Like other corporate entities, churches encounter business activities that must be completed just before, or soon after, the end of the calendar year. Now is the time to make plans for these various tasks. The questions that follow can be used as a checklist for...
For clergy who are living permanently in a nursing home, they can use some (but not all) of their nursing home expenses for the housing allowance. For example, the rental cost of their room and the utilities are eligible for the housing allowance. The food...
Question: Am I required to pay overtime to employees who work on holidays? Answer: Generally, no. Whether you pay extra for work done on holidays is up to you. There is no federal law that requires an employer to pay extra. As for overtime, if an employee...
Question: What is FMLA and how does it apply to churches? Answer: What is it? FMLA is short for the Family and Medical Leave Act. It generally provides 12 weeks of leave in a 12-month period (more if caring for an injured or ill service member)....
Question: Can I Deduct the Mortgage for a Home That is Being Constructed? Does it qualify for the housing allowance? Answer: The IRS allows for taxpayers to deduct all of the interest they pay on a construction loan within the 24 months before the home is...
We’ve all inappropriately handled our emotions at work. We’ve either stuffed our emotions when we should have shared them or we’ve spewed emotions when we should have stayed silent. Venting in the workplace is important but there are things to consider: should you vent to...
The first step in this process is to analyze the type and tax status of your retirement savings. For this purpose, divide your accounts into three categories: Taxed Later: Traditional IRAs, 403(b), and 401(k)s are types of savings accounts that give you a tax deduction at...
Church HR requires a specific balance between compliance and culture and having gaps could cost you money and time, not to mention staff morale and relational capital with your congregation. If you’re juggling 17 different hats (including “HR” anything) but don’t have the time or...
Now that President Biden has announced student loan relief, the state tax treatment of forgiven loans is of interest to many ministers. Ministers who have student loans forgiven are spared a federal tax bill, but not all states treat forgiven loans the same. A forgiven loan amount is...
Question: Can we require staff to cover tattoos? Answer: Simply answered, yes. But we recommend following your written dress code policy on this matter, which is generally in your Staff Handbook. Tattoo policies usually depend on the culture of the organization and the image they want...