Transit through German airports without a visa

Some of Europe's largest transit hubs are located in Germany. Most flights from Russia to Europe and America involve a layover in Berlin, Munich, or Frankfurt am Main. But when choosing a flight ticket, the question often arises - do I need a transit visa? We have already written a detailed article about transit visas>> Today, we will focus only on German airports and examine in detail in which cities and under what conditions you do not need a Schengen visa for a layover.

Just in case, I'll remind you: if you have a Schengen visa, whether single, double, or multiple entry, you can skip reading this article. If you have a Schengen visa, you 100% do not need another Schengen visa.

This information will be useful for those flying through Germany to countries in South or North America, Asia, Australia, or any other part of the world that is not part of the list of Schengen Agreement countries.

In which German airports is a transit visa not required for a layover?

Please note that the possibility of visa-free transit depends not only on the airport but also on the presence of ALL the following conditions:

• The next flight is not within Schengen states.

Allowed: You are flying Moscow - Munich - New York

Not allowed: You are flying Moscow - Munich - Paris - New York

• You do not need to check in for the next flight. This means you received your boarding pass for the next flight at the airport of initial departure, for example, in Moscow.
• You do not need to collect your luggage and check it in again for the next flight. As a rule, luggage does not need to be collected and re-checked if you purchased a single ticket, rather than two separate ones, or if both flights are operated by the same airline, or if there is an agreement between the airlines. You can clarify whether you need to collect your luggage with the airline you are flying with.
• You do not need to go through passport control for other reasons, for example, in case of transferring from one terminal to another or staying overnight in a hotel.

24-hour visa-free transit is possible in:

• Frankfurt am Main
• Munich

Visa-free transit during daytime:

• Hamburg
• Cologne/Bonn from 4:30 to 23:00
• Düsseldorf from 6:00 to 22:00

This means you arrive and depart from the airport on the same calendar day. If your flight to Düsseldorf arrived at 20:00 and you depart at 7:00 AM, you will need to obtain a Schengen visa for transit purposes. At night, the transit zone in these airports does not operate. Another airport where visa-free transit is possible is Berlin - Tegel. However, the right to transit without a visa is exclusively for Air Berlin passengers. Upon arrival at Tegel, you need to go to the "Transfer" desk and show your boarding passes for the next flight. Airport staff will put you in a small minibus and take you to the transit terminal. It consists of several small rooms with sofas, a waiting area, a children's play room, and restrooms. The transit terminal is very small, there's nothing to do there, and for food, there are only a couple of vending machines with snacks and coffee. If possible, try to avoid long layovers in Berlin or bring your own food. You won't get full on just vending machine chips :) Read about what food you can bring on a plane and how here >> If you arrive at any other German airport, or have an overnight layover, or simply want to explore the city, take a short excursion, then you will need to obtain a Schengen visa.