I'm a Clergy Tax "Subject Matter Expert"---that's tax talk for: I know all the ins and outs. I even had an IRS agent once say to me, "Well, you know more about that than I do." (Wow!) How did I become an expert? Well, after my husband finished seminary, he pastored a small country church. We lived in the church parsonage. And when I did our taxes that first year, it took every penny we had to pay the IRS. Several years later, he had moved to hospital chaplaincy, and one year as I was preparing our tax returns I discovered that I had filed the previous 2 years incorrectly. Correcting that cost us some cash yet again. You could say I've "paid" for my expertise! I've sure learned how to do it right. When the IRS calls you a "Hybrid Employee," you know they're not talking about your car! And because Clergy are not treated like every other employee, I often find situations where they were paid---and their W-2 or 1099-MISC is reported---incorrectly. There are many variations used by Church Treasurers and other employers to pay their Clergy employee, and unfortunately many of them are wrong. It takes special expertise to be able to prepare Clergy taxes as they are reported, while also guiding the Clergy member and his/her employer to do things the IRS way. I welcome contact from Clergy and Church Treasurers with questions about this Complex Area of the Tax Code!