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The Biden administration has lifted restrictions on Trump-era Cuba, including some aspects of travel to the island, a ceiling on remittances and the issuance of at least 20,000 immigrant visas a year.
A statement from the State Department described the measure as “intended to further support the Cuban people by providing them with additional tools to live free from the oppression of the Cuban government and to seek greater economic opportunities”.
The decision comes after a lengthy internal review postponed following the Cuban government’s crackdown on widespread street protests on the island last summer.
The administration is also under pressure to reduce the number of migrants crossing the southern border, where tens of thousands of Cubans have become the second largest group seeking unauthorized entry through Mexico. Last month, the administration and Cuba held direct talks on migration for the first time in four years.
Under decades-long bilateral agreements terminated in 2018 as part of the Trump administration’s lifting of President Barack Obama’s opening to Cuba, which led to the resumption of diplomatic relations in 2015, the United States has agreed to issue at least 20,000 immigrant visas per year for Cubans. Visas were further restricted when the US embassy and consulate were reduced to skeletal staff in 2019.
America’s Biden summit faces boycott over invitation list
Under the new measures, the administration will increase the capacity of the consulate and restore the parole program for family reunification. The Trump-era ceiling, which limited family remittances to $ 1,000 every three months, will be lifted and the ban on non-family remittances will be eased to allow independent Cuban entrepreneurs to pay.
“We will promote trade opportunities outside the public sector by allowing access to advanced cloud technologies, application programming interfaces and e-commerce platforms,” the statement said. Prohibitions on trade and charter flights to cities other than Havana will also be lifted.
Cuba is facing a severe economic crisis caused by a combination of US sanctions, a sharp drop in tourism during the pandemic and global inflation.
Biden, who vowed to lift the restrictive measures during his campaign, was caught between conflicting pressures on Cuba. Top lawmakers, including a number of Cuban states, have opposed any easing of the restrictions, while some Democrats and a number of Latin American countries have opposed them.
In a potential embarrassment for the administration, a growing number of hemisphere leaders have said they will not attend the US summit, which Biden will host next month in Los Angeles if Cuba is not invited.
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