The United States will not lift any existing travel restrictions “at this point” due to concerns over the highly transmissible Covid-19 Delta variant and the rising number of US coronavirus cases, the White House confirmed on Monday.

It means that the long-running travel restrictions that have barred much of the world’s population from the United States since 2020 will not be lifted in the short term.

with the Delta variant, we will maintain existing travel restrictions at this point,” White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said on Monday, citing the spread of the Delta variant in the United States and abroad.

Airlines have heavily lobbied the White House for months to lift the restrictions and some say the industry may now have to wait until September or later for a possible revision.

Asked on 15 July at a joint appearance with German Chancellor Angela Merkel about when the United States would lift European travel restrictions, President Joe Biden said he would “be able to answer that question to you within the next several days – what is likely to happen”.

The restrictions have brought heavy criticism from people prevented from seeing loved ones and the White House has acknowledged a desire to reunite separated families.