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Global Visa & Immigration Updates – September 7, 2026
World Visa Academy – Daily Global Visa & Immigration Update
Date: 06/09/2026
United States
Big Alert – H-4 Dependent Spouses Of H-1B Workers
What it means
The Department of Homeland Security has added a proposal to its 2026 regulatory agenda that would remove H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B workers from the class of noncitizens eligible for employment authorization, reversing a 2015 rule that has allowed hundreds of thousands of spouses to work in the United States. The listing appeared with a received date of 24 August under Regulation Identifier Number 1615-AD00 and is currently classified as a Long-Term Action with the proposed rule publication date shown as "to be determined". Between FY 2023 and FY 2025, USCIS approved roughly 228,147 initial and renewal H-4 EAD applications, the majority for Indian nationals, and women make up nearly all beneficiaries.
Nothing changes today. Existing H-4 EAD cards remain valid until their printed expiration date, and USCIS continues to accept new Form I-765 applications under current rules. A future rule must still be drafted, published for public comment, finalized, and made effective before eligibility actually changes.
Impact
Consultants with H-4 EAD clients or H-1B families where the spouse is planning to apply for work authorization should reassure them that current cards and pending applications are not affected right now. Anyone eligible to file a new or renewal Form I-765 should be encouraged to do so as soon as possible, since building the longest possible runway of valid work authorization is the best hedge against a future rule. Employers should not treat this as a hiring freeze but should factor the possibility of change into workforce planning over the next 12 to 24 months.
Kuwait
Effective This Week – Visit Visa Extensions
What it means
Kuwait's Ministry of Interior ended all automatic extensions for entry visit visas and leave permits from 1 September, closing the exceptional framework introduced in February 2026 during the regional conflict that disrupted Gulf travel. Standard statutory validity periods and procedures now govern all visit visa categories again. Expatriate residents currently inside Kuwait on a visit visa no longer benefit from automatic monthly extensions and must comply with the original visa validity or complete the required legal procedure before it expires. Residents outside Kuwait must return within the normal legally allowed absence period. The one carve-out is for residents who departed Kuwait on or before 31 August, who continue to benefit from the earlier three month exceptional absence extension. The Sahel app residence permit status certificate remains the official reference for absence permit expiry dates.
Impact
Consultants with clients currently on a Kuwait visit visa should confirm the original expiry date on the visa itself rather than assuming any automatic extension still applies, since a lapsed visitor risks overstay fines and future entry issues. Expatriate residents outside Kuwait should check their Sahel certificate immediately to confirm the current absence permit expiry date and plan return travel accordingly, especially those who left after 31 August and do not qualify for the extended grace period.
Denmark
New – Certified Employer Work Permit Scheme
What it means
The Danish Parliament passed legislation on 3 September establishing the new Collective Agreement Based Business Scheme, known in Danish as Erhvervsordning, giving certified employers a dedicated pathway to recruit foreign nationals from 16 non EU countries including India, the United States, Brazil, Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Malaysia, Serbia, Singapore, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. The scheme takes effect 1 January 2027. To qualify, employers must be certified by the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration and must be covered by a Danish collective bargaining agreement, while foreign workers must earn a minimum salary of DKK 300,000 a year, well below the standard Pay Limit Scheme threshold, and must fill a full time role covered by an approved collective agreement. Work permits under the scheme run for up to three years and are renewable. Eligible workers can start employment immediately after filing and providing biometrics, without waiting for a permit decision. Family members can also join under the scheme.
Impact
Consultants advising Danish employers or clients from the 16 eligible countries should start the SIRI certification process for interested employers now, since certification takes time and the scheme opens in less than four months. Skilled worker clients from India or another eligible country who have been priced out of Denmark by the standard Pay Limit Scheme should be told a new lower salary route opens on 1 January 2027 and any application timeline should be planned around that date.
Canada
Update – Express Entry
What it means
IRCC has held two Express Entry draws in the past week. The 3 September draw invited 229 Physicians with Canadian Work Experience at a Comprehensive Ranking System cutoff of 198, the lowest cutoff seen in the pool this year, and the 4 September draw issued 3,500 invitations to candidates in the Healthcare and Social Services Occupations category with a CRS score of 475 or higher. IRCC has now invited 120,656 Express Entry candidates in 2026 across all draws. As of 30 August, the Express Entry pool held 226,673 candidates, and the next draw is expected around 15 September.
Impact
Consultants with physician clients who meet the Canadian work experience criteria should confirm profile completeness in the Express Entry pool as a priority, since scores as low as 198 have now been sufficient in this category. Healthcare and social services professionals sitting around a CRS score of 475 should be told they are in an actively competitive band and should double check all documentation is up to date before the next round of invitations.
Worldwide
Active Alert – Ebola Related Entry Restrictions
What it means
Multiple countries continue to enforce Ebola related entry restrictions in response to the Bundibugyo virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan. Canada's temporary suspension of immigration document validity for residents of these three countries runs through 28 September, pausing new application decisions and denying entry to foreign nationals present in the DRC within the previous 21 days. The United States CDC continues to restrict entry for non citizens and lawful permanent residents present in the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan within the previous 21 days, requiring permitted travelers to enter through designated airports for enhanced screening. Bahrain, Jordan, Rwanda, Kuwait and the Bahamas maintain their own entry bans, quarantine requirements or enhanced screening measures for travelers from the affected countries.
Impact
Consultants with clients who have travelled to, or been resident in, the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan in the past 21 days should confirm current entry rules with the destination country before booking any onward travel, since the measures continue to shift as the outbreak evolves. Employers moving staff regionally in East Africa should treat this as a workforce continuity issue and build in alternative routing where possible.
Reminder
Upcoming Deadlines This Month
Three major changes still scheduled to take effect in the next two weeks, all previously covered in this daily briefing:
15 September: Thailand's 60 day visa exemption drops to 30 days for 60 countries; land border entries capped at 2 per year outside ASEAN neighbours.
15 September: US DHS fixed period of stay rule replaces duration of status for F, J and I visa holders. Anyone in the transition group who travels abroad and is readmitted after this date will get a fixed I-94.
18 September: New US public charge policy takes effect for adjustment of status applications, expected to align consular immigrant visa processing which remains paused worldwide for officer training.
No major new policy changes or big announcements reported from other parts of Europe, other parts of Asia, Africa outside the Ebola alert, Oceania or South America dated specifically to the past 48 hours.
Pro Tip for Immigration Consultants
When a proposal appears on the US regulatory agenda as a "Long Term Action" with the publication date "to be determined", it does not change anything on the day it is announced but does set a clear planning marker. Use these agenda entries with clients to build early conversations about hedging strategies, not to trigger panic filings that may not be necessary.