Dummy ticket (flight reservation) for US visa: what B1/B2 applicants need

What the USA checklist asks for

• A completed DS-160, including your travel plans and the US address where you will stay, such as a hotel or your host’s home.
• The US$185 application fee, and the visa integrity fee where your post collects it when the visa is issued.
• A biometrics visit to a Visa Application Centre, then an interview at the Embassy in New Delhi or a Consulate.
• No flight ticket. The State Department asks you not to buy one until you have the visa.
• If you live outside India, proof that you are a resident of the country where you apply.

USA: the options side by side

What the State Department says about tickets

The visitor visa page on travel.state.gov is explicit: “Do not make final travel plans or buy tickets until you have a visa.” It also reminds applicants that “There is no guarantee you will be issued a visa.” Nothing in the B1/B2 process asks you to upload or show a flight booking.

The DS-160 asks about your travel plans and the address in the US where you will stay, which can be a hotel or your host’s home. You can answer all of that without a ticket.

A held reservation is therefore optional. Some applicants like to carry one to the interview when their dates are fixed by something outside their control, such as a child’s convocation or a conference, because it shows a concrete plan with no fare at risk.

Interview waits in India, and what they mean for a reservation

Interviews are held at the US Embassy in New Delhi and the Consulates in Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata, after a biometrics visit to a Visa Application Centre. Waits for a B1/B2 interview were reported in September 2026 at about 12 months in Hyderabad, 11.5 in Mumbai, 10 in New Delhi, 7.5 in Chennai and 6.5 in Kolkata. Check the State Department’s wait-times tool for today’s figures.

No unpaid hold lasts that long, so a reservation made when you file the DS-160 will be long gone by the interview. If you want one in hand, order it for the day of your interview at the Embassy or Consulate, or the evening before at most, and check the names and dates against your passport and DS-160 before you leave home.

The September 2025 changes

Two policy changes in September 2025, and a new fee, affect almost every Indian applicant. Plan around them before you pick dates.

• From 2 September 2025 most interview waivers ended. Applicants under 14 and over 79 are now generally interviewed too.
• Dropbox renewals remain only in limited cases: a B1/B2 that expired less than 12 months ago, applying in your country of nationality or residence, with no previous refusal.
• From 6 September 2025 you must apply in your country of nationality or residence, not in a third country you are only visiting.
• A visa integrity fee of at least US$250, created by a law signed on 4 July 2025, is payable when a visa is issued and refundable only if its conditions are met. Start dates by post were not confirmed when we checked.

Indians living in the UAE and the Gulf

If you are resident in the UAE, the September 2025 rule lets you apply there instead of in India, with proof of your residence. Compare the current wait at your UAE post with the Indian posts before you decide where to book.

From the Gulf, Emirates and Etihad fly to many US gateways, so the reservation can start in Dubai or Abu Dhabi. Use your real home airport: a route that begins in India sits oddly next to a UAE residence permit.

Flying from India to USA

Your reservation should follow a route you could realistically fly. These are common options; schedules change, so the desk confirms what is bookable for your dates.

Mistakes to avoid with a USA application

• Buying a ticket before the interview. The State Department says not to buy tickets until you have a visa.
• Putting travel dates on the DS-160 that fall before your likely interview date.
• Ordering a reservation when you file the DS-160. It will lapse long before an interview months away.
• Assuming a parent over 79 or a child under 14 can skip the interview. Since 2 September 2025 they are generally interviewed.
• Booking an interview in a country where you are only a visitor. You must apply where you are a national or a resident.
• Showing an edited or invented booking. Under INA section 212(a)(6)(C)(i), seeking a visa by fraud or wilful misrepresentation of a material fact makes you inadmissible.

Dummy ticket and hotel bookings, matched to your itinerary

We do not send one loose document. The desk matches the flight reservation and every hotel booking to your itinerary: the same dates, the same cities, and no night left uncovered. These are the real documents of one order for a Switzerland visa file, issued on 5 November 2026: one flight reservation and four hotel bookings that cover all 9 nights between the two flights. Personal details are blacked out; everything else is as issued.

• Flight reservationEtihad, Hyderabad (HYD) to Zurich (ZRH), status Confirmed
• Hotel booking, ZurichMEININGER Hotel Zürich Greencity, 3 nights
• Hotel booking, GenevaB&B HOTEL Geneva Airport, 3 nights
• Hotel booking, LucerneSeminarhotel Romerohaus, 2 nights
• Hotel booking, Zurich AirportLeonardo Hotel Zurich Airport, 1 night

Open the full documents and the day-by-day table: flight and hotels matched date by date

How to get your USA flight reservation

USA questions, answered