Vatican, no tattoos or cohabitation. The rules for employees are changing

No piercings and no cohabitation for Vatican employees. With a new regulation, published yesterday, June 29, Pope francesco he dictated new rules for its lay employees who work at the Fabbrica di San Pietro and, when you read them, they seem to be above all an appeal to public decency.

In addition to the piercingsare also prohibited tattoos in sightbut not only that, one cannot “join associations whose aims are not compatible with the doctrine of the Church» and, and it is perhaps the most difficult rule to request in 2024, no cohabitationbut only weddings in church.

The Vatican’s new rules apply both to the Sampietrini, the workers who take care of the maintenance of the place of worship, and to all the employees of the Fabbrica, an administrative body born together with the basilica itself.

The regulation that was issued on the occasion of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul is said to have been in the works for some time. Not only in view of the Jubilee of 2025 but above all because the Fabbrica has been in the news in recent years for some scandals: from the theft of works and archive documents to cases of less than transparent contracts. And so Pope Francis has decided to publish a new Regulation.

The Vatican Rules

The workers of the Fabbrica di San Pietro are required to have a decorum and almost a dress code. The Sampietrini – bricklayers, bridge workers, plumbers, forklift drivers, carpenters, electricians, painters, marble workers, blacksmiths or laborers – who carry out maintenance work on the structure are called upon to pay particular attention to their external appearance. «With respect for decorum and working environments, visible skin tattoos and elements of body piercing are banned», they are required to wear a decent dress and suitable for the activity to be carried out. «Uniform clothing must be used only during service». Sampietrini with torn or stained uniform or “who use the uniform off duty, incur disciplinary sanctions”. The use of telephones and other electronic equipment “for personal purposes while on duty” is also prohibited.

As regards private life, the people hired are required to have a certificate of religious commitmentmoral and civil issued by the respective Parish Priest or other religious authority and for married people the «canonical» wedding certificate.

But the greatest rigidity is expressed on the subject of pontifical secret and confidentiality. With these new rules, secular Vatican employees can be fired or suspended if they are found to disclose information to outsiders about what is happening inside the Factory, under penalty of suspension or even dismissal. They will no longer be able to welcome strangers into the office, nor “remove original documents, photocopies, electronic copies or other archival material”. It is also forbidden to “unduly use the factory’s stamps and headed paper or computer software for private purposes”. They will no longer even be able to “receive or send private correspondence through the office”, “receive commissions or carry out external tasks”.