Required Documentation for R visa

  1. Non-immigrant Visa Application, Form DS-160 confirmation page (For applicants applying outside the United States) 
  2. Passport valid for travel to the United States – Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months beyond your period of stay in the United States (unless exempt by country-specific agreements). If more than 1 person is included in your passport, each person who needs a visa must submit a separate application.
  3. Photo – You will upload your photo while completing the online Form DS-160. Your photo must have been taken within the past six months, and must be the format explained in the Photograph Requirements.
  4. I-129 form and I-797 approval notice.
  5. A letter from an authorized official of the specific unit of your employing organization certifying that if your religious membership was maintained outside the United States, in whole or in part, that the foreign and United States religious organizations belong to the same religious denomination and that, immediately prior to your application for an R visa, you have been a member of the religious denomination for the required two-year period.
  6. If you are a minister, that you are authorized to conduct religious worship for that denomination. The duties should be described in detail; or
  7. If you are a religious professional, that you have at least a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent, and that such a degree is required for entry into the religious profession; or
  8. If you are to work in a nonprofessional vocation or occupation, that you are qualified if the type of work to be done relates to a traditional religious function.
  9. The arrangements for remuneration, including the amount and source of salary, other types of compensation such as food and housing, and any other benefits to which a monetary value may be affixed, and a statement whether such remuneration shall be in exchange for services rendered.
  10. The name and location of the specific organizational unit of the religious denomination or affiliate for which you will provide services.
  11. If you will work for an organization that is affiliated with a religious denomination, a description of the nature of the relationship between the two organizations.
  12. Evidence of your religious organization’s assets and methods of operation.
  13. Your organization’s papers of incorporation under applicable state law.