The German army is just outside Paris. Georg flees to Marseille at the last minute. In his luggage is the legacy of a writer named Weidel, who committed suicide out of fear of persecution. Among the legacy is a manuscript, some letters, and a guarantee for visas from the Mexican Embassy. Only these can prove that they have been allowed to leave the port city, which means leaving here also requires an entry permit from a potential host country. Under the false identity of Weidel, Georg tries to obtain some scarce passage on the ship. Talks between refugees take place in the corridors of his small hotel, in the waiting room of the consulate, and in the cafes and bars by the port. Georg helps take care of the son of his deceased comrade Heinz, who died while on the run. But his plans change when he meets the mysterious girl Marie. Based on the World War II novel of the same name written by German female writer Anna Seghers, "Transit" is set in modern Marseille, where people from the past appear everywhere. So refugees from the past meet refugees from today, history meets the present, and all their stories merge to form a permanent transit space.