The ManicaPost
The Trump administration has set new criteria for visa applicants from six Muslim-majority countries and all refugees, requiring a “close” family or business tie to be eligible to enter the United States.
Trump travel ban ruling is racist and unfair, Iran says.
The move on Wednesday came after the supreme court partially restored President Donald Trump’s executive order that was widely criticised as a ban on Muslims.
Visas that have already been approved will not be revoked, but instructions issued by the state department say new applicants from Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Iran and Yemen must prove a relationship with a parent, spouse, child, adult son or daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or sibling already in the United States to be eligible.
The same requirement, with some exceptions, holds for would-be refugees from all nations who are still awaiting approval for admission to the US.
Grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, brothers- and sisters-in-law, fiancées/fiancés or other extended family members are not considered to be close relationships, according to the guidelines that were issued in a cable sent to all US embassies and consulates late on Wednesday.
The new rules take effect on Thursday, according to the cable, which was obtained by he Associated Press.
On Monday, the supreme court partially lifted lower court injunctions against Trump’s executive order that had temporarily banned visas for citizens of the six countries. The justices’ ruling exempted applicants from the ban if they could prove a “bona fide relationship” with a US person or entity, but the court offered only broad guidelines – suggesting they would include a relative, job offer or invitation to lecture in the US – as to how that should be defined. — Reuters
