Help Aleteia continue its mission by making a tax-deductible donation. In this way, Aleteia's future will be yours as well.
*Your donation is tax deductible!
Catholic leaders are calling for adjustments to be made to the process of permanent residency applications for foreign born priests and religious who serve in the US. While the current backlog threatens to see a large number of priests and religious members deported from the US, rumor has it that two Catholic senators are working on legislation to remedy the situation, and it may soon be brought to the table.
Since 2023, alterations to the application process have created a massive backlog of applications for permanent residence, which is expected to cripple many dioceses within the US if the problem is not soon addressed. Aleteia previously reported on the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, who saw two members exiled due to a green card backlog.
The problems arose when the federal administration altered how the government considers employment-based visa applicants. It added around 100,000 unaccompanied minors from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to the same pool as that of the R-1 religious worker visas, but it did not raise the annual issue limit of 10,000, creating an enormous backlog.
The wait time for religious workers to be approved for permanent residency is now over five years, but the temporary R-1 visa only lasts five years. If a religious worker cannot secure permanent residency by that time, they must return to their home nation for at least a year before they can return to the US on a new R-1 visa and begin the whole process again.
The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate estimates that this could affect up to 38% of priests in US ministry.
According to a report from The Pillar, however, the answer to the backlog may already be on its way. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has declined to comment on the issue, but a source close to the bishops has confided that they have been lobbying federal lawmakers to address the issue.
While the comments were made anonymously, one source noted that “there are a few fixes in the works,” which could include bipartisan legislation from Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Tim Kaine (D-Virginia). The Senators, however, both declined to comment on the possibility of the legislation, nor is there any indication as to how the issue would be approached.
The Pillar report notes that the USCCB suggested to the US State department last year that the backlog could be fixed by shortening the one-year waiting period to return to the US to just one month. The USCCB, however, has not commented on any tactics it seeks to pursue, or any developments in the situation.
Until one of these groups opens up about it, we are left to pray for a quick resolution to the visa woes of foreign born priests and religious members in the US.
