Employee (W-2) or Self-Employed (1099)?

If you are a pastor or employee of a Church of God church or related entity, you should
receive a Form W-2 from your employer by no later than February 1. While many
minister (and churches) continue to claim that the minister is “self-employed”
and therefore should receive a Form 1099, the church polity of our denomination
makes it almost universal that our ministers are employees of the local church
for tax purposes – and thus entitled to receive a W-2 rather than a Form 1099.
Based upon case law, it seems rather clear that Church of God
ministers have a dual tax status – they are employees for federal tax purposes
but they are self-employed for Social Security purposes. While this topic is
confusing and not subject to clarification in this forum, I would recommend
that you visit our web site (www.benefitsboard.com) and review the Treasurer’s
Manual where a more detail discussion on this issue can be found.

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