Visa Changes September 2026: Thailand Cuts Visa-Free Stays to 30 Days, H-1B Entry Restriction Extended, US Grace Period Under Review

August was a US month. September split the difference: one change that every holiday traveller to Thailand will meet at passport control, and a run of US actions that matter far more to students and workers than to visitors. Europe again made news mostly by what it did not announce.

Thailand: 30 Days Visa-Free From 15 September

The change we tracked through the summer took effect on 15 September 2026. Four regulations published in the Royal Gazette on 31 August replaced the 60-day visa exemption.

• 30 days visa-free for nationals of 60 countries and territories, including India, the Philippines, the UK, Ireland, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye and every EU and EEA state. The stay can be extended once by up to 30 days at an immigration office.
• 15 days for Mauritius and Seychelles.
• Visa on arrival is now limited to Azerbaijan, Belarus and Serbia.
• 21 nationalities lose visa-free entry, among them Sri Lanka, Mexico, Colombia, Morocco and Monaco. They now need a visa in advance.
• Land-border entries under the exemption are capped at two per calendar year, except for Malaysian, Bruneian, Indonesian and Singaporean nationals.
• The bilateral agreements with China (30 days) and Brazil (90 days) are unchanged.

Anyone admitted before 15 September keeps the 60 days stamped on arrival. The Thailand Digital Arrival Card is still mandatory and still free.

Our Thailand 30-day explainer covers the full country list and the extension process.

US: The H-1B Entry Restriction Is Extended to September 2027

Proclamation 10973 of September 2025 restricted the entry of new H-1B workers unless their petition was accompanied by a $100,000 payment. It was due to expire on 21 September 2026.

On 18 September 2026 the President signed Proclamation 11069, published in the Federal Register on 23 September. It continues the same restriction for a further 12 months, until 21 September 2027. The proclamation says the $100,000 payment has been made for more than 700 petitions since the original took effect.

The legal position is not settled. In June a federal district court vacated the 2025 policy, and in July the First Circuit refused to stay that ruling while the government appeals. Proclamation 11069 is a new document. We have not found an official statement on whether, or how, the existing court order applies to it. Employers planning a new H-1B petition for a worker outside the US should get advice from an immigration attorney before relying on either reading.

Background on the court case is in our F-1 and H-1B explainer.

US: DHS Proposes Ending the 60-Day Grace Period

On 11 September 2026 DHS published a proposed rule to remove the regulation at 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2). Since 2017 that rule has allowed workers in certain employment-based classifications, and their dependents, a discretionary grace period of up to 60 days after their job ends. In that window they can look for a new sponsor, change status or prepare to leave.

DHS says the change would restore its earlier policy and tie a worker's status directly to the employment that formed the basis of their admission.

This is a proposal, not a rule. Nothing changes today. Comments are open until 10 November 2026, and any final rule would need to be published before it takes effect. If you are in the US on a work visa, keep the current 60-day window in mind, and follow this proposal if a layoff is a realistic risk for you.

US: The $103,265 H-1B Fee Is Still a Proposal

The comment period on the proposed $103,265 fee on H-1B cap-subject petitions closed on 24 September 2026. DHS published a correction notice on 10 September. No final rule had appeared in the Federal Register when we checked on 26 September.

Until a final rule is published, the fee is not payable. We will update this post and our H-1B coverage when it is.

US: Students Now Get a Fixed Period of Admission

The DHS final rule of 17 July 2026 took effect on 15 September 2026, with no delay notice published. F-1 and J-1 students arriving from that date are no longer admitted for "duration of status". Instead they are admitted up to the programme end date on their I-20 or DS-2019, capped at four years (24 months for English-language training), plus 30 days before and 30 days after.

Anyone who needs longer — a longer programme, OPT, STEM OPT or a new course — must file Form I-539 with USCIS before their admission period ends. Students already in the US on 15 September keep their status until their I-20 end date or EAD expiry, up to four years from that date.

The full detail is in our F-1 fixed admission guide.

Canada: Higher Proof of Funds for Students

IRCC revises the study-permit cost-of-living figure every 1 September. For applications made on or after 1 September 2026, a single applicant studying outside Quebec must show CAD 23,448, up from CAD 22,895. Quebec sets its own figure. Check the IRCC page for amounts with family members.

EU: ETIAS Has No Target Date at All Now

When we re-read the European Commission's ETIAS pages on 22 September, they no longer mentioned the Q4 2026 window agreed by Home Affairs Ministers in March 2025. They now say only that ETIAS is not in operation and that the start date will be announced several months in advance.

The EU has committed to at least six months' notice. With no date announced by the end of September, ETIAS cannot start before March 2027. Nothing can be applied for yet, and any website charging for an ETIAS application today is not official.

The Entry/Exit System (EES) is unaffected: it has been fully operational at every Schengen external border since 10 April 2026, so expect to register fingerprints and a photo on your first entry.

What to Watch in October 2026

• The $250 US Visa Integrity Fee. The statutory deadline for collection is 30 September. As of 22 September the State Department fee schedule did not list it. We will check again after the deadline and report only what the official schedule shows.
• A final H-1B fee rule. The comment period has closed, so a final rule could appear at any time.
• Court filings on Proclamation 11069. Watch for any clarification of how the existing vacatur applies to the extension.
• Grace-period comments close 10 November. Anyone affected should read the proposal before then.
• Year-end expiries. Several concessions currently run to 31 December 2026, including Malaysia's 30-day visa exemption for Indian nationals and South Korea's K-ETA waiver for US citizens. Check before booking trips for early 2027.
• An ETIAS date. Whenever it is announced, the six-month notice period tells you the launch date well in advance.

Use the visa checker for the current requirement for your passport and destination.