travel information manual iata

Timatic by IATA: Travel Requirements Database, Explained

• 29 Nov, 2022
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What is Timatic?

• passport requirements and recommendations,
• visa requirements and recommendations,
• health requirements and recommendations,
• airport tax information,
• customs regulations concerning the import and export of goods and small pets,
• currency regulations, and
• news on regulation changes

What IATA Timatic database covers

Timatic for check-in

Timatic for booking, timatic mainframe: a standard source of travel requirements data.

Here, an agent can learn what forms and registrations are needed for specific passengers to travel

Timatic API: Beneficial solution for large, tech-savvy travel businesses

Get to know more about API in 8 minutes

Travel Information Manual (TIM): for those who prefer paper to digital

Timaticweb 2: web access and page customization.

A passenger information form for travel agents, Source: I ATA TimaticWeb2

United uses a form with minimum fields, making the experience easy for its customers

Timatic Mobile: Document scanning in an airport

TimaticMobile requires no training and minimal operational expenses, Source: AppAdvice

Timatic Widget: Helping travel websites improve conversion rate

How Timatic widget shows travel requirements for visiting Portugal, Source: Timatic

TravelDoc: Timatic alternative

The future of travel document check, facial recognition technologies in airports.

Facial recognition screening at airport in Virginia, Source: NYT

IATA One ID: confirm your identity long before the actual trip

With the steep decline in passenger traffic caused by COVID-19, airlines are eager to identify opportunities to boost revenue and streamline processes. IATA’s Passenger Standards can help accelerate the industry’s recovery through better airline distribution processes. By using IATA’s manuals, your business can make the most of IATA’s location codes, interline procedures, airline ticketing standards and more. With the updated content you will be able to capture new revenue opportunities such as new prospects for interlining and much more.

Every year IATA updates its Passenger Standards to stay up-to-date with the industry’s latest regulations, trends and best practices. The complete list of significant changes is now available.

Standard Schedules Information Manual (SSIM)

Effective June 1, 2022 - May 31, 2023

The SSIM is the official set of standards, guiding the industry with recommended practices, messaging formats and data processing procedures that are to be used by all IATA member airlines and their business partners for the exchange of airline schedules, communication of airport coordination information and minimum connect time data.

Revenue Accounting Manual (RAM)

The IATA Revenue Accounting Manual (RAM) explains the standard billing procedures for the interline accounting of Passenger, Cargo, UATP and Miscellaneous revenues. It contains rules governing interline accounting including regulations relating to currency of collection and billing.

Passenger Services Conference Resolution Manual (PSCRM)

Formerly called the Passenger Standards Conference Manual (PSCM) Effective June 1, 2022 - May 31, 2023

Protects airlines against revenue loss due to errors processing passenger and baggage journeys. It includes recommended practices for passenger and baggage processing, reservations, check-ins, and ticket issuance as well as specifications for baggage tags and ticketing. It also includes PADIS Guides that provide the technical references of approved EDIFACT message standards.

Passenger Tariffs Conference Composite Manual (PTCCM)

Formerly called the Passenger Standards Conference Tariffs Manual (PSCTM) Effective June 1, 2022 - May 31, 2023

Reduces the amount of errors in fare construction, fare validation, re-pricing, currency and baggage selection provisions. The resolutions described in the PTCCM are related to passenger tariffs and include common industry definitions, mileage principles, fare construction principles, common currency application, and interline baggage acceptance rules.

Reservations Handbook (RH)

Reduces your risk of revenue loss from applying incorrect reservations rules and interline messages, including those related to ancillary services. This reference and training tool provides a central source of reservations procedures and practices for every possible reservation scenario.

A4A/IATA Reservations Interline Message Procedures (AIRIMP)

Increases airlines’ revenues by enabling interline operations. It ensures your reservations messages are accurate for smooth interline bookings. These communication standards are set by IATA, A4A, GDS, and Strategic Partners.

