Can Pope Leo XIV Keep His US Citizenship While Leading Vatican City? | Explained

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Last Updated:May 28, 2025, 16:51 IST

Americans moving for overseas governments don’t automatically suffer US citizenship, but serving arsenic a overseas caput of authorities oregon curate whitethorn trigger a citizenship review

Born successful Chicago successful 1955 arsenic Robert Prevost, Pope Leo XIV holds dual citizenship successful the United States and Peru. (AP File)

Nearly 3 weeks person passed since Pope Leo XIV assumed enactment of the Catholic Church. Robert Prevost, present known arsenic Pope Leo XIV, is the archetypal American-born idiosyncratic to attain the highest presumption successful the Catholic hierarchy. His unsocial presumption arsenic an American national and overseas caput of authorities has plunged him into a analyzable and legally intricate situation.

Born successful Chicago successful 1955 arsenic Robert Prevost, Pope Leo XIV holds dual citizenship successful the United States and Peru, having spent important clip determination arsenic a missionary and bishop. With his ascension to the papacy, helium besides becomes the caput of Vatican City, a sovereign nation. This has sparked statement implicit whether helium tin support his US citizenship portion starring a overseas government.

Is Vatican City A Sovereign Nation?

The Catholic Church boasts astir 1.4 cardinal followers worldwide, and Pope Leo XIV serves arsenic some their spiritual person and the caput of the world’s smallest country. Vatican City, spanning lone 0.44 quadrate kilometres with a colonisation of a fewer hundred, became autarkic successful 1929 done a pact betwixt Italy and the Holy See.

What Happens If A US Citizen Becomes Pope?

Americans employed by overseas governments bash not automatically forfeit their US citizenship. However, according to the US State Department’s website, serving arsenic a overseas caput of state, caput of government, oregon overseas curate tin punctual a reappraisal of an individual’s citizenship status.

“Such cases rise analyzable questions of planetary law, including issues related to the level of immunity that idiosyncratic whitethorn beryllium granted from US jurisdiction," the section stated. While the State Department declined to remark specifically connected Pope Leo’s situation, it noted that it does not sermon idiosyncratic citizenship matters.

What Legal Experts Say

Temple University instrumentality prof Peter Spiro, an authorization connected citizenship law, points retired the dilemma of whether overseas leaders should clasp American citizenship, fixed their important exemption from American laws. This exemption conflicts with the law rule that nary American national should beryllium supra the law.

Nonetheless, a 1980 U.S. Supreme Court ruling established that Americans cannot beryllium stripped of their citizenship unless they voluntarily renounce it. Legal adept Peter Spiro explained, “The State Department ne'er assumes that you mean to suffer your citizenship unless you specifically inquire to renounce it done a process." He added that it would beryllium hard to reason that Leo intended to springiness up his U.S. citizenship by becoming Pope. “I deliberation it is highly improbable that the US would instrumentality steps to extremity the Pope’s citizenship," Spiro said.

Can The Pope Remain A Peruvian Citizen?

Regarding his Peruvian citizenship, George Puch, lawman manager of Peru’s National Identity and Civil Status Registry, confirmed that determination is nary ineligible struggle with Pope Leo retaining his Peruvian citizenship. Pope Leo became a Peruvian national successful August 2015, a period earlier Pope Francis appointed him Bishop of Chiclayo. He met the requirements by surviving successful Peru for astatine slightest 2 years and passing the citizenship exam.

Puch remarked, “This is the astir admirable happening that our beloved ultimate pope has done, desiring Peruvian nationality contempt not being a Peruvian by birth." Although each big Peruvians are required to ballot successful elections until the property of 69, Pope Leo, who volition crook 70 successful September, volition not beryllium obliged to ballot successful the upcoming statesmanlike predetermination successful April 2026.

Did Previous Popes Retain Their Citizenship?

The citizenship presumption of erstwhile Popes remains unclear, arsenic the Vatican does not disclose specified information. Pope Francis renewed his Argentine passport successful 2014, a twelvemonth aft becoming Pope. German-born Pope Benedict XVI and Poland-born Pope John Paul II ne'er publically renounced their location state citizenship.

The First Speech Was Not Delivered In English

Margaret Susan Thompson, a past prof astatine Syracuse University and adept connected American Catholicism, doubts Pope Leo volition renounce his U.S. citizenship. She suggests that by delivering his archetypal code successful Italian and Spanish—without utilizing English—the caller Pope whitethorn beryllium signaling a message. Thompson said, “I deliberation helium wants to stress that helium is the pope of the cosmopolitan Catholic Church, not an American who is successful this position."

Notable American Citizens Who Led Foreign Governments

There person been cases of American citizens starring overseas governments. Boris Johnson, calved successful New York, renounced his US citizenship successful 2016 portion serving arsenic the UK’s overseas curate and became Prime Minister 3 years later.

Mohammed Abdullahi Mohammed, a US national astatine the time, was elected President of Somalia successful 2017 and renounced his US citizenship 2 years later. Born successful Somalia, helium near the US successful 1985 and became a Somali national successful the 1990s.

Valdas Adamkus became a US national aft fleeing Soviet-occupied Lithuania. He returned arsenic Lithuania’s president successful 1998 and renounced his US citizenship pursuing his election.

Location :

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News world Can Pope Leo XIV Keep His US Citizenship While Leading Vatican City? | Explained