Legislative text published to protect Leo's US citizenship

The US Congress has published a bill that is intended to protect the US citizenship of Pope Leo XIV. On Thursday (German time), the motion introduced by Republican Jeff Hurd was entered into the parliamentary database. Previously, only the title of the bill, which Hurd introduced to Congress in mid-July, was known: "Holy Sovereignty Protection Act". The law is to consist of three paragraphs that regulate the title of the law as well as the citizenship and tax status of a US pope.

According to the draft, the citizenship of a US pope cannot be revoked. The citizenship law of the United States does not provide for the denaturalisation of native-born citizens without the participation of the person concerned. Even the acceptance of another citizenship or the assumption of a government office in another country does not automatically lead to expatriation, but only if it is linked to the express intention to renounce US citizenship. The planned law could thus make it impossible for Leo to voluntarily renounce his American citizenship. The regulation is to take effect when the law comes into force.

The second regulation is intended to exempt a US-American pope from income tax liability across the board. Other tax obligations such as inheritance and gift tax remain unaffected. The regulation is to apply from the tax year in which 8 May 2025, the date of Pope Leo's election, falls. The tax exemption only applies to tax years in which a pope is in office. Emeritus US popes should therefore not be exempt from income tax.

Leo still has three citizenships

The next step is for the bill to be discussed by the House of Representatives' Finance and Justice Committees. In addition to Hurd, six other Republican MPs have so far supported the bill.

The USA is one of the few countries in the world that taxes its citizens according to the principle of global income tax. US citizens must report their entire income to the tax authorities, regardless of their place of residence or domicile. This also applies to Pope Leo XIV. One particular difficulty for him in preparing a tax return is that the Pope does not receive a defined salary. Instead, the Vatican pays his expenses. In addition, as head of the Church and head of state of the Vatican, the Pope has signatory powers for all assets of the Curia and the Vatican State, which triggers reporting obligations: US citizens abroad must report to the tax authorities if they have foreign bank accounts with a total value of more than 10,000 dollars.

It is not yet known how the Vatican is dealing with this situation. One solution would be for the Pope to voluntarily renounce his US citizenship. In addition to American citizenship, he also has Peruvian citizenship and Vatican citizenship by virtue of his office. Leo XIV is the first US-American pope in history. (fxn)