Individuals who are qualified to perform the job of a Minister of Religion are eligible for the (Tier 2) Minister of Religion Visa.

You will hold a major role within your religious establishment or organization in the UK, such as a minister, missionary, member of a religious order, or another religious worker with a pastoral role.

Ministers of Religion are expected to fulfil religious duties either within their sponsor’s organisation or as directed by their sponsors in the UK. The duties you perform here may include preaching, pastoral work, and non-pastoral work. The majority of your duties should be pastoral. For example, you should lead a congregation in performing rites and rituals and preach the essentials of the creed. Religious leaders such as priests, imams, rabbis and other ministers of religion would fall under this category but is not limited to them.

The main duties of a Minister of Religion do not include school teaching, media production, domestic work, administrative work, or clerical duties, unless you hold a senior position within your sponsor’s organization (like a financial controller). In these cases, applicants should consider other routes, such as the skilled worker route, to be sponsored.

For a Minister of Religion Visa (Tier 2), you must hold a valid Certificate of Sponsorship from a sponsor approved by the Home Office for the role you wish to perform in the UK. Ensure that your sponsor holds a valid Tier 2 Minister of Religion sponsor license.

You will be sponsored by a genuine religious organization that:

• It is an organisation with charitable status;
• Is made up of a group of people who share common beliefs and spiritual goals, codes of behavior and religious practices, and whose role it is to sustain and/or propagate those beliefs and practices.

• Holds a belief in something transcendental, metaphysical, or ultimate.
• Any philosophical or political beliefs concerning man must be excluded, unless those beliefs are similar to religious beliefs.

• A community that does not discriminate based on gender, nationality, or ethnicity.
• Obtains financial and material support on a voluntary basis for its core religious ministry from its congregation or community, without promise or coercion.
• Complies with UK laws and encourages others to do so;
• Has no detrimental impact on personal or family life as understood in the United Kingdom and does not work against the public interest.

A Certificate of Sponsorship includes information such as details of the job and salary you have been offered, confirmation that you are qualified to do the job of a Tier 2 Minister of Religion, confirmation that you belong to your sponsor’s religious order (if your sponsor is a religious order) and verification that you will perform religious duties for your sponsor in the UK.

In order to be eligible for a Minister of Religion Visa (Tier 2), you must apply at least three months before the start date of your role, as stated on the Certificate of Sponsorship.

Your bank account must contain at least £1,270, held for a minimum of 28 days, ending at least 31 days prior to the date of your Minister of Religion Visa (Tier 2) application, unless you have been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months or your employer agrees to cover your costs during your first month in the UK (which is confirmed on your Certificate of Sponsorship).

In order to apply for the Minister of Religion Visa (Tier 2), you must have a good grasp of English.

Reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills at level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Language are needed.

You may switch into the Minister of Religion (Tier 2) route if you currently have leave to remain in another immigration category, unless you were granted permission as a visitor, short-term student, parent of a child student, seasonal worker, domestic worker in a private household, or outside the Immigration Rules.

The Minister of Religion Visa (Tier 2) is valid for the length of time stated on the Certificate of Sponsorship plus 14 days or 3 years and 1-month, whichever period is shorter.

Ministers of Religion may spend up to 6 years on the Tier 2 Minister of Religion route. Upon applying for permission to stay in the UK as a Tier 2 Minister of Religion from within the UK, you will be granted permission for a maximum of 6 years plus the difference between that period and the period you have already been granted permission by the Tier 2 route.

You will be able to work in the job you have been sponsored for if your Minister of Religion Visa (T2) application is successful.  Additionally, you will be able to do voluntary work and pursue studies.

After five years’ continuous residence in the UK, T2 Ministers of Religion are eligible to apply for settlement (indefinite leave to remain in the UK).

You can combine time spent in the T2 Minister of Religion category with time spent in the International Sportsperson, Skilled Worker, Tier 1 (other than Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur), Sole Representative of an Overseas Business, Innovator, and Global Talent categories.

In any 12-month period during the 5-year period used, you cannot have spent more than 180 days outside the UK.

A sponsor will need to confirm that you will continue to work for them for the foreseeable future and that you will be paid appropriately.

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages requires you to demonstrate speaking and listening ability at least to B1 and pass the Life in the UK test unless you are exempt.

This means that if you continue working for your sponsor (and meet compliance requirements) for a continuous period of 5 years, you are eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain which will then afford you a status equivalent to permanent residency.

At this point, you become free from immigration control and enter and leave the UK at your leisure without any visa requirements.

You also enjoy all of the same rights as a settled person in the UK

Tier 2 ministers of religion may join or be accompanied by a dependent partner aged 18 and up as well as a dependent child.

Dependents may also need to satisfy a financial requirement in addition to providing evidence of their relationship.  The Tier 2 Minister of Religion – or their partner or child – will need £285 for a partner, £315 for one child and £200 for each additional child, unless they have been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months or their employer covers their first month’s costs.  The money needs to have been held for at least 28 days and not more than 31 days before the date of their visa application.

Settlement is only open to dependent partners of Tier 2 Ministers of Religion who have lived in the UK continuously for 5 years with no more than 180 days absence in any 12-month period and have demonstrated English language proficiency on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages at level B1 speaking and listening or have passed the Life in the UK test.

Visa decisions for most Tier 2 Minister of Religion applications are made within three weeks.  If a visa application centre offers a priority service, you may be able to obtain a faster decision.

Most applications to extend stay as a Tier 2 Minister of Religion are decided within eight weeks of submission.

Our expert legal team are highly experienced in assisting with the below services (where the option has been made available by UKVI and is considered appropriate)

New Applications – We can help you assess the merits, challenges and solutions to any issues arising whilst making a new application for a Tier 2 Minister of Religion Visa

Dependents – We can help you make a successful application for your partner or children to join you as your dependents on your Tier 2 Minister of Religion Visa.

Legal Representations – Where applicable, if you find yourself in an unusual or challenging situation and want the Home Office to take notice of your special circumstances to ensure that you are treated fairly and your rights are respected, our expert team can make both oral and written persuasive legal representations.

Challenge a Refusal – If your application has been refused, we can consider your refusal for free and advise on the best course of action.

Administrative Review – Home Office or Immigration Rules can be challenged if the decision-maker failed to follow them correctly.

Judicial Review – If your application was denied illegally, unreasonable or procedurally improperly, our immigration lawyers can apply for Judicial Review and represent you at the Judicial Review hearing.

Appeal an Unfair Decision – The decision to refuse your application may provide you with a right of appeal to the First Tier Tribunal. Our expert lawyers can advise you on and handle Appeals before the Immigration & Asylum Chamber (First Tier & Upper Tribunal)