Skip to main content

Partially Retired Minister Compensation

By
Question:

 A minister is partially retired and receiving Social Security benefits that will be limited by the Social Security Administration (SSA) if his earnings exceed the SSA's thresholds. at age 62. Can the church continue to employ him and compensate him appropriately without exceeding the threshold? The church did investigate a deferred compensation arrangement called a "rabbi trust" but found it to be overly complex.

 Answer:

 According to the SSA website:

 "If you are under full retirement age for the entire year, we deduct $1 from your benefit payments for every $2 you earn above the annual limit. For 2009 and 2010, that limit is $14,160.

 "In the year you reach full retirement age, we deduct $1 in benefits for every $3 you earn above a different limit, but we only count earnings before the month you reach your full retirement age. If you will reach full retirement age in 2009 or 2010, the limit on your earnings for the months before full retirement age is $37,680.

 "When we figure out how much to deduct from your benefits, we count only the wages you make from your job or your net profit if you're self-employed. We include bonuses, commissions and vacation pay. We don't count pensions, annuities, investment income, interest, veterans or other government or military retirement benefits.".

 For most ministers, the amount reported on Schedule SE to Form 1040 will be the amount compared to these limits. This amount includes cash compensation plus housing allowance, but does not include the following:
  • professional expense reimbursements from an accountable plan
  • health care benefits
  • other non-taxable fringe benefits (e.g., employer matching of 403(b) plan contributions)
In addition, elective deferrals to a 403(b) plan by a minister are excluded from SE income
(IRS Revenue Rulings 68-395 and 78-6). Also, please search other postings in this blog.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Church Car Purchase for Pastor

By
Question: A church would like to purchase a car for the pastor's use. What is the best method to accomplish this goal? Should the car be titled in the pastor's name? What will be the tax consequences of this arrangement? Answer: The church has two main alternatives for this purchase:  Title the car in the pastor's name and reimburse him for business expenses Title it in the church's name and treat personal use as taxable compensation There are fewer immediate tax consequences for the latter. Since both are viable options, we will discuss both situations in this post. If the church chooses to give the car to the pastor and register it in his name, he is free to use it for whatever personal use he desires with no tax consequences. However, the fair value of the car is taxable as compensation at the time it is given to the pastor. Internal Revenue Code section 102(c) clearly states that gifts given to employees by their employers are taxable compensation. The...
2 comments
Read more

Can Form 4361 be filed after the deadline?

By
Question:   Is it possible to opt out of Social Security after the 2-year deadline? Answer:  Unlike other employees, a licensed or ordained minister has the option to opt out of Social Security and Medicare (FICA). If a minister wants to opt out they must file Form 4361 by the tax deadline including extension, in the second year in which they have received ministerial income of $400 or more. This election is final, and the minister cannot opt back into FICA taxes.  At MinistryCPA, we have received questions from ministers who have exceeded the two year deadline and desire to opt-out. There have been several court cases which provide guidance in answering this question. Some have argued that the minister was unaware of the deadline, had mistakenly believed they had filed a timely election, were given incorrect advice by an IRS employee, or their opposition to participate in Social Security and Medicare did not arise until after the 2-year deadline had passed. In each of th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Form 941 or 944 - Which Should a Church Use for Payroll Reporting?

By Anonymous
Question:   Are churches required to file a Form 944 annually to report their employees' earnings and tax-withholdings? A quarterly Form 941 (rather than an annual Form 944) is required of some employers. Which IRS form, if any, should be filed? Answer: According to IRS Section 1402(c) and 3121(c), ministers are not subject to mandatory income tax withholding. Unless one or more ministerial employees request non-mandatory withholding, church employers with only ministerial employees do not need to file Form 941 or Form 944.  The IRS  Ministers Audit Techniques Guide  explains in further detail a minister's treatments for Social Security, Medicare tax, and income tax withholding.   Form 941 or 944 must be filed when non-ministerial employees are compensated or when ministers request withholding. When can a church file the annual Form 944 rather than filing Form 941 each quarter? The IRS may permit the annual filing of Form 944 for employers wh...
Post a Comment
Read more