Ticketing Handbook (THB)

Speed up your ticketing and sales by gaining a quick understanding of all ticketing rules including Electronic Miscellaneous Documents. The Ticketing Handbook is the official guide to worldwide airline passenger ticketing. Prepared by an international group of ticketing experts, it explains the what’s, why’s, and how’s of airline ticketing.

Multilateral Interline Traffic Agreements (MITA)

Implement interline partnerships with other carriers faster and increase your sales opportunities, with MITA. This manual provides the conditions and framework of the IATA Interline Agreements. Offering the list of all the participant airlines both passenger and cargo that have come into a interline agreement, it provides valuable strategic information for airlines to expand their business by reaching new destinations.

Airline Coding Directory (ACD) and Location Identifiers

Avoid losing potential sales due to missing or wrong industry codes in the passenger ticketing process. Feed your schedules, timetables and reservation systems with the most up-to-date information. Facilitate business processes where identification of an airline or location is critical. With over 11,500 location codes and 1,200 airline codes, the ACD is the official single repository of codes for all stakeholders involved in the air travel industry.

Stay up-to-date with the latest standards

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The Henley & Partners - Kochenov

EXPERT COMMENTARY IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel Document Compliance By: Alan Murray Hayden Henley & Partners – Kochenov Quality of Nationality Index • 2nd Edition 2016 IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel Document Compliance

IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel Document Compliance

Alan Murray Hayden IATA, Netherlands

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is the trade association for the world’s airlines , representing some 267 airlines or 83% of total air traffic. IATA supports many areas of aviation activity and helps formulate industry policy on critical aviation issues. IATA helps airlines operate safely, securely, efficiently and economically under clearly defined rules. Professional support is provided to all industry stakeholders, with a wide range of products and expert services. The IATA Timatic database is a one-stop shop for reliable and up-to-date visa immigration rules information. Having cooperated with Henley & Partners on the HVRI – looking at the number of destinations an adult holder of any ordinary passport can visit visa-free or with a visa-on-arrival for a short-term stay, in 2015 IATA extended its cooperation with researchers to contribute data also to the QNI, providing an array of crucially important datasets for the production of the QNI, which you are holding in your hands.

Why Do Airlines Check Passengers' Travel Documents?

Have you ever wondered why airlines check your passport? After all, it is not as if they really mind what nationality you have… In short, it is the airline ’s responsibility to ensure that every passenger has sufficient travel documents for their destination and any transit points. Where airlines do not perform this task, or mistakenly carry a passenger with insufficient travel documents, they will normally be fined by the Immigration Department, with such fines reaching into the thousands of dollars.

The vast majority of rejections are for three reasons:

1 Passport validity – each country demands that travelers' travel documents must be valid for a certain length of time, and in many cases it will vary by the nationality of the passenger Henley & Partners – Kochenov Quality of Nationality Index • 2nd Edition 2016 IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel Document Compliance

IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel 2 One-way tickets – most countries have regulations that non-nationals must have a return or onward ticket showing that they do not intend to stay in the destination country; however, few Document Compliance actually enforce this 3 Visa – passengers do not have a visa or it is invalid. This is becoming an increasingly complex area as many countries are starting to accept visas issued by other countries, e.g. Mexico will accept US visas

Airlines are also protecting their travelers from taking a flight where they will not be admitted to the destination country. Can you imagine a couple going on a long-awaited vacation and being refused entry to their holiday destination as their passports expire in five months, whereas the destination country requires them to be valid for six months?

