Canada introduces new “30 days or free” guarantee for passport processing

What changed

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has prolonged its Special Passport Intervention Exercise in the United Kingdom. This programme helps Nigerian citizens living in the UK with various issues related to their passports. This announcement is an update to an existing service, showing ongoing efforts to improve consular support for Nigerians abroad.

What changed

The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Programme (OINP) has changed the scoring for Canadian work experience earnings history within its Ontario Workforce Priority (OWP) stream's Expression of Interest (EOI) system. As of 5 October 2026, candidates who have earned CAD 80,000 or more in a single year during the last five years will receive 10 points. This update is automatically applied to all existing EOIs and aims to make the assessment process smoother for highly paid candidates in Ontario's workforce.

What changed

Canada has promised $6.863 million in new funding to support efforts to return, rehabilitate, and help Ukrainian children, unlawfully detained civilians, and prisoners of war reintegrate into society. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anita Anand, announced this at the 'Pathways to Peace' conference in Toronto, which Canada co-hosted with Ukraine and Norway. These initiatives aim to deal with the effects of Russia's invasion by backing organisations that work on finding people, protecting them, advocating for them, and directly supporting those affected and their families.

What changed

The U.S. State Department is introducing a fully online application process for first-time U.S. passport applicants, which will commence next year. This initiative, part of the broader America.gov project, seeks to streamline what was previously a complex, multi-step process involving printing forms, scheduling appointments, and in-person visits. Concurrently, a redesigned 2028 U.S. passport featuring enhanced visual elements and security features will be rolled out. These measures are intended to make passport acquisition more accessible and to better reflect the significance of U.S. citizenship.