Common Legal Issues Faced by Church Planters

Additional Note:
I want to clarify my statement about opting out of Social Security as a pastor.  Ministers may exempt themselves from self-employment taxes (i.e. Social Security and Medicare) if they file Form 4361 with the IRS by the due date of the federal tax return for the second year in which they have at least $400.00 of self-employment earnings.  Any Minister, even if you work for a church, can be considered self-employed, and this may be beneficial for tax reasons.  Please seek the advice of a tax professional for further information on this topic.  While it may be advantageous to opt out of for some people (i.e. those who think they can get a better return investing the money on their own), you must keep in mind that opting out of Medicare may be a very bad decision because it is difficult to find health insurance in your retirement years.  So you may be left in a situation where you will have to pay for your health care on your own.  If you could opt out of social security but not Medicare, it would be a much easier decision, but you have to opt out of both.

James A. Beckemeier, Esq.
12813 Flushing Meadows Dr., Suite 270
Saint Louis, Missouri 63131
P:  (314) 965-2277
F:  (314) 965-0127
EMail:  

0 Comments | Login to Post Comments