Alan Murray Hayden IATA TIM and Timatic

IATA, The Travel Information Manual (TIM) and Timatic are two IATA products which help airlines and other Netherlands actors operating within the international airline arena manage passenger travel document compliance. The TIM and Timatic range of solutions contains immigration regulations covering the following areas:

• Passport regulations and recommendations • Visa regulations and recommendations IATA • Health regulations and recommendations The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is the trade association for the world’s airlines, • Airport tax to be paid by the traveler at either departure or arrival airport representing some 267 airlines or 83% of total air traffic. IATA supports many areas of aviation activity • Customs regulations relating to import/export of goods and small pets by a passenger and helps formulate industry policy on critical aviation issues. IATA helps airlines operate safely, • Currency regulations relating to import and export by a passenger securely, efficiently and economically under clearly defined rules. Professional support is provided to all industry stakeholders, with a wide range of products and expert services. The IATA Timatic database is The TIM was first launched in 1954, and is still published and distributed to thousands of users around a one-stop shop for reliable and up-to-date visa immigration rules information. Having cooperated with the world every month. It was followed in 1985 by Timatic, which is an electronic version integrated Henley & Partners on the HVRI – looking at the number of destinations an adult holder of any ordinary into airline and travel agent reservation systems. Since then, the product has continued to develop passport can visit visa-free or with a visa-on-arrival for a short-term stay, in 2015 IATA extended its with web-based versions. However, such manual systems are inefficient and require passengers to cooperation with researchers to contribute data also to the QNI, providing an array of crucially important queue up to have their documents checked, as we have all experienced at some time in our life. datasets for the production of the QNI, which you are holding in your hands.

Why Do Airlines Check Passengers' Travel Documents? Self-service Check-in: Simplifying the Passenger’s Travel Experience

Have you ever wondered why airlines check your passport? After all, it is not as if they really mind In 2006 Timatic AutoCheck was launched, which combines the Timatic data with a rules engine, what nationality you have… In short, it is the airline’s responsibility to ensure that every passenger has thereby enabling airlines and travel agents to automate the travel document check as part of the sufficient travel documents for their destination and any transit points. Where airlines do not perform check-in process, and to provide personalized travel document advice to passengers at the time of this task, or mistakenly carry a passenger with insufficient travel documents, they will normally be reservation. fined by the Immigration Department, with such fines reaching into the thousands of dollars. Timatic AutoCheck works by having the passenger or agent scan their passport or travel document The vast majority of rejections are for three reasons: as part of check-in. This travel document data is then combined with the itinerary information, and 1 Passport validity – each country demands that travelers' travel documents must be valid for a submitted to Timatic AutoCheck for processing. An instant response is sent back to the airlines as certain length of time, and in many cases it will vary by the nationality of the passenger to whether the travel documents are sufficient, and if not, why not. In the majority of cases a positive response is sent back and the passenger can continue with check-in without even being aware that the document check was performed. Only where there is an issue is the passenger directed to an agent. Henley & Partners – Kochenov Quality of Nationality Index • 2nd Edition 2016 IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel Document Compliance

Timatic AutoCheck is used by most of the world’s leading airlines to power their check-in products, including both agent and self-service check-in such as kiosk and online. In 2017 approximately 400 million passengers will have their travel documents checked against the Timatic database, so it is likely that you will benefit from the service.

Where and How Does IATA Collect the Travel Regulations in Timatic?

On average 72 immigration regulations updates are made to the Timatic database every day. The key to the success of Timatic solutions is the quality and reliability of the Timatic data. Should the immigration regulations contained within Timatic be incorrect, this would lead to passengers not being informed of the correct travel documents necessary, as well as airlines carrying improperly documented passengers and paying the resulting fines.

A good example of how Timatic is updated was the US Presidential Executive Order in 2017, which banned certain nationalities from entering the US. As the order was implemented, the regulations were updated in the Timatic database and were instantly applied to passenger check-ins around the world. Similarly, as the situation developed and the courts ruled the ban illegal, the regulations changes were reversed in Timatic.

