Employee or nonemployee

by Kim
(USA)

The church pay him weekly, but he does not considered as an employee of the church because he does not want the church to match his payroll tax, and he will pay payroll as self employment tax. He said, he is a paid volunteer.

Is it legal for him to considered him as a paid volunteer not an employee of the church?

P.S this church is very small and has no payroll tax.

Know the answer? Face the same situation? Please post your answer or comment by using the "comment" link below. Thank you!

Comments for Employee or nonemployee

Click here to add your own comments

Sep 20, 2010
Employee or Independent Contractor
by: Vickey

I mean no disrespect, but the decision whether or not he is an employee of the church is not up to him. The church must correctly determine whether the individuals providing services are employees or independent contractors.

See this IRS page regarding making that determination.

See this article: Employee or Self-Employed?

Sep 25, 2012
Are we required to pay the Pastor a salary?
by: Anonymous

Our Pastor does not receive a salary. He does not want a salary. However,since the IRS considers him an employee are we required to pay him a salary? By law, should we actually be paying him a salary regardless of how he feels? If not, should it be stated in the by-laws?

Oct 31, 2012
Volunteer Pastor
by: Vickey

No you are not required to pay him a salary.

There are many small churches that cannot afford to pay their pastor anything.

He would be considered a volunteer and not an actual paid employee.

I think it would be wise to record his non pay status in your minutes.


Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Minister Employee.

If you want to DIY your payroll, I highly recommend you look at using Gusto! It is very user friendly and their support is awesome! Plus they know how to set up and maintain payrolls for churches and nonprofit organizations.

Note: I am a "partner" of Gusto, but as I have told you before ... I never recommend anything that we or our clients have not tried and love =)



Share this page:
Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.