Vatican reported deficit halved in 2015

The Vatican has issued new figures showing it narrowed its deficit by half in 2015 to 12.4 million euros. That compares with a deficit of €25.6 million in 2014. The Vatican released the figures for 2015 but didn’t include fuller details as it has in previous years, citing a transition in its financial accounting system that also delayed disclosure of the 2015 figures.

The main sources of income for 2015, in addition to investments, include the contributions made pursuant to Canon 1271 of the Code of Canon Law (Euros 24 million) and the contribution from the Institute of Works of Religion (Euros 50 million), the statement reported. The Vatican city-state, which operates on a separate budget, produced a €59.9 million ($63.4 million) surplus for 2015, down 6% from the year before. The greatest costs are personnel expenses: payments for the officials and staff of the Roman Curia.

The Vatican also reported €24 million in contributions from Roman Catholic dioceses, up from €21 million a year earlier, and €50 million from the Vatican bank, the same as the previous year.
The Secretariat for the Economy, which has been struggling to impose controls on Vatican financial affairs, said that the figures for 2015 were the first produced under new rules for consolidated financial management. This year, for the first time, the Secretariat for the Economy prepared an overall budget for 2017, which has been approved. The financial disclosure for 2016 is expected in July.