During the course of the 67^th Plenary Meeting of the MONEYVAL Committee of the Council of Europe, held in Strasbourg from 20 to 24 May 2024, the First “Regular Follow-up Report” of the Holy See (including Vatican City State), containing an assessment of the progress made by the jurisdiction, three years after the last assessment attributable to the “Mutual Evaluation Report” of April 2021, was adopted.

As is known, the outcome of the Report was broadly positive and, therefore, the Holy See (including Vatican City State) was subjected to a follow-up process on a regular basis (“regular follow-up”), which has now produced a “follow-up” report. In particular, as per the Moneyval Committee’s procedures, the current regulations of the Holy See and Vatican City State were analysed for technical compliance with certain recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) on which the jurisdiction had requested a review of the assessment given in the 2021 Mutual Evaluation Report.

The MONEYVAL Committee acknowledged the further progress implemented by the jurisdiction along the lines indicated by the 2021 Report. As shown by the text of the Report published on the MONEYVAL Committee institutional website today, the progress made by the Holy See and Vatican City State in the first of preventing and countering money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction has been confirmed. For all the recommendations requested, in fact, an improved rating was given.

Consequently, the next technical compliance assessment has been scheduled for four years from now, when it will presumably be included in the broader context of the “Sixth round of mutual evaluation” of the MONEYVAL Committee member jurisdictions. The outcome of the Regular Follow-up Report was largely positive, reflecting the joint work of all the authorities of the jurisdiction and in continuity with the process of full financial transparency in which the jurisdiction of the Holy See (including Vatican City State) is engaged.