expedia - no more 24 hour free cancellation?

[Conceicao7]

hi guys,

 

i finally popped the question, and my thai missus, will be joining me this summer in Belgium.

 

we apply for cohabitation visa (living together, no marry), and normally all will be fine, and she will be able to visit me on 1 MAY 2021 in belgium permanently.

 

however: the airlines will want me to buy a GO AND BACK plane ticket (she will get a 3 month visa, which she have to swap for a permanent residence card, F-card in belgium); but the airlines are not informed about this, so they will just look to her 3 month visa, and expect a return ticket in 3 months.  wich is really stupid because i will need to throw away the return ticket.

 

 

this way, my idea was: buy a single ticket on skyscanner like always, and a return ticket on EXPEDIA, because in the past they offered a 24 hour free cancel option.   so buy that one on the day she is about to leave, and as soon she is checked in and sitting on the plane, i would cancel the return ticket.
However i searched today, and do not find that option anymore? am i looking wrong, or because of covid they not offer it anymore?

i know there's also this BESTONWARD fake ticket website which you can buy a "fake" ticket for 12 dollars, and many expats use it for visa related visa runs, but that's souds more dodgy to me.... 

 

thanks

[Conceicao7]

UPDATE:  ok so when searching the ENGLISH website it does show free cancellation options ! HOORAY, however:

HOWEVER, do i still need to pay the "taxes and fees" if i cancel ?

Traveler 1: Adult	$579.96
Flight	$444.00
Taxes and fees	$135.96

Trip total

$579.96   Free cancellation There's no fee to cancel within 24 hours of booking.

[momo5]

If you check in on the return ticket and then cancel the return ticket prior to flight departure she will no longer be checked in and her boarding pass will be voided.  
 

And if you book both tickets on the same airline, they’ll likely be cancelled as airlines typically don’t allow double booking.  
 

It’s better to purchase a fully refundable separate onward flight which you can cancel after she arrives at her destination. 

Edited February 3, 2021 by momo5

[jaynewcastle]

" my idea was: buy a single ticket on skyscanner like always "

 

Skyscanner doesn't sell tickets  ?, its purely a search engine.  Who exactly are you buying flights with  ?

[bungee]

I think what Conceicao7 is trying to say is buy a single ticket from skyscanner on say 1st March from Thailand to Bangkok and a single one-way "return ticket" with Expedia going from Belgium to Thailand on 1st April. After the 1st March flight to Belgium he can then cancel the single "return flight" on 1st April that has not occured yet.

It would not matter which agent or airline you used as long as you got separate ticket numbers. It could be the same airline for both flights.

I would wait until she landed in Belgium and cleared imigration before cancelling the single "return flight" as if any checks are made on arrival, which computers can do very quickly, she would not have a return flight which I assume is a condition of her visa on arrival otherwise you would not be asking about it.

Singles are usually more than half the cost of a return. It may not be much more expensive to buy a return ticket and accept the loss of the cost of the return ticket and not have to worry about any of the complications.

I'm not sure any airlines that give free cancellations unless you buy the more expensive tickets and you would need to read the ticket conditions very carefully to make sure there are no administration fees involved. Otherwise people would be booking lots of flights and then cancelling them at the last minute if they changed thier mind and it would be chaos for the airlines.

In the UK you can get the government taxes back if you don't fly but airlines make a administration fee so you may not get much back depending on the airline and taxes involved.

[momo5]

13 minutes ago, bungee said:

I think what Conceicao7 is trying to say is buy a single ticket from skyscanner on say 1st March from Thailand to Bangkok and a single one-way "return ticket" with Expedia going from Belgium to Thailand on 1st April. After the 1st March flight to Belgium he can then cancel the single "return flight" on 1st April that has not occured yet.

It would not matter which agent or airline you used as long as you got separate ticket numbers. It could be the same airline for both flights.

I would wait until she landed in Belgium and cleared imigration before cancelling the single "return flight" as if any checks are made on arrival, which computers can do very quickly, she would not have a return flight which I assume is a condition of her visa on arrival otherwise you would not be asking about it.

Singles are usually more than half the cost of a return. It may not be much more expensive to buy a return ticket and accept the loss of the cost of the return ticket and not have to worry about any of the complications.

I'm not sure any airlines that give free cancellations unless you buy the more expensive tickets and you would need to read the ticket conditions very carefully to make sure there are no administration fees involved. Otherwise people would be booking lots of flights and then cancelling them at the last minute if they changed thier mind and it would be chaos for the airlines.

In the UK you can get the government taxes back if you don't fly but airlines make a administration fee so you may not get much back depending on the airline and taxes involved.

That makes a bit more sense; I was assuming booking tickets in the same flight.  
 

For the back end of the flight, the ‘return’, just book a fully refundable flight.  It’s more expensive, but fully refundable and can be cancelled after she arrives in Belgium.  Alternatively, the requirement is not necessarily to return to the country of origin, but rather onward from the country of destination ... just look for the cheapest throw away ticket to anywhere from Belgium (likely the EU).

[bungee]

3 hours ago, momo5 said:

Alternatively, the requirement is not necessarily to return to the country of origin, but rather onward from the country of destination ... just look for the cheapest throw away ticket to anywhere from Belgium (likely the EU).

I expect it's a Schengen visa she needs to fly to Belgium rather than a Belgium visa? so the return flight would need to be out of the Schengen area, ideally to a place where she did not need a visa just in case someone difficult decided that without a visa to that country the flight was not valid. 

[Conceicao7]

exactly, it's not like as in thailand, you can buy the cheapest flight out of country (like cambodia)....

 it's a SHENGEN visa, so a "throw away ticket" the neares non shengen is Russia.... that's expensive already.

so yes either go with a "bestonward" or "onwardticket.com" alike website which offer a "48 hour reservation ticket "which expire automaticly (cost is 12 euro or 12 dollars);
OR i have to go with a fully refundable ticket, (which is not that easy to find, and i assume the "taxes" are always to be paid?

 

this "onward ticket" website 's who are really popular nowadays, seems like the easiest choice to me. you think it's legit, or have experience with it?

Edited February 4, 2021 by Conceicao7

[simon46]

21 hours ago, Conceicao7 said:

 

however: the airlines will want me to buy a GO AND BACK plane ticket (she will get a 3 month visa, which she have to swap for a permanent residence card, F-card in belgium); but the airlines are not informed about this, so they will just look to her 3 month visa, and expect a return ticket in 3 months.  wich is really stupid because i will need to throw away the return ticket.

 

[simon46]

are you sure about this, my experience inc Schengen is that airlines are delighted to sell the flights and rely on the check in staff to ensure the passenger is permitted to disembark, in your fiancé's case by checking online or seeing printed proof of a visa.  Most visa issuers make a big deal about getting the visa prior to booking tickets.  Problem of buying a one way is that often it is almost the same price as a cheapo return.  Good luck but are you not awaiting trial in USA.

[Conceicao7]

naah right now i find ETIHAD tickets for as cheap as 250 euro one way.

go and back cost me about 400 or 450 euro.