The Assistant Treasurer, Senator Rod Kemp, today announced that religious practitioners will not need to apply for an ABN and will not come within the GST law for their pastoral and related duties. Their current fringe benefits tax treatment will also be maintained.

A PAYG withholding event will be introduced to cover payments to religious practitioners for their performance of pastoral and related duties. This announcement, and the recent decision by the Commissioner of Taxation to vary to zero the rate of withholding for payments (such as those made in respect of funerals) where a No-ABN withholding event would potentially apply, will clarify the taxation treatment of religious practitioners under the new tax system.

The tax treatment of particular religious practitioners has differed under the existing law. These differences arise because the courts have reached different conclusions on whether religious practitioners are common law employees.

The Australian Taxation Office will continue to work with representatives of churches and other religious institutions to facilitate their transition to the new tax system. Consequential legislative amendments will be made to give effect to this announcement.

Originally posted on the Assistant Treasurer's site: http://www.treasurer.gov.au/AssistantTreasurer/

Someone needs to create a mail out listing just what we have to pay, what we have to charge, and how we deal with this. In the good old days, weddings were tax free, for example. Now? The article I see here is not clear at all.
(Rev) David Neilson