Accounts filed today by the Church of Scientology’s UK operating arm show the organisation has more than tripled its expenditure on legal fees over the last five years and is spiralling into debt, while income appears to have flatlined.
The controversial church does not hold tax-exempt status in the United Kingdom after the Charity Commission ruled it “does not benefit the public” in 1999. Instead, it funnels operations through an Australian-registered non-profit named Church of Scientology Religious Education College, Inc. (COSRECI). Although its registered address is listed with the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) as 225 Pulteney St, Adelaide, SA, 5000, Australia, COSRECI is considered an overseas entity that does business exclusively in the UK. Its ACNC filings account for Scientology’s entire UK operation including its headquarters at Saint Hill and city-level churches such as London, Birmingham and Manchester. Due to its lack of charity status, COSRECI is liable for Corporation Tax on its profits.
In their latest accounts for the year ending 31st December 2025, filed with the ACNC today, COSRECI has more than tripled its expenditure on ‘legal and professional fees’ over the last five years from $614,821 AUD ($423,691 USD or £319,550 GBP) in 2021 to $1,934,033 AUD ($1.33 million USD or £1 million GBP) in 2025.
The church has also continued its practice of borrowing money from Scientology entities in the United States, with total debt owed to related parties almost doubling from $57.7 million AUD ($39.7 million USD or £30 million GBP) in 2018 to a staggering $111.3 million AUD ($76.7 million USD or £57.9 million GBP) in 2025.
Scientology’s UK income has somewhat flatlined over the same period, with reported annual figures ranging between $23.7 million AUD and $46.3 million AUD and an average annual turnover of $32.3 million AUD ($22.2 million USD or £16.8 million GBP).
Plotted on a comparative graph, Scientology’s financial model appears to be unsustainable with debts increasing year-on-year, and money spent on legal fees growing exponentially despite no significant increase in annual turnover. On the loans from other church entities, their latest accounts state “The trustees consider the going concern basis to be appropriate for the preparation of these financial statements. Most current liabilities are amounts owed to other Scientology organisations, with whom there has always been mutual cooperation and who are unlikely to seek repayment to the detriment of other creditors.”
“Church of Scientology Religious Education College, Inc maintain[s] significant cash balances with the bank and the trustees are confident that [COSRECI] will be able to pay debts when they fall due”
The accounts show $42.3 million AUD falls due to Church of Scientology International and $17.46 million AUD to Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization within the next year. COSRECI claims to have $46.4 million AUD ($31.9 million USD or £24.1 million GBP) in unrestricted funds available either in cash or at the bank.
During the year, COSRECI received donations of $4,960 (2024: $67,716), purchased books and other literature to a value of
Church of Scientology UK Financial Report 2025 (Source: ACNC)
$1,354,425 (2024: $1,160,482), and was charged $3,162,265 (2024: $2,926,255) for ecclesiastical management services and courses. Church of Scientology International also paid $792,577 (2024: $342) in respect to building and leasehold improvements and $59,373 (2024:V $23,256) in respect of furniture and equipment additions, in addition payments of $59,373 (2024: $23,322) were held on account for future building improvements. At the year end, $135,626,325 (2024: $133,002,158) was due to Church of Scientology International and its subsidiaries
The financial report also provides further insight into the nature of COSRECI’s debts, with amounts due to several Scientology entities in the United States including the ‘Mother Church’ Church of Scientology International (CSI), Scientology International Reserves Trust (SIRT) and their headquarters in Clearwater Florida known as Flag.
Some debts relate to amounts owed for services provided to COSRECI, for example fees charged by Flag for the recent ‘Golden Age of Administration’ which saw dozens of executives shipped off to Florida for training on the ‘Flag Executive Briefing Course’. However the majority of debt arises from loans from Scientology organisations higher up in the church’s international management structure.
The total amount owed by Scientology’s UK branch to its US counterparts is almost three times its annual turnover.
