President Donald Trump has said that his decision to suspend immigration into the United States will last for 60 days and apply only to those seeking permanent residence. It will not affect temporary visas to workers.
After vowing to suspend “all immigration to US” on Monday night, Mr Trump reportedly changed his decision following backlash from some business leaders.
"We want to protect our US workers and I think as we move forward we will become more and more protective of them,” Mr Trump said justifying his decision.
Critics say Mr Trump is trying to divert attention away from his response to the virus while the Democrats accuse the administration of using the pandemic to crack down on immigration.
“The executive order is likely to be signed on Wednesday. The ban could be extended much longer depending on how the economy was doing,” Mr Trump said the daily White House Coronavirus briefing.
