Dummy Ticket for Internship, Trainee and Au Pair Visas: Official Flight Rules Compared

Internships, traineeships and au pair placements sit between study and work. You have a host organisation or family, a fixed start date and usually a fixed end date, and often a sponsor or agency running the paperwork. Because the end date is fixed, many applicants assume the consulate will want a return ticket. Mostly it does not. The official lists care far more about the contract, the training plan and the sponsor's approval than about how you will fly.

We checked the official pages for the routes our readers use most: the US J-1 exchange visitor visa (which covers interns, trainees and au pairs), the UK's Government Authorised Exchange visa, Germany's national visas for internships and au pairs, the Dutch au pair permit, and Canada's IEC streams. Below are the exact words on flights and what to do about them.

Internship and au pair visas: key facts

Do you need a flight ticket for an internship or au pair visa?

Not for the application, on any of the official lists we read. These are sponsored routes: an employer, a host family, an exchange sponsor or an agency vouches for you, and the government checks that sponsor's paperwork. Your return is assured by the end date in the contract, the sponsor's obligations and, for the US J-1, rules such as the two-year home residence requirement that applies to some exchange visitors.^[1]

Two places do touch on flights. Washington's advice is to leave ticket purchases until a visa is in hand, which is guidance, not a document requirement.^[1] Canada's IEC asks at the port of entry for a ticket out or the money to buy one.^[8] Everywhere else, if someone asks you for a ticket, check whether you have been put on a short-stay visitor checklist by mistake.

What do internship and au pair checklists ask for?

US J-1: interns, trainees and au pairs

The J-1 exchange visitor visa covers several categories, and the State Department lists intern, trainee and au pair among them.^[1] Every route starts with a designated programme sponsor, which registers you in SEVIS and issues Form DS-2019, the Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor Status. You then pay the SEVIS I-901 fee and book the visa interview.^[1]

On flights, the page is blunt. It warns that a visa is never guaranteed and says exchange visitors should keep flight purchases and fixed travel plans on hold until they actually hold the visa.^[1] It also sets an entry rule that shapes your booking: "Exchange visitors are not permitted to enter the United States earlier than 30 days before their program start dates."^[1] If your internship starts on 1 March, the earliest you can land as a J-1 is 30 days before that.

The two-year home residence requirement is worth reading too. Some exchange visitors "must return to your home country for two years" before changing status or getting certain US visas.^[1] It does not change what you book, but it does explain why the officer cares about your plans after the programme. Our US visa guide covers the interview itself.

UK: Government Authorised Exchange (Temporary Work)

Most UK internships for non-UK nationals run through the Government Authorised Exchange visa, part of the Temporary Work family. You need a reference number from a licensed sponsor, the application fee is £340, and you usually pay the healthcare surcharge, £1,035 per year. Depending on the scheme, the visa lasts up to 12 or 24 months.^[2]

The documents page lists the certificate of sponsorship or sponsorship reference number, a valid passport, and evidence of enough personal savings, plus extra items for particular cases such as certain research.^[3] Nothing about flights. The timing rule is the useful one: "You can enter the UK up to 14 days before the date your job starts", as long as that is not before the start date on your visa, and you can stay up to 14 days after the job ends.^[2] Book your real flight inside that window once the visa is granted.

Germany: internship and training national visas

A paid internship or training placement in Germany of the kind covered here needs a national visa, not a Schengen tourist visa. The German Missions in India checklist for training and internship (marked "as of February 2021") lists your passport, form, a deputation or no-objection letter from your local employer, an "approval letter from German company confirming conditions of your stay in Germany, including payment and health insurance", consent from the Federal Employment Agency, photos and the fee.^[4] No flight reservation. It warns that processing takes at least six to eight weeks because the file goes to immigration authorities in Germany.^[4]

A more recent sheet from the German Embassy in Dhaka (January 2026) shows how detailed these files have become: a signed contract, a training or internship plan, qualifications, proof of German, a motivation letter, a CV, and compulsory health insurance confirmation from the German employer, with processing of approximately 4 weeks or more.^[5] Again, nothing on flights. Indian applicants should follow the India checklist and confirm it is current with the mission before the appointment.

Au pair visas: Germany and the Netherlands

Au pair schemes are cultural exchange with light childcare, and the host family or agency is the sponsor. Neither of the two European lists we read asks for flights.

