A Brazilian pastor who left the United States in late 2025 rather than stay beyond the expiry of his visa is again leading his congregation in Texas, after a change in U.S. immigration rules ended a one-year waiting period for religious workers seeking to return, Baptist Press reported.
Albert Oliveira came back in April to First Baptist Church of Gordon, in a small town in north Texas, together with his German-born wife, Caroline, and their 4-year-old son, Elliott. Under the earlier rules he would have had to remain outside the country for a full year before applying again for an R-1 visa, the temporary category used by foreign-born clergy and other religious staff working in the United States.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced the change on Jan. 14 and published it two days later as an interim final rule, which took effect on publication. Religious workers who reach the statutory five-year maximum in R-1 status must still leave the country, but the department removed any minimum period they must spend abroad before seeking readmission for a further five years.
DHS said the change was intended to reduce the length of time congregations are left without their clergy. The department described priests, nuns and rabbis as among those affected, and said in a statement attributed to a spokesperson that such workers are "essential to the social and moral fabric of this country." The rule was issued in support of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in February 2025 establishing a White House Faith Office.
Behind the change lies a bottleneck in the separate EB-4 immigrant visa category, through which many religious workers pursue permanent residency. Demand there has outstripped supply for years, and DHS said adjustments made by the State Department in 2023 lengthened the wait considerably for applicants from certain countries. Workers caught in the backlog frequently exhaust the five-year limit on their temporary status before a permanent visa becomes available.
Oliveira told Baptist Press the amendment had removed a significant obstacle without resolving the underlying problem. "It did make things a lot easier," he said. "But it's definitely not a solution. But it at least allowed for me and everyone involved to be able to make long-term plans with their churches, to be able to dream together."
He said congregations that struggle to recruit qualified pastors should be able to look abroad without committing years to administrative processes, and framed the question partly in terms of religious liberty. "I believe that churches should be able to have the option to have a pastor from a different country if that's what they believe that they need," he said, calling for an immigration system that is both fair and secure.
Oliveira kept his position while in Brazil, preaching online and holding meetings by video. His return to Gordon was marked by a public welcome, with fire and police vehicles escorting the family and residents gathering along the streets.
According to the Baptist Press report, the congregation has continued to grow and to baptize new members, prompting it to form a committee on church growth and to look for larger premises. "Everybody's just playing musical chairs with the rooms, trying to find a place for everyone," Oliveira said.
He argued that pastors born abroad bring experience that congregations focused on mission cannot easily obtain otherwise, and pointed to his own background. "I for example accepted Christ by the work of missionaries from North Carolina in Brazil," he said. "I know what it's like to receive a team of American missionaries in my house, and I know the challenges of the local pastor after they leave."
Employing pastors from other countries also signals to a community that a church welcomes different cultures, languages and accents, he said.
Oliveira compared the family's experience to that of the first Christians. "If the challenge is immigration, and if the challenge is government changes, those are things that the early Christians had to deal with too," he told Baptist Press. "It's nothing new."
DHS said about 19,000 people were in the United States on R-1 visas when the rule was updated. Because the measure took effect as an interim final rule, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services accepted public comment until March 17 and has not yet issued a final rule. In June the agency published guidance for staff applying the change.
Separate legislation that would allow religious workers to remain in the country until decisions are reached on their applications for permanent residency, the Religious Workforce Protection Act, has been introduced in both chambers of Congress with cross-party sponsorship but has not been passed.
Galen Carey, vice president of government relations for the National Association of Evangelicals, welcomed the effort, saying: “Religious communities unite and serve believers of multiple nationalities. It is important that our leaders have the freedom to serve across national boundaries, and that our churches have access to staff with the expertise they need. The Religious Worker Visa Program has served our country well and has been a blessing to our churches.”