Another key feature of the data is that it represents the actual immigration regulations as they are enforced. In many cases there may be a difference between the regulations published by the immigration authorities and their interpretation or enforcement. While the Timatic team works very closely with the immigration and border control authorities in nearly all countries in the world, our role Henley & Partners – Kochenov Quality of Nationality Index • 2nd Edition 2016 IATA Timatic: Managing Passenger Passport and Travel Document Compliance

is to represent our airline members and not just to be a publishing vehicle for immigration authorities. A good example of the divergence between regulations and actual enforcement is the rules surrounding one-way tickets. The majority of countries regulate that foreign passengers must hold a return or onward ticket; however, in practice few countries actively enforce this regulation. Such regulations are typically only enforced where there are suspicions as to the passenger’s intentions. Should such regulations be enforced, airlines would in practice not be able to carry passengers on one-way tickets. A differentiation is made in the Timatic rules engine so that the check-in is only stopped where the passenger has a one-way ticket and the regulation is being actively enforced.

In order to collect and publish the immigration regulations and actual enforcement policies, IATA relies on over 1,400 information sources around the world. These sources can be divided between government sources and airline sources. Government sources can be categorized into several different types including border control, immigration, consular departments of foreign affairs, and ministries of health. There is no more reliable source of worldwide, up-to- date immigration rules in force than Timatic, which contributes to the reliability and transparency of the Quality of Nationality Index which is based, in large part, on the Timatic data processed by IATA Timatic team members. Henley & Partners is the global leader in residence and citizenship planning. Each year, hundreds of wealthy individuals, families and their advisors rely on our expertise and experience in this area. Our highly qualified professionals work together as one team in over 25 offices worldwide.

The concept of residence and citizenship planning was created by Henley & Partners in the 1990s. As globalization has expanded, residence and citizenship have become topics of significant interest among the increasing number of internationally mobile entrepreneurs and investors whom we proudly serve every day.

The firm also runs a leading government advisory practice which has raised more than USD 6 billion in foreign direct investment. We have been involved in strategic consulting and the design, set-up and operation of the world’s most successful residence and citizenship programs.

Antigua and Barbuda Jersey/British Isles South Korea +1 869 465 6220 +44 1534 514 888 +82 10 5147 2300 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Australia Latvia St. Kitts and Nevis +61 3 8658 5994 +371 66 05 1009 +1 869 465 6220 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Austria Lebanon St. Lucia +43 1361 6110 +961 76 834 632 +1 758 458 9777 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Canada Malaysia Switzerland +1 514 288 1997 +603 2731 9340 +41 44 266 22 22 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Croatia Malta Thailand +385 21 321 027 +356 2138 7400 +662 041 4628 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Cyprus Philippines Turkey +357 2531 1844 +632 669 27 71 +90 212 373 9588 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Dubai (UAE) Portugal United Kingdom +971 4 392 77 22 +351 213 970 977 +44 207 823 10 10 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Grenada Singapore Vietnam +1 473 443 4000 +65 6438 7117 T +848 3911 1667 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Hong Kong South Africa +852 3101 4100 +27 21 850 0524 [email protected] [email protected]

nationalityindex.com

Introduction to Timatic – All Your Visa Questions Answered

This blog post introduces Timatic, a tool used by airlines to ensure travelers have valid documents before traveling to a foreign country. The post explains how to use the tool and provides examples for different scenarios. The author emphasizes the importance of understanding visa requirements and suggests that Timatic is a valuable addition to any traveler’s resources.

Navigating visa requirements for international travel can be a confusing and complex process. Various factors, including the traveler’s nationality, destination country, existing visas, travel dates, guidelines for return tickets and length of stay, transit countries, recent travel history, and purpose of visit, can all impact the requirements for obtaining a visa. These guidelines can vary greatly from country to country and can change over time.

Given the extensive and ever-changing nature of visa requirements, airport check-in staff cannot be expected to remember all possible combinations of rules that apply to each traveler. For this reason, airlines rely on a reliable tool called TIMATIC to ensure travelers have valid documents before transporting them to a foreign country. Failure to comply with visa requirements can result in heavy penalties for airlines.

