Can the housing allowance resolution be amended mid-year?
The housing allowance resolution can be adopted or amended at any time during the year. However, it can only be applied prospectively, not retroactively. It is important for the housing allowance resolution to be adopted by the church council prior to each calendar year (or prior to the start date), which would accurately reflect the…
Are Clergy Eligible For Public Service Loan Forgiveness
The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program forgives the remaining balance on your Direct Loans after you have made 120 qualifying monthly payments under a qualifying repayment plan while working full-time for a qualifying employer. For more details click the link below: https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/repay-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service#qualifying-employment
How does the IRS decide whether a taxpayer is a Minister for Tax Purposes?
The IRS considers individual facts and circumstances to decide if a taxpayer is a Minister for Tax Purposes. Court cases and practices of different denominations have influenced IRS decisions. These five questions will help determine if a person is a Minister for Tax Purposes: Is the person ordained, licensed or commissioned? Does the person administer…
What if I Stop at the Hospital During My Commute?
Question: If I drive my personal car from my home to the hospital and then to the church office, what part of that drive is eligible for the standard mileage rates? My church says that the total miles of the trip should be added and then the usual commute miles from home to office should…
Implementing Background Checks
HR Q & A: Q: We don’t typically do background checks, but we’re hiring a new position who will have access to sensitive information. We want to do a background check for this position, but since we’ve never done one for anyone else, we’re worried it would look discriminatory. A: You may conduct background checks…
HR Q&A: Verifying a Disability
Question: One of our employees has asked for an accommodation. Her desk currently faces a wall, and she has asked to move, claiming that for medical reasons she needs to be able to see at a farther distance whenever she looks up. Is it appropriate to ask for medical documentation before considering her request? HR…
Are we required to update I-9 forms when the documentation that was used expires?
Some, but not all, documents used for the I-9 will need to be reverified upon expiration. Specifically, employees with temporary work authorizations will need to have their eligibility to work in the United States reverified. Employees with temporary work authorizations must indicate their employment authorization expiration date under Section 1 of the I-9 form, and…
Our church is planning to bring on some unpaid interns. Do we need to have them complete I-9 forms?
According to the Department of Homeland Security, I-9 forms are only required for employees, not unpaid interns. When taking on an unpaid intern, however, we urge churches to take extra care. The US Department of Labor has clear guidelines as to what makes an unpaid intern, and if all conditions are not met, the intern…
HR Hot Topic: Terminating an Underperforming Employee
Question: A month ago, we placed one of our employees on a performance action plan regarding the quality of his work and his low productivity levels after five previous verbal warnings in the last year. His performance has not improved since that plan was put into place. Is there anything more I need to do…
Required Flu Shots?
Our staff comes in close contact with elderly clients in our business. Can we require our employees to get seasonal flu shots in order to protect the health of our clients? Generally speaking, if employees do not have employment or union contracts that alter the nature of their at-will employment, employers with a business reason…
