President Trump signs Clergy Act, reopening a window for ministers to rejoin Social Security
President Donald Trump signed the Clergy Act (H.R. 227) on Oct. 20. Clergy who opted out of Social Security early in their ministry will get a two-year window, starting with the 2029 tax year, to rejoin.
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President Donald Trump signed the Clergy Act (H.R. 227) into law on Tuesday, Oct. 20, the White House announced. The Senate passed the bill by unanimous consent on Sept. 30, and the House of Representatives had approved it 350–5 in April.
Under existing law, a minister may choose early in his or her ministry to exempt ministry earnings from Social Security self-employment tax. That choice has been permanent, and those who make it earn no Social Security or Medicare benefits on that income. Under the enacted text, ordained, commissioned or licensed ministers, members of religious orders and Christian Science practitioners whose exemption is in effect may revoke it. They must apply to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by the filing deadline, including extensions, for their second tax year beginning after Dec. 31, 2028. Coverage then starts with either their 2029 or 2030 tax year. Rejoining is permanent. Within 90 days, the IRS, working with the Social Security Administration, must give Congress a plan for informing eligible clergy.
Sen. Katie Britt, an Alabama Republican who led the bill in the Senate with Sen. Maggie Hassan, a New Hampshire Democrat, said many ministers "made this decision at the very start of their ministry without fully understanding what it would mean down the road." Rep. Vince Fong, a California Republican, led it in the House. According to Britt's office, those who opt back in will generally still need 40 Social Security credits, about 10 years of covered work, to qualify for retirement benefits. Congress opened similar windows in 1977, 1986 and 1999.
GuideStone Financial Resources, the Southern Baptist Convention's benefits board, said it is preparing materials to help ministers decide whether rejoining suits them. GuideStone President Hance Dilbeck said the law gives ministers a chance "to revisit a decision that was made early in their ministry and, in many cases, with limited understanding of its long-term implications."
Sources
The White House: Congressional Bills H.R. 227, H.R. 837, H.R. 1721, H.R. 2388, H.R. 2481, H.R. 3620, H.R. 4307, H.R. 4467, H.R. 6380, and H.R. 7831 Signed into Law (Oct 20, 2026)
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2026/10/congressional-bills-h-r-227-h-r-837-h-r-1721-h-r-2388-h-r-2481-h-r-3620-h-r-4307-h-r-4467-h-r-6380-and-h-r-7831-signed-into-law/Archived copyAlabama Political Reporter: Britt celebrates President Trump's signing of the Clergy Act (Oct 21, 2026)
https://www.alreporter.com/2026/10/21/britt-celebrates-president-trumps-signing-of-the-clergy-act/The Christian Index: Clergy Act signed into law (Oct 21, 2026)
https://christianindex.org/stories/clergy-act-signed-into-law,108716GovInfo: H.R. 227 enrolled bill text (Oct 9, 2026)
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-119hr227enr/pdf/BILLS-119hr227enr.pdfArchived copy
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Corrections and updates
- Update, October 21, 2026: Brief prepared from the White House (Oct. 20, 2026), Alabama Political Reporter (Staff; published Oct. 21, 2026, 8:09 a.m. CDT), The Christian Index (Roy Hayhurst, GuideStone; posted Oct. 21, 2026, 7:22 a.m.), and GovInfo's enrolled text of H.R. 227 (details page dates the enrolled bill Oct. 9, 2026). Shares threadId us-clergy-act-2026 and follows senate-passes-clergy-act-social-security-opt-in-sep2026, the thread id already on the Oct. 2 brief. The sheet date is Oct. 20, so sourcePublishedAt is 2026-10-20. The brief is in the Oct. 21 edition, so publishedAt and editionDate are 2026-10-21. Status is VERIFIED: the signing is in the White House record, and the window's terms are in the enrolled bill. Tags are us and church-life. Tradition is omitted. No persecution tag. The Christian Index piece is bylined to GuideStone's communications staff, so it is not independent of GuideStone. The 40-credits point is attributed to Britt's office. An Oct. 21 Wayback snapshot is linked for the White House notice. An Oct. 9 snapshot is linked for the GovInfo PDF. No prior snapshot was found for Alabama Political Reporter or The Christian Index. No photo.