Since being rejected by the Charity Commission in 1999, Scientology has operated in the United Kingdom through an Australian-registered charity called COSRECI (Church of Scientology Religious Education College, Inc). As such, their revenue is considered ‘foreign income’ and is exempt from income tax. However, due to its lack of tax exemption in the UK, Scientology are required to pay 25% Corporation Tax on its profits.
COSRECI is registered with the Australian Charities & Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) and its financial accounts are published annually. The documents reveal in extraordinary detail how Scientology spends its money, right down to travel expenses, refectory costs and staff allowances. In contrast, Scientology’s tax-exempt status in the United States affords it protection from public scrutiny, as its financial accounts are held internally by the IRS and do not get published.
Scientology’s most recent 2022 accounts when plotted on a graph, indicate an upward trend in revenue during the 2014 – 2018 period (coinciding with the ‘Chase Wave’ scandal), followed by a sharp fall in 2019.
During the same period, donations on account more than doubled to around $45 million, where it has remained for 4 years. This indicates a revenue push where parishioners were encouraged to pay for services in advance, but no follow up campaign to actually deliver those services.
COSRECI’s operations account for all of Scientology’s UK activities, including Saint Hill, London Org, Birmingham, Manchester and the smaller orgs such as Sunderland and Bournemouth & Poole.
These accounts are full of fascinating figures, and are available to view in date order below. If you notice any irregularities or peculiar trends, please do leave a comment below or get in touch – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
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[…] 2.5 or 5 year agreements which include sick pay and holiday entitlement clauses; and according to their most recent accounts, Scientology spent £1.47 million ($1.86 million USD) on “staff allowances” in the […]