Church Board Duties
Church Board Duties The start of the year is a good time for church boards to ensure that they have remained compliant with all of their duties to the organization. Of course, church entities are not all structured the same. Some are set up with broad congregational membership authority. Others are largely board governed. There…
Employee Handbooks for Churches
Employee Handbooks for Churches Churches sometimes lean toward avoiding too much formality around hiring practices and employment procedures. There can be a bias against seeming too “corporate” or running the church “like a business.” Heightened formality may seem natural when a church is hiring a previously unknown candidate for a pastoral position. But in other…
Automatic Exemption for Churches
Automatic Exemption for Churches Churches that meet the requirements of IRC Section 501(c)(3) are automatically considered tax-exempt and are not required to apply for and obtain recognition of tax-exempt status from the IRS. Although there is no requirement to do so, many churches seek recognition of tax-exempt status from the IRS because this recognition assures…
Can a Church Give an Employee Loan?
Can a Church Give an Employee Loan? During times of economic hardship, individuals may approach their employer and request a personal loan in order to help make ends meet. If an employee of a church requests a personal loan from the church, there are several issues to consider. As a matter of policy, will the…
Can all church employees qualify for housing allowance?
Q. Can all church employees qualify for housing allowance? A. No. Section 107 of the Internal Revenue Code allows only a “minister of the gospel” to have a housing allowance. Thus, only taxpayers who are serving as clergy under IRS rules for tax purposes are eligible for a housing allowance. These rules state that the…
Tax & Payroll Support
Support Designed for Churches – One-Year Subscription
Researching clergy issues on your own takes time and can leave you wondering if you’ve got the right answer. Turn to Clergy Financial Resources to save time while getting the correct answers. When you need an answer, our support staff is ready to find the right answers quickly with our annual support service. Through Benefit and Payroll Support, you’ll have access to unlimited phone and electronic support provided by a dedicated team of professional advisors with years of experience.
Reasons Churches Get Involved In Legal Disputes
Reasons Churches Get Involved In Legal Disputes Risk management is important to all organizations, including churches. While there is no way for a church to protect itself from all legal risks, church leaders are well advised to be familiar with common reasons churches get into lawsuits, and to take reasonable precautions. This article provides awareness…
How Should Churches Handle Legal Issues?
How Should Churches Handle Legal Issues? The last thing church leaders want to invest their time and energy into is responding to legal issues. How should church leaders respond when potential legal issues arise? Of course, it depends greatly on the nature of the issue. Here are some practical preliminary questions to ask, and steps…
Bookkeeping Designed for Churches
Do you find yourself spending more time and effort on daily accounting tasks and software issues rather than on making important decisions to run your church? Handling your own bookkeeping can quickly take over, letting other responsibilities fall through the cracks. Let Clergy Financial Resources help you get back on track by managing your bookkeeping…
10 Reasons to Outsource Church Bookkeeping
10 Reasons to Outsource Church Bookkeeping Managing church finances can be a daunting task even under the most favorable circumstances. Factor in complex tax reports, bank reconciliations, and ever-changing IRS and state guidelines, and you can guarantee church staff is overspending valuable time on workarounds for processes that could be intuitively streamlined. With Clergy Financial…