Canada will switch to a new online process for asylum claims on 3 November 2026, with the cutover at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 2 November, CIC News reports. Anyone who has started a claim in the IRCC Portal but not submitted it before then will have to answer new questions.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced the date on 1 October through updates to its pages on claiming asylum from within Canada and at the border. For in-Canada online claims, a claim started but not submitted must be completed with the new questions and old answers reviewed; a claim already submitted is unaffected. For claims made at the border, a claim not yet linked to a Portal account means re-entering personal and family details; one linked but unsubmitted needs the new questions; a submitted claim is unaffected.
Who can claim and what happens next
CIC News outlines two grounds: Convention refugee (persecution based on race, religion, politics, nationality or social group) and person in need of protection (risk of torture, cruelty or death). Eligible claims go to the Immigration and Refugee Board for a decision. People refused, or found ineligible for referral, can apply for a pre-removal risk assessment.
Work permits while you wait
Since 2022 a public policy lets referred claimants apply for an open work permit while awaiting their hearing. Per CIC News, Canada took a first step on 19 June 2026 toward making early access permanent through regulatory amendments, and on 26 March 2026 extended access to some claimants awaiting a pre-removal risk assessment. Related reading: our guide to Canada work permit processing times and the PRRA waiver for Israel and Palestine claimants.
What to do before 3 November
If you have an unsubmitted claim, submit it before the cutover to avoid extra questions, or be ready to answer them. Official guidance is on the IRCC website. If you are weighing other routes to Canada, try the visa eligibility checker.
Canada asylum process: common questions
When does the new process start?
3 November 2026, with the cutover at 11:59 p.m. ET on 2 November.
Do I have to redo a submitted claim?
No. Claims submitted in the IRCC Portal before the cutover are not affected.
Can asylum claimants work in Canada?
Referred claimants can apply for an open work permit under a policy in place since 2022, per CIC News.
What if my claim is rejected?
You may be able to apply for a pre-removal risk assessment, usually the last chance to seek protection in Canada.
OpenAI’s annualised revenue is reportedly “approaching $50 billion”, about $20 billion below the roughly $70 billion figure reported two weeks earlier, according to TechCrunch, which cites the Financial Times. OpenAI had not confirmed the lower number on the record, TechCrunch said.
Axios reported on 29 September 2026 that OpenAI’s annualised revenue was approaching $70 billion. Per the Financial Times, as relayed by TechCrunch, that figure came from information shared with OpenAI investors and was an attempt to compare OpenAI directly with Anthropic. The Financial Times now reports OpenAI has told investors the figure is closer to $50 billion.
The Anthropic comparison
CNBC reported on 17 August 2026 that Anthropic’s annualised revenue reached $65 billion in July. TechCrunch notes the two companies calculate the metric differently: Anthropic counts sales made through its cloud partners, while OpenAI does not. That accounting difference means the headline numbers are not like-for-like. Anthropic is a competitor of OpenAI, so each side’s figures should be read with that interest in mind.
Funding and IPO backdrop
TechCrunch lists OpenAI’s $122 billion funding round in March 2026, and notes CNBC reported on 19 August that the company’s IPO has been pushed to early 2027. Leaked 2025 financials reported by Inc. showed about $13 billion in revenue, with spending significantly higher. Investor appetite for AI-linked listings is a live question, as our coverage of the data-centre backlash and the stalled listings in our data-centre IPO report shows.
What to watch
The key tests are whether OpenAI confirms its figure, whether investors accept a like-for-like methodology across AI labs, and how the revision affects the IPO timetable. For more on the company’s recent turmoil see our report on the safety researcher resignation.
OpenAI revenue: questions answered
What is OpenAI’s reported annualised revenue now?
Approaching $50 billion, according to the Financial Times as relayed by TechCrunch.
What was the earlier figure?
Axios reported on 29 September that it was approaching $70 billion.
Has OpenAI confirmed the new number?
TechCrunch’s article carries no on-the-record confirmation.
Why are OpenAI and Anthropic hard to compare?
Anthropic counts sales through its cloud partners; OpenAI does not, per TechCrunch.
The 2026 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Navi Pillay, a former South African jurist and former UN human rights chief, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced in Oslo on Friday 9 October 2026, Al Jazeera reports. The committee honoured her “work to promote peace and international law”.
According to the committee, as relayed by Al Jazeera, Pillay was instrumental in ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted. The committee received 287 nominations for this year’s prize. Al Jazeera’s early report, marked as developing, carried no statement from Pillay herself.
The contenders she beat
Reported contenders this year included the International Space Station, emergency teams in Sudan, children’s advocates in Ukraine and two of the world’s top international courts, per Al Jazeera. The committee does not publish its shortlist, so such names reflect speculation ahead of the announcement rather than official confirmation.
The Trump angle
Al Jazeera notes that US President Donald Trump has long wanted the prize and has repeatedly said he deserves it. The announcement comes while the United States remains in conflict with Iran, a backdrop covered in our report on the Strait of Hormuz dispute.
