The short answer
Publication 1828 is the IRS Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations. The current edition is dated August 2015, so treat it as a map of the federal topics and check any figure against the current form instructions. The parts a bookkeeper uses most are employment taxes and minister pay, unrelated business income, filing requirements, recordkeeping and contribution substantiation. Each is covered in more depth in the guides linked below.
What Publication 1828 is, and how old it is
Most church treasurers meet Publication 1828 the same way: someone forwards the PDF and says it has everything. It is a good starting point. The IRS calls it a quick reference guide to federal tax law for churches and religious organizations, and says it is not comprehensive and does not cover every situation.
The cover reads Rev. 8-2015, and the IRS forms and publications listing shows an August 2015 revision. The publication says the IRS treats it as a living document to be revised over time, but more than ten years have passed. Rules it describes in general terms still read correctly. Specific forms and dollar figures need checking against the current instructions before anyone relies on them.
Its first pages also explain who it is for. The publication uses "church" in a generic sense for places of worship, including conventions and associations of churches and integrated auxiliaries, and it treats other religious organizations, such as nondenominational ministries and interdenominational organizations, as a separate group, some of them with different filing rules.
The parts a bookkeeper reads closely
These sections deal directly with records the books produce. Read them with the payroll reports, giving records and filing calendar beside you, because each one describes something the church should be able to produce on request. Page numbers are from the August 2015 PDF.
- Employment tax (pages 21 to 22). Churches generally withhold, report and pay income and Social Security and Medicare taxes for employees, report on Form 941 or 944, and are not liable for federal unemployment tax. The minister exception and Form 8274 are explained in church payroll basics.
- Special rules for ministers (pages 22 to 23). Voluntary withholding by Form W-4, the housing allowance and the self-employment tax point. The written designation the church keeps is in pastor housing allowance records.
- Employee business expenses (page 24). Accountable and nonaccountable plans and mileage. See reimbursing church expenses.
- Unrelated business income (pages 19 to 20). The three-part test, the exceptions, and Form 990-T at $1,000 or more of gross income from an unrelated business. See what a church does and doesn't file.
- Recordkeeping (pages 25 to 26). The records churches keep and the four-year guidelines. See which church financial records to keep.
- Filing requirements (pages 27 to 28). A table of returns: Forms W-2, W-3, W-2G, 941, 990-T, 1099, 8282 and others.
- Contribution substantiation (pages 29 to 30). The $250 acknowledgment and the $75 quid pro quo disclosure. See year-end contribution statements.
| Pub. 1828 topic | What it means for the books | Read next |
|---|---|---|
| Employment tax and ministers | Payroll set up for staff and for ministers, Forms 941 and W-2 | Church payroll basics |
| Parsonage or housing allowances | A written designation before payment, its own pay item | Housing allowance records |
| Accountable reimbursement plans | Receipts, purpose and timing for every reimbursement | Reimbursing church expenses |
| Unrelated business income and filing requirements | Separate accounts for possible unrelated income; a calendar of returns | What a church files |
| Recordkeeping and retention | Ledgers, minutes, payroll and property records kept for set periods | Records retention |
| Contribution substantiation and quid pro quo | Statements, disclosures and event records | Contribution statements |
The parts that belong to leadership and its advisers
Several sections matter to the church but are not bookkeeping decisions. Read them once so you recognize the issue, then hand it to leadership and the church's CPA or attorney.
- Tax-exempt status (pages 2 to 4). Churches that meet the section 501(c)(3) requirements are automatically considered exempt, though many seek recognition anyway.
- Inurement and private benefit (page 5). A church's income and assets may not benefit insiders. Benevolence payments to staff are the common bookkeeping touchpoint, covered in benevolence fund records.
- Lobbying and political campaign activity (pages 6 to 18). Legal questions for leadership and the church's attorney. Check irs.gov for developments since 2015 before relying on this section.
- Church tax inquiries and examinations (pages 31 to 32). Special limits on IRS church audits. The publication notes they do not cover routine requests about filing returns or payroll withholding compliance.
Where it is out of date or silent
None of this makes the publication wrong in its general explanations. It means a figure printed in a 2015 guide is a prompt to look something up, not an answer. Older church policies and training binders may also cite an earlier edition with different page numbers. A few gaps come up again and again in church books.
- Form 1099 threshold. Publication 1828 describes payments to nonemployees on Form 1099-MISC at $600 or more. The current instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC use Form 1099-NEC for nonemployee compensation, with a $2,000 threshold for payments made in 2026. Guest speakers are the usual church example, covered in guest speakers and love offerings.
- Fundraising token amounts. The publication explains the quid pro quo rules but not the yearly dollar amounts for insubstantial benefits. The 2026 amounts come from Revenue Procedure 2025-32, applied in fundraiser gift or purchase.
- Noncash gifts. It lists Form 8282 but says little about the donor's Form 8283 or vehicle donations on Form 1098-C. See noncash gifts to a church.
- Accounting basis. It says there is no specific format for records, and it does not discuss cash or accrual books. See cash or accrual for church books.
- Love offerings and honoraria. The publication does not address them by name.
Using it well
A few habits keep Publication 1828 useful without letting its age cause errors. They apply whoever keeps the books, a volunteer treasurer or an outside bookkeeper. Payroll kept to match the employment tax and minister rules is part of church payroll support.
- Download the PDF from irs.gov each year and check the revision date on the cover before quoting it.
- When it names a form or a dollar amount, open that form's current instructions and use the current year's figure.
- Keep a copy in the church's permanent file with the EIN letter and any IRS exemption or group ruling letter.
- Use Publication 1771, revised in 2023, for contribution statement wording; it goes further than the two pages in Publication 1828.
- Send questions about exempt status, political activity, minister status and housing allowance amounts to the church's CPA or attorney.
