Spain, Catholic Church sign agreement to compensate victims of sexual abuse

Jan 9, 2026 / 16:28 pm (CNA).

The Spanish Bishops’ Conference (CEE, by its Spanish acronym), the Spanish Conference of Religious Orders (CONFER, by its Spanish acronym), and the government have agreed on a channel for compensating victims of abuse within the Catholic Church, in which the Ombudsman’s Office will collaborate.

The agreement was signed Jan. 8 by the president of the CEE, Archbishop Luis Argüello; the president of CONFER, Father Jesús Díaz Sariego, OP; and Minister of the Presidency, Justice, and Relations with Parliament Félix Bolaños.

The agreement reached by the three parties will be valid for one year, renewable for another year.

The agreement reached for this new comprehensive reparations system will be complementary to the one being developed by the Catholic Church through the PRIVA Plan Advisory Commission since September 2024 and must be formalized through an agreement that will be ratified within one month.

PRIVA, a condensed Spanish acronym, stands for “comprehensive reparation plan for minors and persons with equivalent rights who are victims of sexual abuse.”

This system will be available to victims of cases that have passed the statute of limitations due to the passage of time or the death of the perpetrators and who do not wish to use the channel offered by the Catholic Church in Spain, which will remain in effect.

Argüello emphasized to the media that the agreement stipulates that the government will develop the Comprehensive Child and Adolescent Protection Law approved in 2021, “creating a proposal analogous to the one the Church is already implementing” so that victims of abuse in other areas (non-Church) can access comprehensive reparations.

Furthermore, the president of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference highlighted that the agreement includes a retroactive tax exemption for compensation payments, given that the tax authorities sometimes claimed up to 30% of the amount received.

“Another aspect that we also find valuable and are pleased with in the signed agreement is that it recognizes the legal purview of the PRIVA Advisory Commission,” the prelate said.

For his part, Díaz Sariego pointed out that “the [Church’s] system is working very well” and highlighted the “moral commitment of the Church” in this area by asking: “What other institution in our country takes responsibility for crimes that are already beyond the statute of limitations?”

How the new system will work

Following this agreement, a mixed Church-state system will be established. Cases will be received through an administrative processing window, which will forward them to the Ombudsman’s Victims Unit that will prepare a compensation proposal to be evaluated by the PRIVA Plan Advisory Commission.

If the victim or the affected Church institution does not agree with the resolution, the case will be referred to a second decision-making body composed of representatives from the government, the CEE, CONFER, and associations of abuse victims. This body must reach a unanimous agreement.

If this is not possible, a “final attempt at reaching a consensus“ will be made. If that also proves unsuccessful, the Ombudsman’s Victims Unit will make a decision.

When asked about the possible disparity in criteria, the president of CONFER explained that the PRIVA Advisory Commission established its criteria for evaluating cases independently and that the agreement with the government “stipulates that the criteria must be the same.”

Vatican intervention

Argüello stated that he has been in contact with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin to discuss this matter, receiving from Rome “confirmation of their confidence that whatever we did together would be endorsed by them and, at the same time, encouragement to reach an agreement.“

Bolaños expressed his gratitude for the role played by the Holy See, which, throughout two years of “complex and arduous“ negotiations on this issue, during which there were “moments of extreme difficulty,“ provided “indispensable impetus to reach this agreement.“

More than $2 million in compensation

Through the PRIVA Plan, the Catholic Church in Spain has received 114 requests for compensation from victims, for which the dioceses have submitted 30 reports and religious congregations, 80.

According to data provided to ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, by the PRIVA Plan Advisory Commission, there are another eight reports under review, and 61 cases have already been resolved, resulting in financial compensation totaling more than 1.8 million euros ($2.1 million), distributed fairly evenly between diocesan and religious cases.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.