Obama ends decades-old visa-free residency policy for Cubans

US President Barack Obama ended a decades-old policy that allowed Cuban migrants who arrived illegally on US soil to stay.

In one of his final acts before leaving the White House, Obama scrapped the 20-year-old policy allowing those fleeing communist Cuba and reaching American territory to become legal permanent residents after a year.

In exchange, Havana has agreed to start accepting Cubans who are turned away or deported from the US, calling the decision "an important step forward in bilateral relations."

Obama said the move would "bring greater consistency to our immigration policy."

"Effective immediately, Cuban nationals who attempt to enter the United States illegally and do not qualify for humanitarian relief will be subject to removal, consistent with US law and enforcement priorities," he said in a statement.

However, many Cubans in the US have reportedly said that Washington is rewarding a regime which has failed to address human rights concerns.

Preferential immigration treatment for Cuban immigrants enticed millions to flee the island, fueling economic stasis and a severe "brain drain."