INS on Special Immigrant Minister Petitions

Dear Mr. Luff:

I am in receipt of your letter dated April 25 concerning a special immigrant minister petition. In your letter, you ask whether the petitioner must submit a new petition if the location of the proposed place of employment for the beneficiary changes after an initial petition has been approved.

In your letter, the Immigration and Naturalization Service approved a special immigrant minister petition filed by a religious denomination on behalf of an ordained minister. Subsequent to the approval of the petition, the religious denomination transferred the minister to a different congregation within the same denomination to work as a minister. You ask whether the approved petition remains valid in light of the change of the fact that the minister will be assigned to a different congregation.

The regulations provide that the alien or any person on behalf of the alien may submit an Form I-360 petition for a special immigrant minister. See 8 CFR 204.5(m)(1). In the situation raised in your letter, it appears that the religious denomination submitted the I-360 on behalf of the minister. As long as the same religious denomination which filed the initial petition continues to offer the alien a job as a minister, it appears that the petition remains valid. It may be necessary to submit documentation to the U.S. consulate to establish that the initial petitions remains valid.

I hope that this response will be of use to you.

Edward H. Skerrett