Originally Posted by
invalyd
The visa waiver program has been suspended for 2.5 years. That should be plenty of time to train your gate agents as to what a valid Japanese visa looks like.
I can't remember exactly when the "tourist visa with guided tour" program started, but it was definitely not the whole pandemic by any stretch. The visa criteria were quite different early on, and even if the document style didn't change an agent could easily think that the new tourist program was different. Also,
many countries suspended VWPs and effectively closed borders in 2020. UA is a global airline flying directly to many countries and it's unlikely a frontline agent is going to be trained on every change for every country throughout the pandemic. Corporate was bleeding red ink and probably had other thoughts then.
Originally Posted by
nk15
Yea, that's part of the problem, I think most airlines do, to avoid a first flight in vain. There should be a visa re-check at the international hub for those passengers connecting there...
I can't be sure for a destination that requires a visa since I almost always travel to countries with VOA/VWP, but certainly even for ESTA/ETA countries, I get the connecting UA BP at my origin and make the connection with no further verification other than a physical check I am carrying my passport when I board the international flight.