Enter Timatic & TravelDoc

Timatic – Travel Information Manual Automatic is a tool operated and maintained by the International Air Transport Association ( IATA ). Most airlines subscribe to it to provide their staff with the latest travel requirements before issuing a boarding pass to passengers. Although airlines have to pay for access to this information, some airlines or alliances, provide public access to the tool for individuals to use to address their visa confusion.

TravelDoc is a competing offering to the IATA Timatic but a large part of the data is obtained from Timatic itself, I prefer to use TravelDoc over the Timatic interfaces since I find it more user-friendly, you can use either.

Today, we will be using the SkyTeam TravelDoc tool for the examples below. Alternatively, you can also use Emirates or even Vistara Timatic interfaces.

When you access https://skyteam.traveldoc.aero/ , you will see a page that is mostly self-explanatory. However, for the sake of this demonstration, we will explore two different scenarios.

Scenario 1 – Using TravelDoc

An Indian passenger with an Indian passport is traveling from Delhi (DEL) to London (LHR), transiting through Frankfurt (FRA). He is flying with Lufthansa and has a UK visa but does not have a Schengen, US, or any other visa.

I filled up the details as can be seen below, since he has a connecting flight at FRA make sure you fill these details up under the Connecting Flight tab and not the One Way or Return .

On the next page, it asks me if I have any additional documents for the DEL – FRA leg. For the sake of this example, I will select, “I don’t have an additional document”.

The next page gives us the result and as expected, you are not allowed to board the DEL – FRA flight due to transit requirements at FRA. This is precisely what your check-in agent at DEL airport would also see when checking you in for the flight.

Now let us go back to the first page once again and add that the passenger has a valid US Visa.

As you can see under Travel Documents I have added a US visa, let’s see how this changes the results.

As can be seen, holding a US visa waives the requirement for an Airport Transit Visa (ATV) at Frankfurt (FRA).

Scenario 2 – Exploring Singapore VFTF using Timatic

If you are from India and in transit to or from a third country via Singapore, you may be eligible for the 96-hour VFTF if you enter Singapore by any mode of transport but depart only via air or sea. You must have a valid onward air/ferry/cruise ticket departing Singapore within 96 hours, and a valid visa or long-term pass issued by any of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Kingdom, or United States of America. You must travel directly from the country that issued the SJV, en route through Singapore, back to your home country, and not have returned to your home country since you last used the SJV.

For this example, we will try and explore the Singapore Visa Free Transit Facility (VTFT). For this example, our passenger is flying from Delhi (DEL) to Singapore (SIN) and then onward to Indonesia with a 48-hour stay in Singapore. The passenger holds an Indian passport with a valid US visa and qualifies for Visa on Arrival in Indonesia.

We fill up these details, once again under the connecting flight tab.

Here are the results.

Timatic & TravelDoc are both highly useful tools for answering all your visa-related questions. It provides accurate and up-to-date results. Surprisingly, it is not widely known or written about and is severely underutilized by passengers. While it is always recommended that you obtain visa information from the respective embassies, these are both a great addition to your travel arsenal.

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A jack of all trades, master of none. With over 200+ award night stays across a myriad of hotel chains and 50+ flight redemptions and counting his mantra in the game is “earn and burn”. Owing to his inherent laziness Jay firmly believes in simplifying the award game for all and focuses on simple, straightforward, practical yet memorable redemptions over outlandish RTWs and other complicated terminologies.

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Nice Article Jay , Very Informative !!

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• IATA Ground Handling Conference (IGHC)

Ground Handling Making a priority of safety, standards, and sustainability

IATA highlighted three priorities for ground handling at the IATA Ground Handling Conference (IGHC):

• Improving safety through reducing operational risk 
• Implementing global standards
• Embedding sustainability—people, planet, and prosperity—in all activities.

