This category allows people who are coming to the United Kingdom as religious workers within religious organisations for more than two years. Your role in the Minister of Religion category can include:

·         preaching or performing pastoral duties;

·         work as a missionary; or

·         work in a religious order within a community which involves a permanent commitment, like a monastery or a convent.

Pastoral duties include:

• leading worship regularly and on special occasions;
• giving religious education to children and adults by preaching or teaching;
• officiating at marriages, funerals and other special services; and
• offering counselling and welfare support to members of the congregation; and
• recruiting, training and co-ordinating the work of any local volunteers and lay preachers.

Work as a missionary is not just preaching and teaching. It can include:

• the organisation of missionary activity (but should not be administrative or clerical, unless filling a senior post);
• supervising staff;
• co-ordinating the organisation of missionary work;
• being in charge of a particular activity such as accounts/finance, personnel management or IT; and
• translating religious texts - this is missionary work, not clerical work.