The new rules, the product of months of legal wrangling, aren't so much an outright ban as a tightening of already-tough visa policies affecting citizens from six Muslim-majority countries. Refugees are covered, too.

The move came after the Supreme Court partially restored President Donald Trump's executive order that was widely criticized as a ban on Muslims.

The Trump administration set new criteria for visa applicants from six mainly Muslim nations and all refugees that require a “close” family or business tie to the U.S.