At a glance
The T2 Minister of Religion visa covers religious leadership, such as leading a congregation, preaching, and essential pastoral or missionary work. You need an approved sponsor. Other religious duties or service in a religious order may fit the separate Temporary Religious Worker route.
- Sponsor
- Licensed UK faith organization
- Pay
- At least the National Minimum Wage where applicable; pay and support must match the sponsorship certificate
- Job offer required?
- Yes; a genuine religious-leadership role, not a mainly secular job for a faith organization
Summary
The UK Minister of Religion visa supports a qualifying religious role with a faith organization that holds the appropriate sponsor license. The applicant supplies English and maintenance evidence alongside the sponsorship certificate. A temporary non-pastoral religious placement may belong under a different work category and should be checked separately.
Eligibility
The applicant must be 18 or over and have a certificate from a licensed religious sponsor for a genuine eligible role. They need B2 English and normally £1,270 held for 28 days unless exempt after 12 months with UK permission or the sponsor certifies maintenance. The sponsor must pay at least the National Minimum Wage where it applies and comply with working-time rules; pay and any support must match the certificate.
The role's main duties must be religious leadership rather than a secular job for a faith organization. Full-time teaching in a church school, for example, does not become ministerial work simply because the employer is religious.
-
Verify the sponsor category Confirm the organization is licensed for T2 Minister of Religion.
-
Match the actual pastoral role Align daily duties, sponsorship certificate, contract, pay, and support.
-
Prepare English and maintenance evidence Meet the personal requirements and any applicable exemption.
A secular job at a faith organization does not become ministerial work. The temporary Religious Worker route has a different purpose.
Minister of Religion settlement English rises to B2
Minister of Religion settlement English rises to B2
The route already uses B2 for initial permission, but settlement currently uses the existing B1 framework. Applications for settlement from 26 March 2027 will use B2 unless exempt.
Timing: The B2 settlement requirement takes effect on 26 March 2027. Applications made before that date remain subject to the rules then in force; applicants planning to file on or after it should prepare for B2 unless an exemption applies.
The current five-year route to settlement may change
The current five-year route to settlement may change
The Minister of Religion route currently leads to settlement after five qualifying years. The proposal would generally replace five-year work-route settlement with a 10-year baseline that can be adjusted, but final and transitional rules are pending.
Timing: The consultation ran from 20 November 2025 to 12 February 2026. GOV.UK currently says the government is analyzing feedback. No general implementation date has been announced, and current settlement rules remain in force unless and until Immigration Rules changes take effect.
What This Route Allows
An initial grant is normally up to three years and one month. Extensions are limited to a total of six years, counting permission as a Minister of Religion, International Sportsperson or Skilled Worker. The holder may work for the sponsor, study, volunteer and take up to 20 hours' qualifying supplementary work. Eligible partners and children can join and generally work. From 8 April 2026 the fee is £819 outside or £943 inside the UK, per person; the immigration health surcharge (IHS) applies and public funds are barred.
Settlement remains available after five qualifying years on this and permitted combined work routes, subject to sponsor need, continuous residence, salary/conditions, English and Life in the UK. Main applicants already need B2 English for the visa. A dependent partner normally needs five years; unless exempt, dependents applying for settlement need B1 English before March 26, 2027, and B2 from that date.
What This Route Is Not
It is not the two-year Religious Worker route, which has no direct settlement path. It also does not permit unrestricted outside work or self-employment.
Next Steps
- Confirm the organization is licensed for T2 Minister of Religion, not only Religious Worker.
- Map the actual daily duties to pastoral leadership and make the certificate, contract and pay consistent.
- Prepare B2 English and maintenance evidence.
- Track the six-year cap, absences and sponsor records from the first grant.
Stay up to date on this pathway
Get an email when something important changes.
Discussed in these reports
New Zealand
New Zealand Religious Worker Resident Visa
A religious worker aged 55 or younger may seek New Zealand residence after three qualifying years on a Religious Worker Work Visa. The route requires relevant experience,…
New Zealand
New Zealand Religious Worker Work Visa
New Zealand’s Religious Worker Work Visa allows qualifying religious duties for a sponsoring religious charity for up to 2 years. Applicants need at least 2 years of…
United States
U.S. Religious Worker Green Card
The EB-4 religious worker route is a green card path for certain ministers and qualifying religious workers with a U.S. religious organization sponsor.