At a press conference on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced that IRS will be pushing back the 1040 payment deadline by 90 days due to the impact of COVID19. Individual taxpayers will be able to defer payment on their 1040 return until July 15th with no penalty. As this plan was just announced on…
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal law that mandates minimum wage and overtime pay for many employees. This law was designed to protect employees by assuring that employers pay eligible employees at least minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime for any hours worked over 40 per week. Although few congregations…
There’s a little more than a month left before the April 15th deadline. If you aren’t able to file by April 15th, you can request a filing extension with the IRS (and possibly your state). While IRS has no problem with delaying your filing until October, many people forget that they still expect your payment…
The Housing Allowance is one of the best tax benefits currently available to clergy today. Clergy can use a housing allowance to exempt a portion of their wages from income taxes. This can be done from wages or from deferred wages that were placed into a 403(b) denominational pension. When you retire, you may be…
One of the best tax benefits currently available to clergy, the housing allowance, isn’t just limited to wages. Did you know that you can claim a housing allowance from your denominational pension distributions as well? When a minister retires and starts taking funds from their denominational pension, they can potentially receive the funds income-tax-free as…
If you have children, you may be the custodian on a savings or investment accounts in the name of your children. These accounts might generate interest or dividends. At the end of the year, how do you report the income and pay taxes on these accounts? Technically, any income resulting from these accounts belongs to…
Congressman Kevin McCarthy recently held a press conference with local pastors about his newly introduced bill, the Clergy Act. This bill would offer ministers – many of whom opted out of paying into Social Security in their youth – a two-year “open season” to effectively opt-in to Social Security. McCarthy released the following statement: “In…
If you are retired or nearing retirement, you may want to pay attention to the SECURE Act that went into effect January 1st of 2020. This act made a number of important changes to retirement account rules, including: Raising the minimum distribution age to 72 (Was previously 70 and a half) Removing the age limit…
If you are moving to a new call and your Ministry is willing to help pay for moving expenses, you should be aware that it could actually cost you additional taxes! Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, moving expenses paid by your employer are not only NOT deductible, but they are also considered taxable…
For those who have reached 70 ½ and must take Required Minimum Distributions, you have the option of donating your RMD to charity rather than claiming the income for yourself. Because the RMD is being donated directly to a charity, it does not count as taxable income to you. This also means that you do…