What happens next
The Nobel Prizes are formally presented in December. Full details of the citation and the laureate’s biography are published by the Nobel Prize organisation. This article will be read against a wider news cycle that includes the Gaza ceasefire anniversary and continuing debate over international law.
Nobel Peace Prize 2026: key questions
Who won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize?
Navi Pillay, a former South African jurist and former UN human rights commissioner, according to Al Jazeera.
Why was she chosen?
The Norwegian Nobel Committee cited her work to promote peace and international law, and her role in ensuring war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted.
Europe’s new travel authorization system was supposed to be live by now. It isn’t. The ETIAS launch delay has pushed the start date past the end of 2026. Nobody has set a new one yet. Travelers heading to Europe from visa-exempt countries can relax a little longer. But the uncertainty is starting to cause its own problems.
The official EU travel portal says only that ETIAS “is not currently in operation.” No applications are being collected. That wording replaced a firmer “last quarter of 2026” target in mid-July 2026.
Why the ETIAS Launch Delay Keeps Happening
ETIAS, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System, screens visa-exempt travelers before they reach the Schengen area. Think of it as Europe’s answer to the US ESTA system. Travelers from the UK, the US, Canada, and Australia would apply online. They would pay a small fee and get approval before departure.
The system kept slipping for years before this latest delay. Officials once aimed for 2024. Then they pushed to 2025. Then they settled on the last quarter of 2026. That target held through March 2026. At that point, eu-LISA, the EU agency running the technology, still called ETIAS a project “preparing to go live at the end of 2026.” Then the picture changed. By mid-July 2026, the 2026 window disappeared from the official site entirely.
The Entry/Exit System Problem Behind the ETIAS Postponement
ETIAS depends on a separate system first. That system is the Entry/Exit System, or EES. It records biometric data for non-EU travelers at Schengen borders. EES became mandatory at all external borders on April 10, 2026. The rollout has not gone smoothly.
Airports reported queues running several hours at peak times. Temporary flexibility rules let border staff scale back biometric registration during the worst congestion. Those rules expired on September 6, 2026. Nobody has announced an extension yet, even though airline groups including IATA and ABTA asked for one running into 2027. The Financial Times reported that eu-LISA now sees a 2026 ETIAS launch as unfeasible, given how unsettled EES still is.
The logic from Brussels is simple. Regulators want the biometric checks already in place to stabilize first. Only then will they add a second layer of screening on top. Stacking two unfinished systems invites more of the airport chaos EES has already caused on its own.
What the ETIAS Delay Means for Travelers Right Now
Nothing changes for travelers today. Visa-exempt visitors from eligible countries can enter the Schengen area the same way they always have. No ETIAS application exists to file. No fee is due yet.
That matters because third-party websites have already started advertising ETIAS “pre-approval” and paid processing services. None of them are legitimate yet. The European Commission has not opened applications. The Commission has promised several months of public notice before launch, followed by a transition period once it starts. Watch the official EU travel portal for that notice. Don’t trust a travel agency or booking site to announce it first.
Once ETIAS does launch, the basics are already set. Adults aged 18 to 70 will pay €20. Approval will last three years, or until the traveler’s passport expires, whichever comes first. A single approval will cover multiple short trips to any Schengen country during that window, much like a multi-entry visa does today. The rest of the Schengen area’s entry rules keep working independently of ETIAS. That includes the reintroduced border checks between Spain and Italy covered separately this week. None of that has changed.
Travel agents and airlines also face a planning headache of their own. Booking platforms built around a 2026 ETIAS rollout now need to rework their timelines, and some have quietly removed references to the system from their checkout pages rather than guess at a date.
No Confirmed ETIAS Date, But a Meeting on the Calendar
Press reports point to 2027 as the likely new launch window. No EU body has confirmed that in writing. The European Commission sets the actual start date only after eu-LISA finishes its technical sign-off. That process carries no public deadline right now.
One date is on the calendar, though. The eu-LISA Management Board holds its next scheduled meeting from November 17 to 19, 2026, in Dublin. The board may well discuss a revised ETIAS timetable there, though nobody has formally promised to announce one. Until then, plan around a simple assumption: ETIAS could appear sometime in 2027, without a specific month attached. Travelers from the UK should also track separate changes to UK immigration rules that took effect this week. Those rules apply on top of whatever Europe eventually decides about ETIAS, not instead of it.
ETIAS Delay: Your Questions Answered
Is ETIAS live yet? No. The official EU travel portal states that ETIAS is not currently in operation and that no applications are being accepted as of October 2026.
When will ETIAS launch? No confirmed date exists. Press reports point to 2027, but the European Commission has not announced an official start date.
Do I need to apply for ETIAS to travel to Europe right now? No. Visa-exempt travelers can still enter the Schengen area under existing rules, with no ETIAS application required.
Why was the ETIAS launch delayed again? Regulators cite ongoing problems with the Entry/Exit System, the biometric border-check system that has to stabilize before ETIAS adds a second screening layer.
How much will ETIAS cost once it launches? €20 for travelers aged 18 to 70, with approval valid for three years or until the passport expires.
