MIAMI _ From the streets of Havana to the Mexican border with the United States to South Florida, there was a new immigration reality Friday, the day after the Obama administration said Cubans would no longer be allowed to enter the United States without visas.
It turned on its head more than two decades of immigration policy that essentially allowed Cubans who made it to U.S. shores by sea or showed up at U.S. borders _ even if their trips were arranged by people smugglers _ to enter the United States legally and a year later become eligible for permanent residency.
Because of the swiftness of the change _ the new migration understanding between Cuba and the United States took effect immediately after signing Thursday afternoon _ there was plenty of confusion about what the policy will and won't do. Most provisions of previous migration accords between the two countries in the 1980s and 1990s remain in effect but the executive agreement signed in Havana by the two countries covers new ground.
Although the policy shift was front-page news and amply aired on state-run television on the island, "people are confused," said Hatzel Vela, a reporter for WPLG-TV who was in Havana when the news broke. "They're wondering if, for example, they come with a visa whether the Cuban Adjustment Act will still apply."
The answer to that question is yes _ unless Congress repeals it.
Here's a look at some of the most significant aspects of the new policy governing Cuban migrants:
_The elimination of automatic entry for Cubans who arrive in the U.S. without visas: This ends the policy known as "wet-foot, dry-foot" that allowed those who arrived on U.S. soil (dry-foot) to remain in this country. Cuban migrants entering the United States illegally will be deported.
"The aim here is to treat Cuban migrants in a manner consistent with migrants who come here illegally from other countries, particularly other countries in the same region," said Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson.
The wet-foot part _ return to Cuba or resettlement in a third country for those picked up at sea or who manage to penetrate the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay _ will continue to be policy.
The Cuban government also may agree to accept on a "case-to-case" basis other Cubans under deportation orders who are not covered under the migration understanding, Johnson said.
_Acceptance of Cuban citizens deported by the United States: Cuba has agreed to accept the return of its citizens trying to enter the United States illegally by air, land or sea if the time between when they leave Cuba and the time when the United States begins deportation proceedings is less than four years.
Johnson said that eventually the United States would like Cuba to agree to accept every Cuban deported from the United States.
A government declaration published in Granma, the official newspaper of Cuba's Communist Party, said the agreement implied that the United States will return to the island all Cuban citizens detected by the United States "when they attempt to enter or remain (in the United States) irregularly in violation of the law."
_Certain aspects of a preferential policy for Cuban migrants will remain: An annual visa lottery that hands out a minimum of 20,000 visas to come to the United States remains in effect as does a family reunification program that allows residents of the United States to sponsor their family members.
As always, Cubans may apply for asylum and entry into the United States if they can establish a "well-founded fear of persecution."
Previously, while awaiting an asylum determination, a Cuban would have been paroled into the United States and could begin to receive benefits under the Cuban Adjustment Act. "There's not going to be a separate queue for Cubans," said deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes. "If they are not paroled in, they will not be able to adjust and achieve the benefits under the CAA."
Cubans who arrive with visas will be eligible for the Cuban Adjustment Act, which allows Cubans to apply for green cards and permanent residency after they have been in the United States for a year and a day.
It's unclear what the incoming administration's position is on the Cuban Adjustment Act or if President-elect Donald Trump would try to reverse the new Cuban immigration policy.
Some analysts speculate he won't.
"Trump is unlikely to reverse: Such an action would be at odds with his campaign promises to enforce orderly migration flows," said Jason Marczak, director of the Latin America Economic Growth Initiative at the Washington-based Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center.
_Cubans put on more equal footing with people from other countries who want to come to the United States: Haitians, who suffered a devastating hurricane seven years ago and more recent natural disasters that have slammed an already weak economy, said they were surprised and gratified that there will now be some equity in U.S. immigration policy.
"I think it levels the playing field for the Haitian and the Cuban immigrants who are coming here because the Haitian community has been at a disadvantage since the policy," said Fayola Delica, who recently lost a bid to represent state House District 108 and is the niece of the late Rev. Gerard Jean-Juste, a Haitian human rights activist. "But yet I do hope there will be a replacement policy for both communities."
_An end to the Cuban Medical Professional Parole Program: Cuban doctors and other medical professionals working in third countries will no longer be given preferential entry into the United States. Vidal said that the program was undermining Cuba's international medical cooperation programs.
One issue that is yet to be explained by immigration officials is what happens to Cubans who arrive with visitor visas then overstay their visas and seek residence under the Cuban Adjustment Act after more than a year in the country. Neither Johnson nor other top officials have addressed this.
