The last two months in visas: 20 changes worth knowing

Visa update · 21 July · Visa news for Chinese passport holders

A broader official-source audit found 20 recent visa and immigration updates that can affect work, study, residence applications, or renewal planning. The most important changes concern work-permit thresholds, online applications, renewal processes, and rules that have been announced but are not yet in force.

What changed

Changes already in force or directly changing application strategy include Hungary stopping new guest-worker applications from eligible third countries on 6 June; Sweden tightening salary and insurance requirements for work permits from 1 June; Malaysia revising Employment Pass salary thresholds, durations, and dependant rules; and the UK's July HC 259 changes continuing the tighter direction on skill level, salary, dependants, the Graduate route, and settlement timelines. Poland has moved most residence applications to the MOS online system, while Italy's new single-permit rules focus on faster and more transparent processing. Portugal also launched an AIMA renewal portal in July, so applicants should follow AIMA's current process rather than older guidance.

What this means for Chinese passport holders

Several important changes are scheduled rather than immediate. Singapore will raise Employment Pass and S Pass salary thresholds from January 2027; New Zealand's Short-term Graduate Work Visa opens on 16 November 2026; Canada's 2026-28 plan keeps temporary-resident growth tighter; and Thailand has approved revisions to visa-exemption and visa-on-arrival schemes. Those Thai changes are separate from the DTV, and final implementation still depends on formal publication.

Related routes

Other routes needing a fresh check include US visa appointment locations and bulletin conditions; Belgium's long-stay visa fee; the Netherlands' updated Highly Skilled Migrant income amounts; Japan's emphasis on tax and insurance compliance; Chile's fee and transitory-stay extension rules; the distinction between the UAE GCC-resident eVisa and Virtual Work Residence; Brazil's current residence-authorisation procedure; Australia's student-visa fees, Genuine Student evidence, and capacity settings; and Colombia's 31 October deadline to transfer legacy permanent-resident visas. Use this article as a screening list, then confirm the live conditions on the relevant government page before applying.