Should I pay a website that offers ETIAS pre-approval? No. No legitimate ETIAS application process exists yet. Any site charging for one is not an official channel.
Australia has closed the door on most onshore student visa applications. These Australia student visa changes took effect on October 2, 2026. They sit inside new migration regulations. The same reform stops most applicants from adding a partner or child to a student visa application. It landed days after separate fee increases pushed the cost of applying even higher.
Anyone in Australia who hopes to switch onto a new student visa needs to check the rules now. Some students still qualify for an onshore application. Many do not.
What the Australia Student Visa Changes Require
The Migration Amendment (Student Visa Reform) Regulations 2026 reworked the rules for subclass 500 student visas and subclass 590 student guardian visas. Australia’s Federal Register of Legislation lists the instrument as F2026L01347. It commenced on October 2, 2026.
A new rule, paragraph 1222(3)(aa), covers subclass 500 holders directly. They must generally be outside Australia to apply for another student visa as the student. That applies no matter how they held their current visa, whether as the student or as a family member. Sixteen other visa types also face the new offshore requirement. These include subclasses 400, 407, 408, 417, 457, 462, and both forms of 482.
The rule does not stop at lodging. Clause 500.411 adds a second layer. Anyone required to apply from offshore must also stay offshore until the visa is granted. Migration lawyer James Bae, writing for Visa Plan Lawyers, explained the target. The rule is meant to stop people who leave briefly to lodge an application, then return to Australia on a bridging visa while they wait.
Who Still Qualifies for an Onshore Student Visa
Exemptions remain, but they are narrow. A student holding a visa in their own right can still apply onshore in a few cases. These cover Defence students, Foreign Affairs students, and school students. A separate instrument, LIN 26/087, lists further exempt groups.
Doctoral students enrolled at the time of application still qualify. So do students hit by a registered provider’s default, including sanctions or suspension under the Education Services for Overseas Students Act. A student who has not finished their course, but will finish within 12 months, also qualifies. The same goes for a student moving up to a higher-level course after finishing their current one. The move must be a genuine step up, not sideways or down.
One onshore pathway disappeared entirely. Students used to get 28 days after a visa ended to lodge a new application onshore. That option is gone. A narrower replacement now applies in one situation only: when the Administrative Review Tribunal overturns a cancellation after the visa has already ended.
New Student Visa Limits on Partners and Children
Family members face the tightest new restrictions. The old subsequent entrant pathway is gone. Partners and children can no longer apply for a student visa as family once the student’s own visa has been granted. Under paragraph 1222(3)(e), the whole family must apply together. One combined application, lodged at the same time as the student’s.
Limited exceptions still exist. A family member can apply separately if the student is a Defence or Foreign Affairs student. The same applies if the student holds a passport from a listed Pacific or Southeast Asian country, or receives a foreign government scholarship. Family members who already held a student visa on October 2, 2026, or applied before that date, keep their existing status. A child born in Australia on or after that date, to a current student visa holder, also qualifies for inclusion. Course progression students get no family exemption at all.
Rising Visa Fees Add to the Pressure
The onshore and family rules arrived on top of a separate cost increase. From July 1, 2026, the base charge for subclass 500 and 590 visas rose from AUD 2,000 to AUD 2,500. That is a steeper jump than most other visa categories received. Other visa charges rose by roughly 25% on their first instalment. Citizenship application fees rose too, in line with inflation.
Together, the fee rise and the October reforms raise both the price and the difficulty of studying in Australia from inside the country. Fee increases tied to immigration processing are not unique to Australia. They have become a recurring theme across major destination countries this year.
What International Students Should Do Now
Anyone who lodged an application before October 2, 2026, keeps the old rules. The Department of Home Affairs assesses those applications under the settings in force when they were filed. Existing student visas stay valid and unaffected.
For everyone else, check eligibility early. Do this before booking travel or enrolling in a new course. Students weighing other options might also look at application deadlines in other countries or funded scholarship programs, which carry their own visa pathways. A registered migration agent or lawyer can confirm which exemption, if any, fits a specific case. Home Affairs assesses most of these exemptions one by one.
Common Questions on the Australia Student Visa Changes
When did the Australia student visa changes take effect? October 2, 2026, under the Migration Amendment (Student Visa Reform) Regulations 2026 (F2026L01347).
Can current student visa holders still apply onshore for another student visa? Generally no. Exceptions include doctoral study, provider default, course completion, and course progression to a higher qualification.
Can I add my partner or child to my student visa after it’s granted? No. The subsequent entrant pathway for family members no longer exists, apart from a short list of exemptions.
Does this affect visas lodged before October 2, 2026? No. Those applications keep the rules that applied on the day they were filed.
How much does a subclass 500 student visa cost now? The base charge rose from AUD 2,000 to AUD 2,500 on July 1, 2026, ahead of the October onshore and family rules.
Is the 28-day onshore reapplication window still available? No. A narrower route now exists only after a successful Administrative Review Tribunal appeal against a cancellation.
