Please note that the P60 certificate is a standard document which uses text prescribed by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The use of earnings, employee, employment and employer are for HMRC purposes.
More information about your P11D Statement of Benefits for the tax year 2022 / 23 is available from the Payroll Services team in this document.
In terms of employment law, holders of parochial appointments are not normally ‘employed’. You do not have a contract of employment, nor do you have an employer.
For tax purposes, you are an ‘office holder’. This means, you are taxed through the PAYE system in the same way as an employed person. For national insurance and state benefit purposes, you are treated as an ‘employed earner’. The Church Commissioners fill the role of employer in terms of tax and national insurance.
Clergy appointed to an Ecclesiastical Office after 31 January 2011 hold their Office under Common Tenure. For more information on Common Tenure please see the Clergy HR pages.
Stipends are paid into your bank account, in arrears, on the last working day of the month. If you are licensed on 28 June 2018, you will receive 3 days of stipend on Friday 29 June 2018. If you are licensed on 3 July 2018 you will receive 29 days of stipend on Tuesday 31 July 2018.
You will receive an online pay statement each month before pay day to breakdown how your payment has been calculated. Statements can be viewed online via our secure MyView site.
Although there are national guidelines to ensure all stipends are broadly comparable, each diocese sets it's own stipend levels. The body responsible for funding your post (usually your local diocesan board of finance) will advise us how much to pay you. The annual stipend you will receive will be set out on your statement of particulars, which will be issued to you by your funding body. There is a national minimum stipend for clergy who are full time.
Please bear in mind that the cash stipend is part of a wider ‘remuneration package’, which normally also includes provided housing (with council tax, water charges, maintenance, external decoration and buildings insurance all provided) and pension contributions paid on your behalf.
Further information about clergy terms of service please see the Clergy HR pages.
When you join our payroll you will normally be enrolled into the Church of England Pension Scheme. The scheme is a non-contributory scheme which means your funding body pays contributions on your behalf. The Pensions Board will contact you with details about the Scheme.
If you wish to make Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) towards your pension, please contact the Pensions Board for further details.
You can view and update your bank details on the People System. If you are unable to access the People System, please contact us by email at [email protected]. Alternatively, you can send us a signed letter which contains your new details.
If you need to update your bank details for the payment at the end of this month, you need to give us at least two weeks' notice. Please contact us if you need to update them urgently.
If your assignment is incorrect, then it will need to be corrected by one of your colleagues in your Diocesan Office. They will need to know if your assignment is incorrect (eg the benefice is incorrect) or if the title is wrong (for example, a number of clergy were given the title of Priest-in-Charge instead of, say, Vicar or Rector).
Your funding body should advise us if you are moving house and/or appointment. We need confirmation from them before we can update your details as we need them to confirm if you are eligible for the HLC scheme. Please contact your funding body to make sure they are aware of the change and have all the necessary details from you.
If you are remaining in the HLC scheme we will continue to use your previous HLC estimate, unless we are advised otherwise. If you expect your costs to be significantly different then please contact us to amend your estimate. If you joining the HLC scheme then we will need an initial estimate of your HLC costs, for more information see the HLC section. If you are leaving the HLC scheme please note that we will not be able to make any further adjustments to your allowance, any adjustments would need to be made via your tax return.
Each diocese administers a scheme for removal and resettlement grants, which are payable each time you take up a new appointment. Please contact your diocesan office for further details.
If you are leaving our payroll then please make sure you pass on your forwarding address so we can send your final pay statement and P45 to the correct address. We may also need to send you a P11D after the end of the tax year if you received any HLC allowance or other benefit in that year.
Any change to your email address needs to be made by contacting the People System Support Team on [email protected].
They will need the following information:
• Full name
• Person Unique Number (PUN)
• National Insurance number
• The old email address you currently use, and the new email address
• Date of birth
It is important that we have your up-to-date email address. We send out important information via email, including the invitation to complete the annual HLC return. You can check the email address we hold for you is correct via your People System account.
Your email address is linked to your People System account and will be used to send confirmation emails and the two-factor authentication emails for login (the default method).
Discuss your formal resignation with your archdeacon/bishop
Contact your funding body to make sure they have all the information they need, including your new address details. They will let us know when to stop paying you
If you wish to take up your pension you will need to apply for it, so please contact the Church of England Pensions Board at least 3 months in advance.
Please note your pension will be paid on a separate payroll
We will need to send you a P11D after the end of the tax year, if you received any HLC allowance or other benefit, so please make sure we have up to date address details for you
Contact your funding body and let them have your up-to-date details and ask them to forward them on to us.
If you need to update your bank details, please do so via the People System. Please see the FAQ about how to do this (above)
We will need a letter from you with a copy of your old and new signatures for our records
Please send us a copy of the deed poll where applicable.
Please also contact the Pensions Board to check what information they require. If you have had a change in circumstances, you may wish to complete a new nomination form.
The Church Commissioners have looked at the Cycle to Work scheme for clergy but it isn't something that we can offer on the central payroll.
The requirement for the Cycle to Work Scheme, and therefore the tax exemption on which the scheme is based, is the fact that the bicycle is used for journeys between home and the place of work. The vast majority of clergy on our payroll are provided with a house as a base to perform their duties.
This means that clergy on our payroll are accepted to be working from home so when travelling, you are travelling on work rather than to work. It's important to remember that by working from home you can benefit from other tax exemptions (such as the HLC allowance) that aren't available to those who commute to a place of work.
The other issue is that the Cycle to Work Scheme operates as an agreement whereby the employer buys the bike and leases the bike to the employee, but the Commissioners aren't your employer.
It's for these reasons that the Commissioners have concluded that we don't meet the criteria to be able to offer the scheme to clergy on the central payroll. However, it's important to remember that you can claim tax relief on work related costs, such as mileage expense, via the Ministers of Religion Tax Return.
Another option would be for you to discuss the matter with your PCC to see if the PCC would purchase you a bike to use for parochial duties. In this circumstance it wouldn't be possible to claim mileage for any work related travel as the bike would be provided to you and isn't your own equipment.
The Churches Mutual Credit Union (CMCU) is now offering car loans so the Commissioners' scheme has been closed.
Many providers offer loans, details of which can be found online. We are unable to offer investment advice or recommend a particular provider or product.