• Germany (India): the checklist (as of February 2021) asks for an au pair contract with a German family plus their questionnaire, an informal invitation from the family, A1 German, a birth certificate, and the usual passport, forms and photos. Applications are accepted only from people aged at least 18 and "not older than 27 years at the time of application".^[6]
• Netherlands: the IND receives au pair applications through au pair agencies, which it calls recognised sponsors. The permit is for up to 1 year, the au pair may do up to 30 hours of light household duties a week, and the IND says "currently, the au pair must be aged between 18 and 25".^[7]

Some au pair contracts or agency terms say who pays for travel. Read yours before buying anything yourself. If the family is booking, your job is simply to send passport details that exactly match your passport.

Canada IEC: internships through Young Professionals and Co-op

International Experience Canada also covers work experience for young people from partner countries through its Young Professionals and International Co-op (Internship) streams. Whatever the stream, the arrival rules are the same. IRCC tells participants to bring their passport, the port of entry letter of introduction, proof of health insurance, proof of funds (the equivalent of CAN$2,500), and either a ticket out of Canada or enough money to buy one.^[8]

The word there is ticket, so a held reservation is not the same thing. If your internship ends on a known date and you want to show a ticket, buy a flexible fare. Otherwise carry the extra funds. Our working holiday guide walks through the IEC arrival check in more detail.

Short placements and study visits: when a visitor checklist applies

Not every placement is long enough or formal enough for these routes. A week-long training at a client's office, an unpaid observership or a short study tour may fall under a short-stay visa instead, depending on the country and the activity. That decision belongs to the consulate, so ask before you apply. If you are put on a short-stay Schengen checklist, the usual itinerary wording applies, and a verifiable reservation fits; see our Schengen guide. The European Commission's timing rule for Schengen files: lodge it within the six months before departure, with 15 days as the latest point.^[9]

When should you book your real flight?

After the visa, and inside the entry window. The windows are concrete:

• US J-1: no earlier than 30 days before the programme start date.^[1]
• UK GAE: up to 14 days before the job starts, not before the visa's start date.^[2]
• Germany: inside the visa dates and ready for your contract start; the employer's health insurance confirmation is part of the file.^[4][5]
• Canada IEC: on or before the expiry date of your port of entry letter.^[10]

Say your UK placement starts on 6 April and the visa arrives on 10 March. You could fly any day from 23 March, assuming the visa itself starts by then. There is no reason to have bought anything before 10 March.

Step by step: flights for an internship or au pair placement

1. Get the sponsor document first: DS-2019, certificate of sponsorship, company approval or au pair contract.
2. Confirm your route with the consulate if the placement is short or unpaid.
3. Apply without buying flights, unless you are on a visitor checklist that lists one.
4. Check who pays for travel in your contract or programme terms.
5. After the visa, find your entry window and book a real ticket inside it.
6. For Canada IEC, decide between a departure ticket and extra funds before you fly.
7. Carry the sponsor documents in your hand luggage for the border.

If a visitor checklist asks for a reservation

For a short placement handled as a visit, our booking carries your passport name and a PNR you can pull up through the carrier's manage-booking page. It is a hold, not a bought seat, so it will not get you on a flight. Holds last up to 2 weeks at most, and the carrier fixes the actual limit, so plan to order it within a few days of the appointment.

Interns pay the same per head for single or return routings, and itineraries with extra stops are priced per leg pair. Delivery is by email within roughly 10 minutes; pay by UPI, card or netbanking on Razorpay. More on prices, visa reservations, hotel bookings and checking a PNR.

Frequently asked questions

If your plans look more like study, start with student visa flights or our notes for Indian students. Taking a gap year instead? See working holidays. Partners can read about joining a worker or fiancé routes. Germany-bound? Our Germany page helps, and the country table and home page cover the rest.

Sources

All sources last checked: October 2026.

1. U.S. Department of State, Exchange Visitor Visa.
2. GOV.UK, Government Authorised Exchange visa (Temporary Work).
3. GOV.UK, Government Authorised Exchange visa: documents you must provide.
4. German Missions in India, Checklist for a German national visa: training/internship (PDF, as of February 2021).
5. German Embassy Dhaka, Information for visa applicants for vocational training / internship (PDF, January 2026).
6. German Missions in India, Checklist for a German national visa: au pair (PDF, as of February 2021).
7. Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), Netherlands, Au pairs.
8. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, International Experience Canada: prepare for arrival.
9. European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs, Applying for a Schengen visa.
10. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, International Experience Canada: after you apply, next steps.