Religious Worker Visa, Apply for a U.S. Visa

Applying for a Religious Visa in Los Angeles

This type of visa will allow you to obtain the Green Card for you, your spouse and your available children under 21 years old.
This visa for the Green Card is similar to the R-1 temporary religious visa, but is more difficult to obtain.
This visa does not require the lengthy Labor Certification process. This process could take several years.
This way of getting the Green Card may not be available in the very near future.

Preceding the filing of the petition, the person “has been a member of a religious church having a bona fide, nonprofit, religious organization in the United States,” and seeks to enter the U.S.
to work full time (35 hours) in a repay position. The work must be solely to carry on their mission as a minister or to work for a bona fide, nonprofit religious organization in the U.S. or its related in the U.S.
The person has been working as a minister or in a religious mission or occupation,
immediately prior the filing of the petition.
The religious work for the two prior years must be continuous. Some cases support the position that it need not be full-time for the 2-year period.
(1) the break did not exceed 2 years;
or for break that did not involve undocumented work in the U.S.; and
(2) the candidate was a member of the petitioner’s denomination throughout the 2 years of prepared employment.

Religious Visa (R-1) — overview, eligibility, and how to apply

The R-1 visa allows foreign nationals to enter the United States temporarily to work in a bona fide religious vocation or occupation for a U.S. religious organization. Common uses include ministers, religious instructors, and professional or nonprofessional religious workers who will perform duties for a qualifying nonprofit or faith-based employer. Therefore, both sponsoring organizations and applicants must carefully document the religious nature of the job, the organization’s qualifying status, and the applicant’s religious background.

Who qualifies (key eligibility points)

• Qualifying employer: U.S. nonprofit religious organization or affiliated religious denomination.
• Qualifying position: minister, religious vocation (monk/nun), religious occupation (instructor, liturgical worker), or professional religious worker.
• Time in denomination: beneficiary generally should have at least two years of membership/service in the denomination prior to filing.
• Temporary intent: R-1 is nonimmigrant — initial approvals are limited in duration and extensions are possible subject to limits.

Employer steps (high level)

1. Confirm organizational eligibility—collect articles/bylaws, IRS letter (if any), and denominational affiliation letters.
2. Prepare Form I-129 (R classification) with supporting religious and organizational evidence.
3. Document the job’s religious nature with detailed duties, schedules of services, and program descriptions.
4. Choose consular processing or change of status based on the beneficiary’s current location and strategy.

Evidence checklist

• Employer: articles of incorporation, bylaws, IRS tax-exempt letter, denominational affiliation letter.
• Job: detailed job description, hours, salary, program schedules, evidence the duties are religious.
• Beneficiary: ordination/certificates, letters confirming two years’ membership/service, CV, passport.
• Supporting exhibits: membership counts, budgets, sermons/classes, third-party affidavits.

Practical tips & common pitfalls

• Use explicit religious evidence (teaching doctrine, leading worship) not only charitable descriptions.
• Affidavits and dated letters are helpful to show continuous affiliation.
• File early—processing and consular scheduling can be lengthy.
• Coordinate immigrant-intent strategy if the beneficiary may later seek permanent residence.

How we help

We review eligibility, prepare I-129 petitions and exhibits, draft denominational support letters, advise on consular vs change-of-status strategy, and respond to RFEs.