Blog · 2025-03-14

Relocation news digest: visas, residency and banking updates worldwide

🇨🇳 China and Russia in talks to scrap visas

Zhang Wei, chargé d'affaires at the Chinese embassy in Moscow, has said that Russia and China are negotiating the abolition of visa requirements. The aim is to make travel easier and more comfortable for citizens of both countries.

"We want the people of Russia and China to meet, travel and build ties more often. This matters for the development of relations between our two countries," he explained.

🇻🇳 Vietnam extends visa-free entry for Russian citizens until 2028

The Vietnamese government has extended visa-free entry for Russians and citizens of 11 other countries for another three years. Under the newly published decree, tourists from France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Sweden and Finland may enter Vietnam freely for stays of up to 45 days through 15 March 2028.

The 45-day visa-free rule for citizens of these countries, including Russia, has been in force since 2023. The permit was due to expire on 15 March, but Vietnam has now issued a fresh decree extending the arrangement by another three years, to 15 March 2028.

🇰🇿 Russian relocators have bank accounts frozen in Kazakhstan

Account holders reported the problem, with the bank citing a "pre-trial investigation" as the reason for the freeze.

The frozen accounts belong to Kaspi, the most popular bank among relocators. Kazakh citizens have also had their cards blocked.

🇦🇪 UAE: a golden visa for creative professionals

Dubai has launched a golden visa for talent in the creative sector - influencers, filmmakers, photographers, writers and others. To obtain the 10-year residence visa, applicants must meet the following criteria:

• experience in content creation or creative work;
• awards or recognition for their contribution;
• potential to contribute to the UAE's creative community;
• demonstrated growth and engagement in their work.

Family members of golden visa holders may also apply for the visa.

🇦🇺 Australia: longer processing times for some visas

A surge in applications has lengthened processing times across several visa categories.

Temporary work visas now take between two and seven months (up from one to three months). Delays are also affecting visas issued under the Skills in Demand program. The Specialist Skills visa now takes 9-39 days (up from an average of seven), while the Core Skills visa takes 30-47 days (up from an average of 21). Employer Nomination visas are currently taking 12-18 months, and the training visa (subclass 407) now takes around nine months, up from three.

🇹🇭 Thailand approves Tether's USDT stablecoin

What this change could lead to:

• more hotels, restaurants and shops will start accepting USDT and USDC;
• tourists will be able to exchange USDT and USDC for Thai baht through local exchanges without first converting to Bitcoin or Ethereum;
• stablecoins may be used legally in investment and trading operations, simplifying money transfers.

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan launches a Digital Nomad Residency program

The program gives IT professionals a streamlined route to residency in Kazakhstan, with affordable living costs, varied landscapes and modern cities well suited to work and travel.

Applicants must register on Astana Hub, submit documents, complete an interview and obtain residency through eGov.kz.

• processing takes up to 45 days;
• residency can be granted for up to 10 years;
• there is no requirement to prove a high income or hold substantial savings.

🇨🇭 Switzerland: a new online system for reporting short-term work

The portal for submitting short-term work notifications in Switzerland is changing on 17 March 2025; the current portal will close on 14 March 2025.

From 17 March 2025, short-term work notifications must be submitted through the EasyGov tool. No submissions will be possible between 14 and 17 March. Once the new system goes live, no disruptions or changes to standard processing times are expected.

🇸🇬 Singapore: easier employment for foreign workers

From 1 July 2025, the government will remove the cap on how long foreign workers may be employed, allowing them to work in Singapore indefinitely on a work permit.

The government will also raise the maximum employment age for foreign workers from 60 to 63, and lift the age ceiling for new work permit applications to 61. The measures are intended to ease Singapore's labour shortage.

🇷🇴 Romania: a new citizenship law

The residence requirement is being cut from eight years to three for certain categories of applicant.

The eight-year term may be reduced to three years if the applicant meets the core conditions and can demonstrate active participation in the economic life of Romanian society, relevant educational achievements, or a notable contribution to culture, the promotion of human rights, community work or volunteering - and falls into one of the following situations:

• is a citizen of an EU member state, the European Economic Area or the Swiss Confederation;
• was born on Romanian territory (with one or both parents legally resident in Romania at the time of birth);
• has been granted refugee status under applicable law and has made particular efforts to integrate into Romanian society.

🇭🇰 Hong Kong: changes to the Talent Pass and Quality Migrant schemes

The Hong Kong SAR government has updated the list of occupations for the Talent Pass Scheme and the Quality Migrant Scheme, effective 1 March 2025.

The revised list now covers 60 occupations, giving foreign professionals in these fields access to a streamlined immigration route. Nine new occupations have been added across key sectors:

• financial services: accountants, finance specialists with Islamic-market experience, trading specialists;
• innovation and technology: architects, patent specialists;
• law: lawyers;
• aviation and shipping: marine surveyors, green-shipping specialists, aircraft maintenance engineers.

In addition, employers hiring professionals from the talent list no longer need to prove local recruitment difficulties, which speeds up the hiring process.

🌍 South Africa launches an online platform for business-visa recommendations

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) has launched an online "Business Visa Recommendation System" for investors seeking a DTIC recommendation as part of an initial or renewed business-visa application, or for permanent residence.

The DTIC issues such a recommendation after assessing the viability of the applicant's business, enabling them to apply for the visa.

The new system lets applicants submit applications online, upload supporting documents, track progress in real time and receive status notifications, streamlining the entire process. Recommendations currently take one to six weeks, but the online system is expected to deliver them faster, though specific processing times have not yet been announced.

🇳🇿 New Zealand: changes to the investor visa rules

The New Zealand government has introduced a series of changes aimed at simplifying the investment process. The main changes include:

• removing investment caps;
• introducing a new "investment on demand" option (for funds destined for managed investments), allowing applicants to temporarily hold their capital in assets such as bonds, term deposits, listed shares and bank accounts for up to six months before transferring it into managed funds;
• a new rule allowing newborn children of investors to qualify for a dependent child resident visa.

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