Venezuelan priest denied entry to the U.S., then something unexpected happened

Immigration authorities denied reentry into the United States to a Venezuelan-born priest from Miami-Dade County, despite his valid religious visa. The Archdiocese of Miami intervened and succeeded in overturning the decision.

Father Gustavo Santos was returning from an international trip via London to Miami on Tuesday, August 19, when he was “unexpectedly and wrongfully” denied entry into the United States, according to a statement released by the Archdiocese of Miami.

Santos holds an R-1 religious worker visa that is valid through November 2025.

“Through the swift intervention of Archbishop Thomas Wenski and the efforts of immigration counsel from Catholic Legal Services Pro bono council Mary Kramer and Jose W. Alvarez, the matter was brought before a federal judge”, the Archdiocese said.

CBP denies entry despite valid religious visa

Following that intervention, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reconsidered the case, and Father Santos was released and allowed to reenter the country.

The White House issued a proclamation that “fully restricts and limits” the entry of Haitian nationals and “partially restricts and limits” the entry of Cuban and Venezuelan nationals into the United States. The travel ban has been in effect since June 9, 2025.

The proclamation argued that Venezuela lacks a competent or cooperative central authority for issuing passports or civil documents and does not have appropriate screening and vetting measures.

“Historically, Venezuela has refused to accept the return of its nationals subject to deportation. According to the Overstay Report, Venezuela had an overstay rate of 9.83% for B-1/B-2 visas,” the proclamation stated.

The measure suspends the entry of Venezuelan nationals into the United States both as immigrants and as nonimmigrants with B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F, M, and J visas.

Additionally, consular officers will reduce the validity of any other nonimmigrant visas issued to Venezuelans, to the extent permitted by law.

The priest was assigned by Archbishop Thomas Wenski as parochial vicar at St. John Neumann Church in Miami in June 2023.

On August 4, Father Santos announced to parishioners that he was resigning to begin a new mission, without providing further details.

“I’ll be leaving the parish soon. I want to thank all of you for supporting me, helping me, and making me a better priest. I will pray for you and ask that you pray for me in my new assignment,” Santos said in a video posted on St. John Neumann Church’s social media.

Faith and immigration journey for Father Santos

The priest was born on May 20, 1993, in Valencia, Venezuela. He is the oldest of four siblings: two brothers and two sisters. He arrived in the United States in 2012.

He entered St. John Vianney Seminary in August 2015, was ordained a deacon on April 2, 2022, and served one year as a deacon at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in the city of Doral.