CNA Staff, Jul 24, 2025 /
12:35 pm
A new bill before Congress would “safeguard” the domestic citizenship of any American who is elected pope of the Catholic Church, including exempting him from paying taxes to the IRS.
Rep. Jeff Hurd, R-Colorado, proposed the bill, saying it “ensures that any American who answers the call to lead more than a billion Catholics worldwide can do so without risking his citizenship or facing unnecessary tax burdens.”
While the text of the bill is not yet available, Hurd said in a statement on his congressional website the bill is meant “to protect the citizenship of, and provide tax-exempt status to, any American elected as the supreme pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church.”
“This legislation recognizes the extraordinary nature of the papacy — a role at the intersection of faith, leadership, and global responsibility,” the Colorado representative said.
The measure would “[exempt] the individual from U.S. tax obligations while serving as pope,” Hurd’s website states.
The bill was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means on July 17.
The current pope, Leo XIV is thus far the only U.S.-born pope in the Catholic Church’s 2,000-year history.
Since Leo’s election on May 8, speculation has centered on what his role as pope means for his U.S. citizenship.
The Vatican did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the bill on Thursday.
According to the IRS, U.S. citizens are “subject to U.S. income tax, regardless of where they live or where they earn their income.” Citizens living abroad also have the same filing requirements as those living in the U.S. itself.
Paul Hunker, an American immigration attorney and a Catholic, told CNA in May that U.S. federal law spells out the conditions under which a U.S. citizen can lose his or her citizenship.
Such conditions include committing an act of treason, obtaining naturalization in a foreign state, and accepting a position as a foreign head of state, though those actions must be done by a person voluntarily and with the intention of relinquishing his or her U.S. nationality.
The U.S. State Department says it generally presumes that U.S. citizens, even if they accept a foreign government post, want to keep their citizenship unless “clearly and credibly” established otherwise.
Vatican law dictates that the Holy Father maintains “the fullness of the power of government, which includes the legislative, executive, and judicial powers” of the Vatican City State and the Holy See, the latter of which is the central governing authority of the Church.
Daniel Payne is a senior editor at Catholic News Agency. He previously worked at the College Fix and Just the News. He lives in Virginia with his family.
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