brock

[Saska+Tim 7]

I don't think they will care about your return flight, at the POE. You will come with K1 visa, not tourist visa.

If I am wrong, somebody will correct me here.

Please, , so your experience can help others in their K1 journey.

[clueless_in_usa 8]

Talk regarding being afraid about nothing ...

... of course British Airway will tell you that you cannot do it! They want your money.

Also, do you really think that customs cares about what type of ticket you buy? They will only care about your passport and visa, and that you answer questions about your relationship correctly.

Some times people amaze me, spreading fear about entering to the USA.

[brock 0]

Thank you for your replies.

I can't remember using the phrase "being afraid" or the word "fear" , just worried, which I thought was an appropriate word to use in my circumstance.

Quote "Also, do you really think that customs cares about what type of ticket you buy?" - this was the purpose of the question!

So, now I will be book a return ticket, and I was aware that BA want money, that is how a commercial airline operates.

I will complete the timeline later on today.

Edited July 26, 2009 by brock

[SCFsnoopy 0]

Only time I have ever had my plane tickets mentioned at POE was the one time I was pulled into secondary because they thought I was trying to illegally immigrate - and even then they didn't ask for it (I think they just wanted to turn me around without going through the motions), I practically shoved it in their face so that they had to see I wasn't intending to stay.

You will be fine to book a return ticket and never use the return - I intend to do the same when I go over on my K-1 because it is several hundred dollars cheaper than a one-way ticket.

[Old Dominion 26]

You can schedule the return for ten months later....in case you want to visit your family in the UK, once you get your green card. That would satisfy anyone who asks...

[English Muffin 59]

I bought a return ticket and didn't use the second portion with no problems.

Moving from General Immigration forum to Moving Here forum.

[jlcro 0]

I think that depending of what kind of ticket you buy, maybe you'll be able to get a refund if you don't use it.

Of course some penalty charges will apply and you may not get all that you paid, but anyway is better than just not using the ticket.

You just have to check with the airline.

[HikerMark 5]

Hi brock,

Real world experience from my move last November from the UK to the US. I bought a return ticket from BA for the flight from LHR to PHX. There were no issues at the BA checkin on the way out and no issues with US immigration on arrival at PHX. In addition I didn't hear a peep from BA when I didn't use the return part of the ticket five days later.

When you think about it they have no idea why you didn't show up for the return flight and that is why they overbook flights to cover for no-shows like us.

Since my arrival I did a return trip to the UK in May with BA so they haven't blacklisted me.

[christeen 966]

NO WORRIES! We do it all the time! My husband (from Italy) worked for a cruise line and we were buying round trips and he was using just the incoming or outgoing portions all the time! The airline has your money already, they dont give a donkeys behind if you use the other ticket or not, they give it away to a standby person anyway (had it happen last time we flew, my husband got on the ship and I flew, they gave his seat to a standby businessman)... The only catch is, you have to use the the first way (Say from the UK to the US) otherwise the whole ticket is void...

Anyway, dont give it a second thought, buy what is the best deal...

Best of Luck!

[mamaSue 38]

I've also done it a few times as it's the cheapest way to buy a ticket.

Never been a problem.... go for it!!

[Slightly Bonkers 0]

Can I just throw something out there?

Buying a return ticket often ISN'T the cheapest way. Going to a ticket consolidation company, or those that buy from them is usually cheaper. Best known companies that buy from consolidators include the 'student' travel agents - SAYIT and USIT, who do sell tickets to non-students too.

It's at least worth a try, I've never ever bought a return ticket because it's never been the cheapest option, especially when you take tax and fees into consideration.

And as a pp suggested, try to buy it for 10 months down the line, or at least cancel it, and then apply to have your taxes refunded. (in the latter case, be sure to check that the processing fee isn't more than the refund)

[SuperDuper! 230]

Hi brock,

Real world experience from my move last November from the UK to the US. I bought a return ticket from BA for the flight from LHR to PHX. There were no issues at the BA checkin on the way out and no issues with US immigration on arrival at PHX. In addition I didn't hear a peep from BA when I didn't use the return part of the ticket five days later.

When you think about it they have no idea why you didn't show up for the return flight and that is why they overbook flights to cover for no-shows like us.

Since my arrival I did a return trip to the UK in May with BA so they haven't blacklisted me.

If someone is worried about "just not showing up" , they can always call the airline to inform them. That way, there is no sudden surprise on their part.

I've also done it a few times as it's the cheapest way to buy a ticket.

Never been a problem.... go for it!!

If you really want to creep them out, paste in your avatar pic on your ID ! That thing keeps me awake at night

[brock 0]

Thanks for the tips, I'm going to book a return flights, booking the return leg a few months out, as Old Dominion suggested, also, there is a chance I can use it around then, and take the opportunity to take more personal items/baggage back with me...won't please the wife though!

I trying to complete a timeline...is there a template/ online form or anything?

It will take me some time to go through my records, but it took around 12 months to get where I'm at now. Got my Visa (CR1) last week after UK embassy interview which took all of 2 minutes!

Edited July 29, 2009 by brock

[moonhunt 1]

Did you call the Airline and ask for one-way ticket for immigration ?

Sometimes they have special discount for immigration rate if you have immigration visa in handy.

For the question of buying round-trip ticket, and not using return ticket...

PoE doesn't care about it.

Normally it shouldn't be a issue except travel agent you bought it from.

There was a couple of discussion I remembered from the past.

It may be applied to only few airlines, but some airlines will give penalty for travel agent, who sold round-trip ticket but return ticket wasn't used.

But it may not be your business for most people.

If I were you, I will call the airline to check one-way discounted ticket availability for immigration visa holder.