UK Visitor in Transit Visa
 

Hi all. I was hoping to get some guidance before having to call in and pay to get an answer from the Visa phone line. I am an Indian national with a US green card and I am looking at a flight LAX - LHR - BOM with a 10 hour layover at LHR. Not sure if it matters but I'd be arriving on UA and onwards flight is on AI.
I would like to use that time to get out of the airport for a bit if I can so I used the UK Visa website to determine if I need a visa and based on my answers it said I would need a visa and recommended the Visitor in Transit visa.

However, under that it says I may be able to transit without a visa if I meet a few conditions:It also has a list of additional conditions of which, one must be met. The two below apply to meWould love any guidance on whether I would qualify to enter the UK without a visa given the above or if this is just outlining requirements for transiting in the UK without leaving the airport, it is a bit unclear to me. TIA

My understanding is that you should be fine to enter the UK in this scenario under the TWOV rules. The only issue would be if the border agent does not believe you will take your onward flight, but that shouldn't be a problem if you have the relevant details and no suspicious flags about you.

The good thing is, in the (unlikely) event they say no, you should simply be able to remain airside and connect that way.

This is assuming your booking is all on one ticket. If not, you might have more difficulty convincing UA to let you board in LAX.

Thank you! Yeah, I have no issue remaining airside if I have to, it would all be on one ticket. Appreciate the help

I would agree with what Ldnn1 said. The UK BF officers are not known for being unreasonable like in some other countries, so I think you will be OK too. Enjoy your brief visit.

What was the end result? I may be in a similar position as you for an upcoming flight. I have an option to take a 12 hour layover in London but not enough time to renew my UK visa which recently expired.

Since the flight is on a Saturday, it would be a great opportunity for me to get out to the city to catch up with some friends.

It would be great to hear from OP how his trip went as my wife has a similar trip where visa might or might not be needed.

OP, could you get back to us and tell us about your trip?

Just completed my trip. Here is my experience.

My UK visa recently expired & I have not had the time to get it renewed since I've been traveling pretty much non-stop over the last couple of months. I had an option to take a 12 hour layover in London & wanted to go out & meet up with some friends. My travel route was BOS-LHR-CDG-DEL. I was to land at LHR at 7:30am & my flight to CDG was at 7:35pm the same day. Then I was spending 3 days in Paris before flying back to DEL.

I landed at Terminal 3 & went over to immigration. The officer there was a young girl who had no clue what the TWOV scheme was. She said there was no way I could enter without a visa. I showed her the TWOV document available on the UK Government website but she said she had never heard of it & had to ask someone senior. The senior officer came over after she had briefed him & said that the scheme was only applicable to those who were residents of the US. I politely pointed out that I thought the document said it was for anyone who had a US visa & said nothing about residency. He then changed his stance to the fact that I was not eligible since I was not flying back home to India & was going to Paris instead. I again pointed out that the document said that it only mattered that I had a valid visa for my destination, which I had. He then again changed his stance to the fact that it was the officer's discretion whether he would allow me to enter or not. He was extremely rude during the entire exchange & it became pretty clear that he was not going to budge from his stance. I thanked him for his time & went back to the transit area to go to Terminal 4 for my connecting flight.

When I reached Terminal 4 I was walking by the immigration area on my way to security & decided to try my luck again. I went over to the counter & handed over my passport to the officer. I asked him if I could avail of the TWOV scheme since I had 12 hours in transit. He asked to see my boarding pass for the LHR-CDG flight & then stamped my passport allowing me entry for 48 hours. I was through in under 2 minutes.

It was officer discretion at the end of the day. The first officer was rude & being difficult while the second officer just looked at my passport & BP before allowing me to enter.