Who are the bona fide Religious Organisations?
In order for religious organisations to qualify T2 Minister of Religion Sponsor licence, the organisations must hold charitable status and they must be bona fide religious organisations as follows:
- They must hold a structure for a faith-based community with a common system of sharing faith and spiritual goals, codes of behaviour and religious practices.
- The Belief must include any religious belief or similar philosophical belief in something transcendental, metaphysical or ultimate and leave out any political or philosophical beliefs concerned with man, and does not exclude based on gender, nationality, or ethnicity.
- They are financially and materially supported by the congregation or community voluntarily, without promise or coercion.
- They act lawfully, not breaching, or encouraging others to breach any UK legislation.
- They do not work against the public interest or has a detrimental effect on personal or family life in the UK.
The Requirement to apply for Minister of Religion Sponsor Licence
When applying for a sponsor license, the religious organisation must submit evidence to prove that the organisations are suitable and eligible.
- If a religious organisation belongs to a large organisation, it should provide details on how it is connected to the parent organisation and show the hierarchy chart that shows where they are in that hierarchy.
- They must provide the number of clergies currently employed and the size of the adult congregation.
- They must provide the addresses of their regular meeting places and their scheduled days and hours of worship.
Like applying for a Skilled Worker sponsor license, organisations applying for a T2 Ministry of Religion licence must inform the reason for applying for the licence and the detailed evidence of the jobs they wish to fill to the Home Office. There is no longer a resident labour market test for the T2 Minister of Region route, however, the genuineness of the roles and applications will be assessed.
The Sponsor Duties of Religious Organisations
Sponsor duties for religious organisations are similar to Skilled Worker Sponsor licence holders. Religious organisations should keep records in relation to a migration’s immigration status, maintaining contact details, record keeping and recruitment practice. They must report any changes in the work circumstance of the sponsored religious migrant workers.