ATLANTA—A federal rule change easing restrictions on religious worker visas is bringing relief to Catholic priests serving in the Archdiocese of Atlanta. For months, foreign-born clergy have faced the uncertainty of departures amid long-standing immigration policies.  

The Department of Homeland Security announced Jan. 14 an interim final rule reducing the wait times for R-1 religious worker visas. The change removes the requirement that religious workers must reside outside the United States for one year after reaching the visa’s five-year limit before reapplying.  

While R-1 visa holders will still have to leave the country, there is no longer a minimum amount of time they must remain abroad before returning under a new R-1 period for another five years. 

“We are taking the necessary steps to ensure religious organizations can continue delivering the services that Americans depend on,” a spokesperson for DHS said in a statement. “Pastors, priests, nuns and rabbis are essential to the social and moral fabric of this country.” 

Catholic advocates, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, have pushed for relief from visa backlogs that have threatened parish stability. The impact has been felt in Georgia, where 11 priests serving in the Archdiocese of Atlanta are present on R-1 visas.  

“This change recognizes that our foreign-born priests are essential to the good of society,” said Atlanta Auxiliary Bishop Bernard Shlesinger. “They are the faces of our growing diverse community.”  

Father Vanderley Oliveira, administrator of St. Clement Church in Calhoun, said he had been preparing to return to Brazil this summer after two years leading the parish. His visa required him to leave the country by June.  

“The uncertainty weighed on me and my community,” said Father Oliveira, who arrived in the archdiocese five years ago after his ordination in Brazil in 2002. The parish serves 1,500 families. 

Although he tried to approach the situation with trust, a yearlong absence threatened to disrupt pastoral initiatives that were taking root. The archdiocese had been working with bishops in Brazil to arrange a temporary placement while he was away.  

When the policy change was announced, “joy filled our community,” Father Oliveria said. “As the saying goes, when the shepherd rejoices, the flock rejoices as well.”  

Father Leandro Nunes Teixeira, administrator of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Church in Douglasville, expressed similar relief.  

“It is wonderful to remain in a community I love so much and where I feel fully integrated,” he said.  

Father Leandro Nunes Teixeira, a native of Brazil, celebrated the 40th anniversary of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Church with his parishioners last fall. The priest, the only one serving the Douglasville church, is grateful for a newly-announced federal rule change easing restrictions on religious worker visas. Photo Courtesy of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Church

St. Theresa serves about 1,000 families from more than 25 countries. With his visa expiring in 2027, Father Teixeira had been planning his return to Brazil, where he was ordained in 2009.  

“Fortunately, I will now be able to continue my work here, which makes me very happy,” he said. “Our community is growing, vibrant, and multicultural. I’m grateful that I can stay and continue building our new church.” 

Father Teixeira is the only priest serving at St. Theresa. 

Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Bishop Brendan J. Cahill of Victoria, Texas, chair of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, welcomed the DHS rule change.  

“We are tremendously grateful for the Administration’s work to address certain challenges facing foreign-born religious workers, their employers and the American communities they serve,” they said in a joint statement. 

“This targeted change is a truly significant step that will help facilitate essential religious services for Catholics and other people of faith throughout the United States by minimizing disruptions to cherished ministries,” they said, while urging Congress to pass the bipartisan Religious Workforce Protection Act. 

Georgia’s Catholic bishops have echoed those concerns. In May 2025 letters to U.S. Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., and Bishop Stephen D. Parkes of Savannah urged support for the legislation. 

“Without this relief, faithful men and women will increasingly be forced to abandon their ministries, preventing them from meeting people’s spiritual and physical needs and hindering the free exercise of religion in our state,” the bishops wrote. 

Between the two dioceses, 33 of 378 diocesan and religious order priests are navigating the immigration process, most holding temporary visas. The bishops had warned that the loss of clergy would be “significantly damaging to the people they serve and to the Catholic community of Georgia.” 

Immigration advocates highlighted the impact of the rule while noting its limits. Miguel Naranjo, director of religious immigration services at the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, said the change is a “positive and pragmatic step,” but does not fully resolve the challenges facing religious workers.  

For now, as Father Teixeira shared, the ability to remain in the archdiocese allows stability in communities that are increasingly diverse and growing.