Anjali V. Deshmukh is an immigration lawyer in Washington, D.C. who has been working in the field for more than 15 years. She focuses on employment and religious worker visas. She graduated from Georgetown University Law Center and has spent her career helping South Asian non-profits and cultural institutions understand the complicated rules and regulations that govern immigration in the United States. Anjali speaks at national legal forums a lot, and she cares deeply about giving the Indian-American community the legal clarity it needs to protect its rich spiritual and cultural traditions. You can reach her by email at anjali@deshvidesh.com.
New Era for Hindu Temples: DHS Removes 1-Year Wait for Pujari ( Priests)
By Anjali V. Deshmukh The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) put out an interim final rule called “Improving Continuity for Religious Organizations and Their Employees” on January 16, 2026. “This rule gets rid of the one-year “cooling-off” period that R-1 religious workers had to go through after they had been in the country for five years. Pujari ( Priests) still …
