New Visa Changes for Ministers of Religion and Religious Assistants

Munro Doig has significant experience in negotiating Minister of Religion Labour Agreements (MORLA) with the Immigration Department and in preparing and lodging visa applications for religious workers and Ministers of Religion.

Our experience spans various faith backgrounds and religious institutions across Australia.

Background

Historically, visas for Ministers of Religion fell under the standard employer sponsored system, with certain concessions that recognised the peculiar needs of religious institutions. Obtaining temporary work visas and even permanent residency for Ministers of Religion was relatively straightforward.

However, some time ago, Ministers of Religion were taken out of the sponsored occupation lists meaning that the only way to sponsor them is by negotiating a MORLA with the Immigration Department.

The MORLA process was often fraught, firstly because the settings of MORLA were not creatures of statute, but promulgated by policy, initially published only on the Department’s website before finally making its way into the Department’s “official” policy document, i.e. the Procedural Instructions. Some of the “requirements” were vague and sometimes, not even stated! At one stage, I had the Department tell me that they would not entertain a MORLA unless the worker was already in Australia on a Subclass 408 Religious Worker visa, even though that was never written in policy. (The officer told me that this protects my client by giving my client the opportunity to “try out” the worker before incurring further costs!)

Secondly, the MORLA settings imposed a “commercial” framework, often making it difficult for religious institutions to meet the requirements. As an example, the salary threshold of $73,150 which most recently applied priced many religious institutions out of using the system. Many religious institutions would tell me that their Ministers of Religion were paid below that threshold.

In December 2024, the Immigration Department quietly introduced changes to the MORLA settings following groundbreaking work by an interfaith committee that lobbied the government for reforms.

Key Changes

The changes that took effect in December 2024 have eased the requirements under the MORLA, making it significantly easier for religious institutions to sponsor overseas workers.

Salary Requirement

The former Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (now Core Skills Income Threshold or CSIT) is no longer the minimum salary, although the settings do not say this expressly.

Quite confusingly, the Department’s policy suggests that a discount of up to 10% of CSIT or even minimum wage will be allowed.

Clearly, minimum wage must be the lowest common denominator.

We would recommend however that a salary somewhat higher than the minimum wage be used. If the proposed salary is to be minimum wage, then submissions addressing this ought to be provided.

The “vow of poverty” exception continues to apply, but it has been expanded to include where a Minister of Religion may take a “vow of service”. It is unclear what constitutes a “vow of service” but presumably, this would be something more than not being paid at all but perhaps being paid a modest sum somewhat less than minimum wage.

Ultimately, the religious institution will need to point to some basis of there being a “vow of service” within the faith tradition.

Skills Requirement:

It would seem that ordination or professing to a religious life is no longer mandatory.

There is also now flexibility around the requirement for a Bachelor’s degree.

Previously, five years of structured training may substitute for a Bachelor’s degree. Under the new settings, five years of work experience may also be accepted in lieu.

This is particularly welcome in certain faith traditions where a formal university course is not available. The setting recognises a person’s commitment to pursuing their vocation as a Minister of Religion through some form of structured training or through an extended period of work experience.

English Language Requirements:

For the Skills in Demand (SID) visa, a minimum score of 4.0 in listening and speaking is required.

For the Subclass 186 visa, an overall score of 4.5, with a minimum of 4.0 in each category of the IELTS test is required.

Five years of full-time study in a secondary or higher institution where the instruction was delivered in English will also be acceptable in lieu of sitting an IELTS test.

As before, English proficiency is not required for those working in cloistered or monastic environments.

Pathway to Permanent Residency:

Permanent residency can be achieved after two years on the SID visa – a change from three years. This also aligns the MORLA system to the standard program. It is  not clear however whether the two years must be with the same employer. Presumably, it must be.

The most Senior Minister of Religion in an organisation may be eligible for the Subclass 186 Direct Entry visa, provided that:

a.  they have been ordained for at least five years; and

b.  they hold a postgraduate degree or equivalent formal training, where applicable.

This is a significant shift from previous settings, which required the individual to be the most Senior Minister of Religion in a region.

Multiple Ministers of Religion Allowed

Previously, there was a general restriction allowing only one Minister of Religion per organisation. Further places had to be justified, for example, based on the size of the organisation.

This restriction appears to have been removed, recognising that some religious organisations require multiple Ministers of Religion and that this may not always be a function of size.

Religious Assistants 

The changes, particularly in relation to salary, also open up significant options for religious institutions to sponsor Religious Assistants.

In the past, I have eschewed the idea of organisations sponsoring Religious Assistants because the vow of poverty could not apply to them, and a market salary at or above $73,150 was hard to justify, particularly if higher-skilled Ministers of Religion struggled to earn that amount.

The changes now open the way for organisations to sponsor Religious Assistants using the MORLA.

Conclusion

These changes address long-standing difficulties faced by religious institutions in sponsoring overseas workers since the MORLA was first introduced.

The updated MORLA settings provide greater flexibility, recognising the unique nature of religious work in Australia.

If you need assistance with the MORLA or sponsoring overseas workers, please contact Lester Ong or Melissa Phan.