Vows and Visas

International sisters have several options available to stay legally in the United States, including U.S. citizenship and legal permanent residency. This chapter describes the various visa statuses of the international sisters studied in this book, the impact of their legal status on their ministry and life, and some avenues of legal support available to international sisters. The chapter describes some of their challenges with obtaining legal status and provides an introduction to a sample of national Catholic organizations whose mission is to serve immigrants, and in some cases, international sisters. The chapter also includes an introduction to several national ethnic- and racially specific organizations of sisters as well as institutions of higher education that provide support for the international sisters.