Vatican City.- Pope Leo XIV eliminated the salary cuts applied since 2021 to cardinals of the Curia and senior officials of the Vatican as part of the economic measures adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Leo XIV signed a motu proprio, a papal document published this Monday by the Vatican, in which he establishes that the salary containment measures adopted by Francis in March 2021 to face “the exceptional challenge of the pandemic” can be considered overcome.
Read more: Leo XIV turns 71 and maintains his usual schedule at the Vatican
The pontiff also expressed “the certainty that the institutions of the Holy See and of the Vatican City State will continue, with various instruments, in their commitment to guarantee economic sustainability”.
Salary cuts
In 2021, Francis determined a 10% reduction in the salaries of cardinals working in the Vatican government, an 8% reduction for heads and secretaries of dicasteries, and a 3% reduction for clergy and religious.
The measure was a response to the economic difficulties that Vatican finances were experiencing as a result of the pandemic.
Seniority-based salary increases for employees from level 4 of the pay scale were also blocked until 2023.
As recalled by the official portal Vatican News, with the decision of Leo XIV, the 10% salary cuts for cardinals and the 8% cuts for superiors at levels C and C1, corresponding to management positions, are no longer applied.
The 3% reduction applied to clergy and religious individuals had already been eliminated in June 2025.
Non-refundable salary cuts
The document signed by Leo XIV establishes that the amounts deducted during the period of application of the measures will not be returned nor will they be recognized as arrears.
Biennial seniority increases that remained suspended between 2021 and 2023 will not be recovered either.
The measures adopted by Francis were motivated by the “deficit that has marked the Holy See’s economic management for several years” and, especially, by the effects of the pandemic on the Vatican’s sources of income.
Vatican accounts improve
The latest accounts published by the Vatican, corresponding to 2024, recorded a surplus of 1.6 million euros, compared to the 51.2 million euro deficit in 2023, mainly due to the increase in donations and better financial results.
The structural deficit, which excludes financial results, decreased by almost 50%, going from 83.5 million euros in 2023 to 44.4 million in 2024.
According to the report from the Secretariat for the Economy, the Holy See’s accounts show a positive trend, although it warns that “full financial sustainability is a long-term goal, as the main improvement has come from an increase in donations”.
