Homeland Security cuts down wait times for religious worker visas

The Trump administration will give priests, nuns, rabbis, and other religious workers a reduced wait time when applying for a religious worker visa, the Department of Homeland Security said Wednesday. Current immigration law allows religious workers with R-1 status to legally live in the United States for five years before applying for status renewal. However, applicants must spend at least a year outside of the United States before applying for the R-1 renewal.

The Trump administration will no longer require religious workers renewing R-1 visas to spend an entire year outside the United States, according to the Wednesday release. The rule change will offer greater stability and fewer disruptions for faith-based communities, DHS said.

What’s the new time requirement? DHS did not establish a new minimum time period before reapplying. R-1 workers must still physically leave the country, but are no longer bound to a minimum period of living somewhere else before applying for visa renewal, DHS said.

What made Trump change the wait period? The new policy supports the goals of the White House Faith Office established under President Donald Trump’s executive order issued last February. Changes from the State Department in 2023 caused visa wait time to skyrocket, which in turn caused religious groups to be without clergy and ministerial workers, the statement added.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is dedicated to protecting free religious expression, prompting DHS to ensure religious organizations can function smoothly in America, according to a DHS spokesperson. Pastors, priests, and rabbis are essential to America’s social and moral fabric and should be empowered by the government, the spokesperson added.

Dig deeper: Read Grace Snell’s report in WORLD Magazine about foreign missionaries taking the gospel back to the Western nations that first evangelized them.