All ministers of religion who are employed, even if not under a contract of service or occupying an office, are treated as employees for National Insurance purposes1. However, as outlined below, the practical treatment will vary depending on the type of contractual engagement.
Where payroll deductions are considered due, this may lead to practical issues in collecting PAYE tax or NIC from an identifiable 'employer. See E4.1144, and E4.11107C for a summary of the alternative 'direction collection' or direct payment' PAYE and NIC arrangements which may be possible.
Ministers' contracts of service
'Contract of service' is as defined for the purposes of SSCBA 19922. A missionary priest whose only means of support was voluntary contributions from his parishioners was held to be self-employed (ie under a contract for services, on general principles in the European court case of Van Roosmalen v Bestuur van der Bedrijfsvereniging voor de Gezondheit Geestelijke en Maatschappelijke Belangen: 300/843. Similarly, as ministers of the Roman Catholic Church and the Elim Pentecostal Church have no right to a
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Web page updated on 17 Mar 2025 17:04