Minister Of Religion Visa: Guidance For Religious Organisations

Published date24 November 2021
Subject MatterImmigration, General Immigration, Work Visas
Law FirmRichmond Chambers Immigration Barristers
AuthorCatherine Taroni

Much like applicants in the Skilled Worker route are sponsored by businesses who hold valid sponsor licences, the new T2 Minister of Religion Visa route enables applicants aged 18 or over to be sponsored as ministers of religion by a religious organisation which has charitable status (or by the Ministry of Defence). This route replaced the previous Tier 2 (Minister of Religion) route.

Minister of Religion Visa: Requirements for Sponsoring Religious Organisations

In addition to holding charitable status (or being the MOD), in order to qualify for a T2 Minister of Religion sponsor licence, the religious organisation seeking to sponsor a minister of religion must show that it:

  • is the structure for a faith-based community with a shared system of belief and spiritual goals, codes of behaviour and religious practice, which exists to support and/or propagate common beliefs and practices and where the shared beliefs
    • include any religious belief or similar philosophical belief in something transcendental, metaphysical or ultimate;
    • exclude any philosophical or political belief concerned with man, unless that belief is similar to religious belief;
  • does not exclude anyone from the community on the basis of gender, nationality or ethnicity;
  • receives financial and material support for the core religious ministry from the congregation or community on a voluntary basis without promise or coercion;
  • does not breach, or encourage others to breach, any UK legislation;
  • does not work against the public interest, or have a detrimental effect on personal or family life as commonly understood in the UK.

T2 Minister of Religion Sponsor Licence Application: Evidence Required

When applying for a T2 Minister of Religions sponsor licence, religious organisations must give details of the faith/religion they belong to, and provide evidence of:

  • if they are part of a larger organisation, details of the parent organisation and how they are connected to them;
  • a hierarchy chart that shows where they are in that hierarchy;
  • the size of the adult congregation;
  • the number of clergy they currently employ;
  • addresses...

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