Many churches send groups of adults or minors on short-term missions trips inside and outside of the United States. Before sponsoring such a trip, church leaders should address a number of important legal and tax issues:

1. Assumption of Risk Forms

There are many risks involved in a short-term missions trip, including illness, accident, lack of competent medical care, and terrorism. Adults can “assume” these risks by signing a properly drafted assumption of risk form in which the risks are clearly described and assumed. Minors are not able to sign contractual agreements, and so they cannot sign such a form (and their parents cannot sign one for them).

2. Parental Consent and Medical Authorization Forms

While parents cannot assume risks on behalf of their children, they can sign a form consenting to the participation of their child on the trip and authorizing a designated person to make emergency medical decisions if the parent or guardian cannot be reached. An attorney should draft these forms to ensure that they are legally enforceable.

3. Negligent Selection and Supervision

If minors are injured during a church-sponsored missions trip, they or their parents may sue the church. In most cases, liability will be based on either negligent selection of adult leaders, or negligent supervision of the trip itself. Churches must perform background checks on trip leaders, and trip leaders need to make reasonable efforts to supervise children at all times.

4. Charitable Contributions

Payments made by adult participants to cover the cost of their travel expenses are deductible as charitable contributions. However, the tax code stipulates that this is only the case when “there is no significant element of personal pleasure, recreation, or vacation in such travel.”

It is common for minors to go on church-sponsored short-term missions trips. If parents pay for their child’s travel expenses, can they claim a charitable contribution deduction? That depends on whether the parent is supporting the child directly or through the church.

If the parents pay the church an amount sufficient to cover the travel expenses of their child on a church-approved missions trip, then it is likely that this payment will be tax-deductible. However, if parents pay their child’s travel expenses directly, or send funds to their child to cover travel expenses, the deduction is in doubt.

Discuss

1. How can we put these principles to work in our missions program?

2. What is our current policy for background checks on adult workers? Is it strong enough?

3. Other than avoiding a lawsuit, why is it important to put care into these issues?

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