At the year-end there were loans outstanding from Church of Scientology International of $66,773,749 (2024: $64,820,934)
and is included in note 8 under “Loans from related organisations. The loan is to be repaid over a period of five years, unless
the term is extended by agreement. Interest of $2,243,237 (2024: $2,246,354) was charged in the year.At the year-end there was a loan outstanding from Scientology International Reserves Trust of $14,781,341 (2024:
$14,319,614) and this is shown in Note 8 under “Loans from related organisations”. The loan is to be repaid over a period of
five years, unless the term is extended by agreement. Interest is chargeable at 5% p.a.Church of Scientology Flag Service Organisation was charged $Nil (2024: charged $28,221) for courses provided to
COSRECI. At the year end, $17,465,887 (2024: $18,117,012) was due to Church of Scientology Flag Service Organisation
and this amount is included in Note 7. The amount had increased (2024: decreased) in the period by interest charged of
$Nil (2024: $Nil) and was reduced in the period by repayments of $Nil (2024: $Nil) and exchange differences of $590,489
(2024: $148,760)In addition, COSRECI received donations from other churches amounting to $2,209,231 (2024: $5,766,590)
Church of Scientology UK Financial Report 2025 (Source: ACNC)
COSRECI itself has also loaned money to its European counterparts, with $1.25 million AUD owed by the Church of Scientology and Community Centre of Dublin and $171,218 due from the Church of Scientology of Germany as of 31st December 2025.
The filing also appears to confirm Manchester is being prioritised as the next UK ‘Ideal Org’, stating “as at the balance sheet date, Church of Scientology Religious Education College Inc had committed to further expenditure in respect of ongoing property improvement works at its Manchester premises.” Renovation works began on the Grade-II listed Old Essence Distillery building in Trafford last year, which Scientology acquired in 2007 for a reported £3.6 million. This followed pressure applied by the local Council to “arrest the decline” of the property, which had fallen into a state of disrepair due to being sat vacant for so long. Scaffolding has now been erected around the building and works have begun on the interior, but due to asbestos being found throughout the building, a number of new planning applications have been made in order to account for its removal.
The amount reported as ‘committed expenditure’ on the refurbishment works was listed as $1,694,003 AUD ($1.17 million USD or £879,848 GBP) in COSRECI’s 2024 accounts. However, a leaked document sent to parishioners last year suggests Scientology has raked in over £37 million in donations for the project.
Along with its annual accounts Scientology has also reported steady growth in the number of volunteers it has working for the organisation in the UK, rising from 1,300 in 2024 to 1,400 in 2025. Expenditure on staff allowances however fell from $3,690,738 AUD in 2024 to $3,663,334 AUD in 2025. If Scientology’s figures are to be believed, this means the average staff wage fell from $54 AUD ($37 USD or £28 GBP) a week in 2024 to $50 AUD ($34 USD or £26 GBP) last year.
Meanwhile COSRECI’s reported six “key management personnel” received a pay rise from an average of $136 AUD ($93 USD or £70 GBP) per week in 2024 to $143 AUD ($98 USD or £74 GBP) in 2025. In contrast, for a standard 37.5-hour work week the UK minimum wage equates to a weekly gross pay of £457.88 ($881 AUD or $607 USD).
The amount of money Scientology spends on legal fees each year has also seen a marked increase in recent years, almost quadrupling from $556,969 AUD ($383,668 USD or £289,328 GBP) in 2022 to $1.93 million AUD ($1.33 million USD or £1 million GBP) in 2025.
This coincides with a growing UK protest movement and increased government scrutiny after Scientology leader Captain David Miscavige revived their annual IAS event, which takes place annually at their Saint Hill compound near East Grinstead, Sussex. After an extended break due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event returned in 2022 and was met by the largest UK protest since the Anonymous movement 15 years prior.
Since then, local residents and government officials have raised concerns about the “disruption” and “chaos” the gathering brings to the local area. In 2023, Mid-Sussex District Council issued a Planning Contravention Notice, ordering the church to apply for planning permission in order to erect three mammoth marquees used to host the event and in 2024 Scientology launched a bid to ban protesting which subsequently failed after the Council declared the demonstrations to be “by and large peaceful and good natured”.
The Church was also faced with an application to review their Premises Licence in late 2025 and appointed barrister Cain Ormondroyd to represent them at a hearing earlier this year, however due to their financial year ending 31st December 2025, these costs are not expected to appear in Scientology’s accounts until next year.
In a policy letter dated 9th March 1972, founder L. Ron Hubbard laid out Scientology’s governing financial policy. He wrote: “make money, make more money, make other people produce so as to make money.”
