§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what account the Immigration Service takes of ticketless airline travel in reaching immigration decisions; and if he will make a statement. [128106]
§ Mrs. RocheThe lack of a ticket is not in itself conclusive when an Immigration Officer reaches a decision about the admissibility of a passenger under the Immigration Rules. Immigration Officers often ask passengers to show their onward or return tickets as evidence of their intention to leave the United Kingdom, but where a passenger has booked a ticket using modern Information Technology methods—so called "ticketless travel"—he/she will normally be in possession of a printed itinerary giving full details of his/her travel plans. In the absence of such evidence Immigration Officers have the option of contacting the airline concerned to168W verify that a booking exists. A passenger will not be unduly delayed for this purpose unless it is considered essential to the resolution of the case to verify that he/she has an onward or return booking, and this cannot be done easily.