User Support Forum

I have a member that made out a check directly to our Pastor which he signed and turned in so that SHE (the member) would get credit for her contribution made to him. Would this be his contribution or the member's contribution since it was made out to him?

jfoster182 wrote:I have a member that made out a check directly to our Pastor which he signed and turned in so that SHE (the member) would get credit for her contribution made to him. Would this be his contribution or the member's contribution since it was made out to him?

FWIW ... I seem to remember something about an IRS rule that a contribution made directly to a person is NOT deductable, but one made to the church can be.

If the pastor has turned the check over to be used in the general fund, I would consider it to be the originator's contribution, not the pastor's. However, if the pastor is going to be receiving a check from the church at the same amount I'm not sure how to handle that, as it is still going to direct support of a person.

FWIW ... whenever there was such a 'gift' made to the pastor, but was made out to the church, we considered it a non-deductable pass-thru, as the gift was made directly to a person, and not the charitable organization.

I'm afraid that if the IRS took a look at this it would be considered a gift to the pastor, not the church. Because he signed it over, the contribution could be credited to the pastor, but not the member. As you are probably aware, funds contributed to the church should be made out to the church if the member expects to receive giving credit.