Vatican City, 8 July 2014 (VIS) – During the meeting of the Council of the Economy on Saturday 5 July, the Prefecture for Economic Affairs of the Holy See, as is customary at this time of year, presented a report of the two main budgets for 2013: the consolidated financial statement of the Holy See and the financial statement of the Governorate of Vatican City State.

 

The data included in these statements may be summarised as follows:

 

The consolidated financial statement for the Holy See for the year 2013 closes with a deficit of € 24,470,549, due principally to negative fluctuations deriving from the valuation of gold, to the value of around € 14 million. Although evaluative elements and therefore not actualised, according to the accounting principles based on the criterion of prudence contained in the “Regulations for the Preparation of the Financial Statements of the Holy See”, they were recorded among the negative components in the overview of financial management.

 

The most significant categories of expenditure at those regarding personnel costs (2,886 persons on 31 December 2013), a net sum of around € 125 million, and the payment of taxes which affect the real estate sector, approximately € 15 million.

 

The administration of the Governorate is autonomous, and independent of contributions from the Holy See. Through its various offices, it supervises requirements related to the administration of the State. The 2013 budget closes with a profit of € 33,040,583, an increase of around € 10 million compared to last year. As of 31 December 2013 the Governorate employed a total of 1,936 persons.

 

Contributions made pursuant to canon 1271 of the Code of Canon Law – i.e. the economic support offered by ecclesiastical circumscriptions throughout the world to maintain the service the Roman Curia offers to the universal Church – passed from € 22,347,426 in 2012 to € 22,435,359, thus remaining substantially stable.

 

The Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), as it does each year, offered the Holy Father a significant sum in support of his apostolic and charitable ministry. For 2013 this was a sum of € 50,000,000.

 

Considering the overall combined results of the two Financial Statements, as is usual, 2013 closes with a profit of around € 10 million.

 

The Council for the Economy, after hearing the Report, made the following declaration:

 

“The Council has been informed by the Prefecture for Economic Affairs of the budgets relating to 2013, and has taken note of the declaration by the External Auditor, according to whom ‘in all the most important aspects, the financial position of Vatican City State as of 31 December 2013 and the results of transactions relating to the year 2013 comply with the current accounting principles of the regulations of Vatican City State’. On this basis, the Council has approved the 2013 Budget and invites the Secretariat for the Economy to work towards further alignment of Vatican accounting principles with international standards”.

 

Note on the IOR contribution: Since the Annual Report of the IOR published this morning makes reference to a contribution of € 54 million, it is to be noted that, like last year, € 50 million were destined for the Holy See budget, and the other € 4 million for other works (in 2012 these included, for example, donations to the Fund for the support of cloistered monasteries, the Amazon Fund, the Fund to support the Churches of the former Soviet Union).