The ministers' housing allowance is a very important tax benefit available to min

Only Ministers for Tax Purposes are eligible for a housing allowance on their min

Churches should designate a housing allowance in writing before the beginning of

As taxpayers, ministers must determine if they are eligible for a housing allowan

Eligible expenses include mortgage payments (principal and interest); rent paymen

Cleaning services, food and domestic help are not eligible to be excluded from in

Ministers who own their homes can exclude the lowest of the following three amoun

Ministers who rent their homes can exclude the lower of these two amounts: The am

Churches can designate a housing allowance for a minister who lives in a parsonag

Yes. A housing allowance may be excluded from income for federal income tax purpo

Churches may designate a housing allowance for bivocational ministers who are Min

Yes. Ministers who itemize deductions and have a housing allowance may deduct mor

A down payment on a home may be excluded from income as a housing allowance, assu

Ministers who pay off their mortgages may have a housing allowance for other elig

Churches can designate a housing allowance only prospectively, not retroactively.

A minister cannot exclude income as a housing allowance unless the church designa

Churches should consider designating a housing allowance "for the current year an

There is no limit on the amount of a minister's salary that a church can designat

If the church designates more than the minister can claim as a housing allowance,

The housing allowance does not need to be reported on a Form W-2, although some c

Yes. Revenue Ruling 75-22 allows denominational pension boards such as GuideStone

If you are a minister for tax purposes, you will request GuideStone to designate

Generally, retired ministers do not pay SECA tax on their retirement income. Elig

Ministers are eligible for housing allowance with respect to ministerial services

For more information about who is a minister for tax purposes, see our annual Min

GuideStone makes the process very simple for ministers when withdrawing funds for