“Ground handling forms the backbone of aviation. It is critical to ensuring the safe and efficient transport of millions of travelers each year. With travel demand for the upcoming peak Northern summer season predicted to surge 12% over last year, the ground handling sector will need to be ready. Our priorities are clear: improving safety, implementation of global standards and embedding sustainability in all activities," said Monika Mejstrikova, IATA’s Director of Ground Operations.

IATA outlined three priority areas for ground handling:

Reducing ground damage through transitioning to Enhanced Ground Service Equipment (Enhanced GSE) : “The aviation industry is facing a massive challenge. With the number of flights expected to rise, ground damage costs could reach $10 billion by 2035. A key mitigation measure is the adoption of Enhanced GSE to make the ramp a safer place for both personnel and aircraft. This has the potential to reduce ground damage costs 42%,” said Mejstrikova.

IATA has introduced the Enhanced GSE Recognition Program to encourage the use of upgraded ground support equipment (GSE) which uses anti-collision and inching technology to improve vehicle control and increase docking accuracy. Ground handlers who integrate more enhanced GSE into their fleets above a set threshold will receive a two-year recognition stamp.

Using data to enhance injury prevention : Data from the IATA Global Incident Data eXchange (IDX) shows that slips, trips, falls, and impacts are the main injuries in ground handling, with falls from heights posing the most serious risks. In response, IATA has initiated a safety campaign emphasizing adherence to industry standards outlined in the IATA Ground Operations Manual (IGOM) and implementing training from the Airport Handling Manual (AHM).

Mitigation of loading errors : The primary loading errors are nets not properly deployed, inadequate cargo or baggage securing and discrepancies between load sheets and Load Instruction Reports. To address these, IATA has collaborated with stakeholders to digitize communication between load control and loading teams. Adoption of these digital solutions has reduced loading errors by up to 80%, reduced delays 30%, and minimized paper documentation.

Global standardization of processes

Global standards are the foundation for safe and efficient operations. Two key tools for ground handling service providers (GHSPs) are the IATA Ground Operations Manual (IGOM) and the IATA Safety Audit for Ground Operations (ISAGO).

IGOM : To accelerate the adoption of IGOM global standards, in 2022 IATA launched the Operation Portal (OPS). Among its many functions, the portal analyses gaps between manuals used by GHSPs and airlines. OPS portal membership includes over 160 airline members, 80 GHSPs, and there have been 111 published gap analyses.

ISAGO : In 2023, a total of 303 ISAGO audits were conducted, an 18% increase from the previous year. The ISAGO network has also expanded significantly to include 210 GHSPs across 365 accredited stations in 221 airports worldwide. Currently, 153 airlines utilize ISAGO audit reports as part of their risk management when outsourcing ground operations. Furthermore, nearly 40 regulators and airports endorse ISAGO to complement their monitoring, compliance, performance, or licensing systems through cooperation agreements.

Forging a sustainable path forward

IATA recently launched a sustainability roadmap for ground operations, centered around three pillars—people, planet, and prosperity. 

People : Last year, IATA launched the IATA Ground Operations Training Passport to promote professional development and staff retention, with the Lufthansa Group as the pioneer organization. This initiative mutually recognizes skills and training across ground handlers, airlines, and airports, facilitating the cross-utilization of skilled personnel.

Planet : Transitioning to GSE powered electrically or with biofuels is part of the overall effort to reach net zero carbon emissions for aviation by 2050. IATA is supporting ground handlers in making informed transitions towards cleaner GSE power.

Prosperity : Financial sustainability is paramount for any business and ground handling is no exception. Reducing turnaround costs, minimizing operational delays, decreasing ground damage through efficiency gains, digitalization and automation will be key contributor to increasing the sector’s profitability.

Credit | Tyler-Olson_shutterstock_718803571

• IGHC to focus on sustainability and talent retention
• Remaining relevant to travel agents
• Weaning the world off fossil fuels

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