United Kingdom – The switch to eVisa is accelerating
The Home Office has rolled out digital immigration status to most visa holders: end of physical vignettes and paper documents for dependants, students, spouses, and sponsored workers.
Full implementation: from 30 October 2025
- Right to Work checks: via the “View and Prove” portal
- Objective: securing and centralising statuses on a UKVI account
A UKVI account is a secure platform allowing access to one’s eVisa and to status-checking services. Creating a UKVI account is required to access an eVisa. An electronic visa (eVisa) is a digital document confirming your immigration status.
United States – Major USCIS adjustments: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
The United States is introducing several administrative reforms:
- End of automatic extensions for the Employment Authorisation Document (EAD): Since 30 October 2025 (excluding TPS* cases)
- USCIS payments exclusively electronic (cards or ACH**)
- ***H-1B reform*** 2026: proposed lottery weighted by wage level
*Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is an immigration status granted to nationals of certain countries experiencing conditions that make return difficult or unsafe.
**ACH stands for “Automated Clearing House”, a system that centralises payments between bank accounts in the United States. The transfer does not involve intermediaries and allows funds to be sent directly to an account.
The H-1B visa category is intended for foreign nationals employed in “specialty occupations” requiring specific educational and professional qualifications.
Sources: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/news-releases/uscis-to-mandate-electronic-payments-for-applications
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/09/24/2025-18473/weighted-selection-process-for-registrants-and-petitioners-seeking-to-file-cap-subject-h-1b
United States – Major USCIS adjustments: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
The COMPASS scoring system, which assesses the eligibility of international candidates for the Employment Pass (EP), is now mandatory for all Employment Pass applications and renewals (Singapore’s work permit for higher-salary sectors: professionals, managers, executives and technicians).
Companies must meet both the minimum salary threshold and the required cumulative points.
Source: https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/employment-pass/eligibility#compass
China – extension of the visa-free policy
China has decided to extend until 31 December 2026 at midnight its unilateral visa-exemption policy for nationals of the following 45 countries:
Germany, Andorra, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Iceland, Japan, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Latvia, Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, the Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Uruguay.
In addition, Sweden benefits from visa exemption from 10 November 2025 to 31 December 2026.
Nationals of these countries holding a valid ordinary passport and travelling to China for business, tourism, family visits, exchange visits, or transit are exempt from visas for stays not exceeding 30 days.
Individuals who do not meet the visa-exemption conditions must still apply for a visa before travelling to China.
Need an eligibility assessment or customised country monitoring? Please do not hesitate to contact us.