hotscot

We're in CA.
Can my wife and I book a ticket to UK/Europe and spend 2, 3, 4, 5 months kicking our heels there and come back when we feel like it? If there is availability?
I assume the answer is to pay for some sort of flexible return?
(Now that we have no pets and can work from anywhere.)

jsloan

In general, yes, but availability is a tricky concept, and it probably doesn't work the way you'd expect.

Very few fares still allow open returns, which is what you're specifically asking about. However, you don't need an open return. You don't even need to pay anything extra for a flexible ticket -- except, don't buy Basic Economy. Instead, pick a date that seems about right, and book your flight for that. Then, if it turns out that you need to change it, there will be no fare difference if there is availability in the same fare class as you booked and all of the original fare conditions are met (generally min / max stay and day of the week are the most common). The only real caveats are as follows:

1. You must cancel your existing return prior to the scheduled date if you don't intend to take it. If you do this before you're ready to book a replacement date, that's fine, but tell UA that your plans aren't final and ask them to leave the ticket value on the reservation and say that you'll call back when your plans are firmed. Under no circumstances should you ask for a refund, nor should you let the agent give you a refund out of the goodness of her heart. Once your ticket has been refunded, you're going to be stuck paying one-way fares back to the US.
2. Travel must be completed within one year of ticket issuance
3. You'll be responsible for any fare difference that comes up due to lack of availability or a fare rule not being met.

You'll also be responsible for complying with all applicable immigration and tax laws in your destination country. Don't skip this step, lest you wind up facing fines and a hefty tax bill for unauthorized employment.

1P

Yes. Many European countries have a limit of 90 days for a single stay. Staying longer than that will involve in you in tax complications that you don't want to get involved with.

xliioper

Seasonality requirements are another potential significant factor (at least with coach fares, not so much with business class). There are currently cheaper roundtrip coach fares to many EU destinations that require returns on/after Sep 25th. So if you initially book roundtrip tickets with returns on/after Sep 25th, and then decide to return before Sep 25th, you could potentially get hit with a fare difference in the $200 - $300 range per ticket due to no longer meeting the seasonality requirements of originally booked return fare. Seasonality requirements are disclosed in the Fares Rules when booking tickets on united.com or on some third party sites like ITA Matrix.

craigthemif

The 90 day rule has nothing to do with taxation and everything to do with tourist visas. Non EU citizens can only spend 90 days out of 180 in the EU without a residence visa. FWIW this means that you cannot spend 90 days in France and then move to Italy for another 90 days. You have to leave the EU entirely and not come back until another 90 days have passed.

For the OP... on a US passport you might be denied entry if you can only show a return ticket for 5 months later...

jpezaris

Are you self-employed? Does your employer allow work from *anywhere*? Do they already have offices in the countries you'll be residing? My wife and I were facing a similar situation and her employer said, "absolutely no way, as it would open the company up to tax liability in that country." She ended up taking a leave of absence. It was OK for me because I was on a US-government funded exchange program where they had worked out all of those details already through various tax treaties, and still, it was a hassle.

TomMM

My last flight was to Paris on a oneway ticket and nobody cared. I thought that UA would have required that I show my documentation at checkin but nothing was asked for.

WheelsUpGal

Yes, you could buy a one way and then start buying RT tikets out of Europe which are cheaper, if you think you will be back and forth. Play airlines (FlyPlay.com) sells one way (although from the East Coast) pretty cheaply (about $500 in May).

With the Schengen thing:

As a U.S. citizen, how long can I stay in the Schengen area without a visa?
With a valid U.S. passport, you can stay up to 90 days for tourism or business during any 180-day period. Do not overstay! You must wait an additional 90 days before applying to re-enter the Schengen area

You CAN spend 3 months in Europe and then head to the UK to extend your trip. Or buy a ticket to SE Asia after that - go Around the World! ENJOY!

hotscot

This is great feedback.
I neglected to say I am a UK citizen, although my wife is not. Not sure how that impact things.

On reflection I did wonder about buying a one way and then another when we want to retrurn.

jsloan

It's hit or miss for things like Americans going to Europe. They'd be within their rights to ask, however, as would immigration authorities.

Post Brexit, pretty much the same advice -- make sure you're careful about immigration law.

One-way tickets are often prohibitively expensive. With no change fees for flights departing the US, unless you expect to return from Asia or Africa or something rather than Europe, your original suggestion is likely to be the most cost-effective.

Bear96

I wonder if a one way ticket is better than showing a return ticket leaving the EU more than 90 days after arrival.

If you only have a one way you can say you understand that you have to, and intend to, leave the EU in less than 90 days, but you just haven't booked that ticket yet. OTOH, if you have a return ticket already booked for more than 90 days out, it might be harder to convince the immigration official you will be leaving the EU in less than 90 days.

WheelsUpGal

I just did a quick check . . and ONE WAY fares are not horrible IMHO if you are planning to start doing RT ex-Europe. NONE include bags, which are extra, but maybe you could split one checked bag between you?

April 24 LAX - London
Norse/SAS $340 (Change in Oslo)
United (non-stop) $652
Condor/Lufthansa (Change in Frankfurt) $614
Others listed for $703

April 24 LAX - Frankfurt
Condor Non-stop $380
Aer Lingus (change in Dublin) $632
Turkish (change in IST) $638

Play Airlines
Baltimore (you'd have to get there from LAX) to Paris on April 18, $381

FOR EXAMPLE - flights from the US to Europe
Round Trip flight LAX - Paris - LAX
April 13 - July 12
SAS $1347
Delta/Virgin $1531
Air France $1527

If you buy a one way to Europe and then start buying Round Trips FROM Europe back to the US
Round Trip Paris - LAX - Paris
April 13 - July 12
United $763
Delta/Virgin Atlantic $785
KLM $793

Being a UK citizen it wouldn't be that odd to have you do round trips from the other side of the Atlantic and as far as I understand there is nothing illegal about this? You could fly into the UK and then buy a RT train ticket or cheap flight on EasyJet London - Paris for the 90 days if you think they will ask for proof of outbound. NOTE that Eu Electronic 'visas' should be starting in November 2023 after a few delays.

Or try a Round the World ticket!
https://aroundtheworldticket.com/asi...adventure-rtw/

jsloan

One-way fares are often asymmetric; before embarking on this path, make sure to check the return one-way fares. And it really doesn't feel like there's some big advantage to the OP here by booking a one-way.

There is nothing illegal about this, nor does it contravene any airline policies provided that it's not intended to violate a fare rule. (Getting a lower price is not "violating a fare rule" in and of itself).

This is a good suggestion whether you're booking a one-way ticket or a round-trip ticket with a six-month stay -- it's always good to have something to show both the airline and the immigration authorities if they question your plans.

1P

As a UK citizen resident in the US, I did this for many years. Roundtrip fares from the UK were always significantly cheaper than roundtrip fares from the US. I even nested further roundtrips within the original ones when new plans firmed up that had previously been fluid. No problem whatsoever, and no one ever questioned it. The pandemic put an end to all that for me, alas.

cfischer

I have done this as well for many years. Perfectly legit and you can get around high season fares since the outbound determines that and you can flexibly play with that being 'a return' on other tickets. Depending on the market there can also be some cheap o/w fares that can match well with such an approach.