What Expenses Can Be Used to Justify the Housing Allowance Exclusion?
Generally, any expense to provide or maintain the home can be used to justify the housing exclusion. Regulations do specifically state that expenses for groceries, paper products, personal toiletries, personal clothing, and maid service cannot be used. You may legitimately include the following: (1) rent, principal payments, or down payments plus the cost of buying the home; (2) taxes…
Resolve to Start 2019 Organized!
Nobody likes rushing to gather tax documents just before the April 15th deadline. Who needs the additional stress and worry? Don’t stress out this tax season. Make a New Year’s Resolution to get your tax organizer completed and returned early! Clergy Financial paper organizers will start being mailed to clients on January 15th. The online…
2021 State Worksheets
2021 State Worksheets The state worksheet is designed to address the most current tax law changes within your state. Please print and complete a state worksheet for your resident state. If you lived in multiple states, please complete a state organizer for each state. This worksheet will assist you in gathering state information needed to…
Who Is a Minister?
When a church hires an employee, one of the initial decisions that must be made is whether to treat the worker as clergy, non-clergy employee or contractor. This decision may seem insignificant, but it has huge implications when it comes to payroll. Ministers have what is commonly referred to as “dual tax status.” For federal…
It’s Time To Stop Making Payroll Mistakes
Payroll is complicated. There are a lot of tasks, laws, forms, and calculations. With so many things to remember, it’s easy to make a mistake. You should not take payroll errors lightly. Mistakes can result in penalties, interest, and even jail time. The best way to avoid payroll mistakes is by knowing what to look…
Important Fringe Benefits for Ministers
A fringe benefit is any cash, property, or service that clergy employees receive from a congregation in addition to salary.  All fringe benefits are taxable income to employees unless specifically exempted by the Internal Revenue Code. Many fringe benefits can be provided by a congregation to clergy without any dollar limitation (health insurance is an example), while other fringe benefits…
Ministers Defined by the IRS
When a church hires an employee, one of the initial decisions that must be made is whether to treat the worker as clergy, non-clergy employee or contractor. This decision may seem insignificant, but it has huge implications when it comes to payroll. Ministers have what is commonly referred to as “dual tax status.” For federal…
What is the Difference Between FICA and SECA?
Social Security taxes or contributions are collected under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) and the Self-Employment Contributions Act (SECA). Many people refer to contributions to Social Security as either FICA or SECA taxes. While FICA and SECA may sound similar, they are just two different ways for the government to collect Social Security and Medicare taxes. The big…
Deductions that are disappearing in 2018
President Trump recently signed the tax reform bill into law, and it makes major changes to the U.S. tax code for both individuals and corporations. In fact, the bill represents the most significant tax changes in the United States in more than 30 years. While many deductions are remaining under the new tax law, there…
2017 State Worksheets
2017 State Worksheets The state worksheet is designed to address the most current tax law changes within your state. Please print and complete a state worksheet for your resident state. If you lived in multiple states, please complete a state organizer for each state. This worksheet will assist you in gathering state information needed to…