English language requirement levels for immigration applications updated

What changed

New Zealand's Immigration New Zealand (INZ) has announced final changes to the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) Resident Visa and Work to Residence visas. These changes start on 24 August 2026. Most people applying for an SMC Resident Visa will now only need to meet one wage rule. This rule will be set at the wage they earned when they started their skilled work experience, or when their work visa was granted if they started work within five months. This gives them more certainty. People applying for Work to Residence visas (Care Workforce and Transport) will also use the wage rule from their work visa grant date. New evidence rules include needing a bachelor's degree to support some Level 8 or 9 qualifications. Points for bachelor's degrees and accredited qualifications will increase from 3 to 4. The rule that required 120 credits for overseas Trades and Technician qualifications has been removed. Self-employment will no longer count as relevant work experience for the new Trades and Technician and Skilled Work Experience pathways. The meaning of 'genuine employment' for all skilled residence visas has been made clearer. It now means job offers must be 'available and ongoing' and show a 'genuine need to be based in New Zealand'.

What changed

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wants to add a fee of $103,265 for all H-1B cap-subject petitions. This includes petitions for people with advanced degrees that are exempt from the usual cap. This new fee was announced on 24 August 2026. You would pay it when you file the petition, along with other fees you already pay. DHS believes this fee will raise about $8.8 billion each year. This money would help cover the federal government's costs to run the legal immigration system. The fee will apply to employers and people who file H-1B cap-subject petitions. It will not apply to petitions that are not subject to the cap. Examples include petitions from non-profit research groups and universities, which are exempt.

What changed

UK Visas and Immigration has updated its 'Form MN1: guidance' document, used for registering a child under 18 as a British citizen. Effective 20 August 2026, the 'Citizenship-related queries' section has been updated. Additionally, the guidance now confirms that the priority service for these applications is live, a new section titled 'when will the child become British?' has been added (effective 7 July 2026), and the section on returning Biometric Residence Permits has been updated and renamed 'destroy your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP)'. These updates apply to individuals seeking to register a child under 18 as a British citizen through various qualifying circumstances.

What changed

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) and Immigration Enforcement have updated the 'Powers and operational procedure: caseworker guidance'. This change took effect on 20 August 2026. The update adds new guidance called 'Post-incident procedures: in the event of death or serious injury'. This new guidance is for immigration staff who deal with enforcement matters in the UK. It adds to the current rules on how officers use their administrative and criminal powers. It expands how they must handle serious incidents.