Evangelical missionaries are being restricted under new laws in Nicaragua, which has seen hundreds of Christian missionaries affected.

Legislation brought in last month stipulates that missionaries must inform the Nicaraguan government prior to entering the country, and receive official permission to work.

President of the Assemblies of God denomination, Rafael Arista, told Evangelical Focus that the regulation is "affecting the life of the Church".

"The pastoral and social work should not be hindered just because of a regulation," he said. "Our calls to President Ortega is definitely to revoke this legislation".

The Nicaraguan Evangelical Alliance has also urged the government to repeal the laws.

So far, concessions have been made by the government but Church representatives say it is not enough. They have warned that more than 200 missionaries have been affected, including two Catholic missionaries from El Salvador who were deported.

Around 300 missionaries from Mexico and Central America were forced to cancel their visit to an evangelical gathering at the end of August.

"The Church has always been free to act and help, and Nicaragua has so far been the safest place to do so, compared to other countries in the region. But suddenly this regulation appears and we do not understand it," said Mario Espinoza, president of the National Council of Nicaraguan Evangelical pastors.

"This norm is not real and we hope to reach an agreement that allows us to operate as usual."

Evangelical leaders are in dialogue with the government about the laws, and will next meet on September 20.

According to Evangelical Focus, there are approximately 3,600 evangelical churches in Nicaragua, which are attended by around 15 per cent of the population. The majority of Nicaraguans are Roman Catholic.