1st Quarter Tax Calendar for 2014
By Raul Rivera
Can you believe that 2014 is almost here? Every year in January, our office gets tons of phone calls from pastors and leaders asking about tax forms and what needs to be filed in January. To that effect, we have put together a tax calendar to educate and guide you in the process. This calendar is specific for churches and ministries. We hope that it helps you in your endeavors to accomplish something great in 2014.
Before January 1st: Have the annual board meeting of the directors. If you do not know what agenda items need to be covered in the annual meeting, we have a service whereby we create your annual minutes for you so that all you have to do is get together with your board of directors, go over each item, and sign off.
Before January 1st: In the annual board meeting of the directors, designate the minister's housing allowance.
Before January 1st: Each board member must sign the annual conflicts of interest statement. If you have been to one of our conferences, a sample statement can be found on page 73 of the conference manual.
January 15th: As recommended by our StartRightTM program, ministers that have had a housing allowance properly designated by the church must add up their qualifying housing allowance expenses by calculating the actual value of the home and the fair rental value.
January 15th: Minister's must make the estimated tax payment for the 4th quarter of 2013 using Form 1040ES. Only make this payment if you believe you still owe taxes for 2013 and you will not file your tax return by January 31st.
January 15th: If you have non-ministerial employees, the December 2013 payroll tax deposit is due.
January 31st: If you do not pay your 4th quarter estimated tax payment by January 15th, you may choose to file your 2013 income tax return by January 31st to avoid a late penalty for not making the January 15th 4th quarter payment.
January 31st: Deliver tax-deductible contribution statements to all of those who made contributions to your ministry.
January 31st: Give W-2 forms to all of your employees, including the pastor. For those of you who have the W-2 and 1099-Misc Kit, all you have to do is go to any office supply store and get the W-2 and W-3 tax forms and put them in your printer, then click the print button for the appropriate forms and out they will come.
January 31st: Give 1099-Misc forms to independent contractors, including guest speakers and unincorporated landlords, who received $600.00 or more in payments or honorariums for 2013. If you paid anyone royalties of $10.00 or more, give them Form 1099-Misc. If you used the services of an attorney and paid them $1.00 (one dollar) or more for his/her services, you must issue a 1099-Misc. For those of you who have the W-2 and 1099-Misc Kit, all you have to do is go to any office supply store and get the 1099-Misc and 1096 tax forms and put them in your printer, then click the print button for the appropriate forms and out they will come.
January 31st: File Form 941 (payroll tax) for the 4th quarter of 2013 and deposit any unpaid taxes, or file Form 944 for the 2013 tax year if your employment tax liability was $1,000 or less and the IRS wrote you to allow you to use Form 944.
January 31st: File Form 945 to report income tax withheld (backup withholdings) for 2013 on independent contractors, including citizen and non-citizen guest speakers.
Anytime in January: If your ministry changed addresses last year, now will be the right time to update your address with the IRS. To do that you will need to file Form 8822. Click here to download it.
February 1st: Consider applying for self-employment tax exemption before your window of time expires on April 15th. This can be big. For more information, call our office at 770-638-3444 and we will help you.
February 1st: Carefully document any qualifying health insurance premiums your church paid for its staff. The new law requires that they be reported on line 12 of Form W-2.
February 15th: If you have non-ministerial employees, the January 2014 payroll tax deposit is due.
February 28th: Send Form W-3, Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements, to the Social Security Administration along with copy A of all employee W-2’s you issued for calendar year 2013. For those of you who have the W-2 and 1099-Misc Kit, all you have to do is go to any office supply store and get the W-2 and W-3 tax forms and put them in your printer, then click the print button for the appropriate forms and out they will come. If you file these electronically, the due date is in March. See below!
February 28th: Send copy A of Form 1099 with Form 1096 to the IRS. For those of you who have the W-2 and 1099-Misc Kit, all you have to do is go to any office supply store and get the 1099-Misc and 1096 tax forms and put them in your printer, then click the print button for the appropriate forms and out they will come. If you file these electronically, the due date is in March. See below!
March 15th: If you have non-ministerial employees, the February 2014 payroll tax deposit is due.
March 31st: If you chose to file copy A of Form 1099 with Form 1096 electronically, this is the final day. If you file after this date, they will be considered late.
March 31st: If you chose to file Form W-3, Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements, with copy A of all employee W-2’s electronically, this is the final day. If you file after this date, they will be considered late.