SENIOR ACCOUNTANT (FULL-TIME)

Union Church Hong Kong is a friendly, English-speaking, interdenominational church with a vision to build a home in Christ to seek, love, and serve God and our neighbours. We reflect on our calling as a missional church from over 180 years ago while reaching out today to a city in need of hope through faith in Jesus. Hong Kong and Union Church are in an exciting season, with abundant possibilities for new ministries, expanding services to Hong Kong and the world, and opportunities for all to pursue God-inspired passions for His Kingdom.

As the church has grown in both size and financial complexity, we are seeking a full-time Senior Accountant to professionalize and strengthen the church's finance and accounting function, and to become the trusted go-to person on church ministries' accounting and financial matters for the Senior Pastor and the church lay leadership.

The church, as a single corporation, operates two distinct streams with separately maintained accounting books: the tax-exempt church ministries and a taxable trade (church apartments). This role takes primary ownership of the church ministries' finances, while coordinating closely on accounting and finance transactions relating to the church apartments.

The church has implemented an online giving and payment system and has automated key workflows for revenue collection and expense approval. A central objective of this role is to embed systematic, well-controlled processes in place of manual ones — raising the standard of financial integrity, efficiency, and reporting across the department.

This position operates within a dual-reporting framework:

• Senior Pastor (Primary/Administrative Line): Responsible for day-to-day leadership, office matters, leave approvals, and general employment matters.

• Honorary Treasurer (Functional/Dotted Line): Responsible for technical financial matters, accounting policies, monthly financial reporting, and audit compliance.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1.      Financial Operations & Internal Controls

• Internal Controls: Enforce ground-level financial safeguards, including strict segregation of duties within the finance team and dual-authorization banking protocols for all electronic transfers.

• Process & Systems Improvement: Continuously strengthen and automate financial workflows — including the online giving/payment system, revenue collection, and expense approval — moving the department from manual to systematic, well-controlled processes.

• Accounts Payable & Disbursements: Process and verify all church expenditures by matching invoices and receipts against authorized approval records, ensuring all vendor payments are accurate and executed in a timely manner.

• Cash & Petty Cash Control: Oversee the church's petty cash fund, ensuring all minor disbursements are handled by the Assistant, backed strictly by itemized receipts, and conduct regular, independent physical cash counts.

• Cash Flow Optimization: Monitor and forecast cash flow to ensure optimal liquidity for daily operational commitments.

2.      Donation Management, Fund Accounting & Tax Compliance

• Donation & Offering Management: Supervise the weekly counting, recording, and reconciliation of tithes and offerings, manage online giving, and oversee special offerings.

• Designated Giving: Track and manage designated giving to guarantee donor-specified allocations are legally, transparently, and accurately handled.

• Tax & Charity Compliance: Manage and maintain the church's Section 88 tax-exempt status, ensuring full compliance with all local charity regulations and Inland Revenue Department requirements, with a clear understanding of the boundary between the tax-exempt ministries and the taxable apartments trade.

3.      Financial Reporting, Audit, Payroll & Budgeting

• Financial Reporting & Statutory Accounts: Ensure the accuracy of all book data entry, generate monthly management reports, and prepare the church ministries' annual financial statements in accordance with the Hong Kong Financial Reporting Standards (HKFRS).

• Annual Audit: Lead and manage the annual audit process, prepare all supporting schedules and working papers, and act as the primary liaison for the external auditor, ensuring timely and clean completion of the audited financial statements.

• Payroll & Employee Tax Compliance: Manage payroll accounting, statutory MPF reporting, annual Employer's Returns (IR56B), and required tax reporting for employee cessations and departures (IR56F/IR56G).

• Budgeting & Stewardship: Drive the annual budget preparation process and facilitate financial tracking, reporting, and administrative operations for the church's annual stewardship campaigns.

• Asset Tracking: Maintain the Fixed Asset Register, including depreciation and capital equipment tracking.

4.      Team Leadership & Stakeholder Collaboration

• Team Leadership: Lead, supervise, mentor, and develop the finance team, setting priorities and ensuring quality and timeliness of all financial work.

• Management Reporting: Provide a monthly financial update to the church staff management team headed by the Senior Pastor, presenting results clearly and flagging matters requiring attention.

• Trusted Adviser: Serve as the go-to person on church ministries' accounting and financial matters whom the Senior Pastor and church lay leadership — principally the Honorary Treasurer — can rely on for accurate, timely, and well-considered financial information and advice.

• Collaboration & Support: Coordinate with the church apartments function on integrated and inter-stream financial transactions and support the Honorary Treasurer with financial presentations for the Annual General Meeting (AGM).

QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS

• Certified Public Accountant (CPA) qualification is mandatory.

• A minimum of five (5) years' proven experience as the head, or deputy head, of a finance/accounting team, with direct responsibility for supervising a small team.

• Demonstrated technical expertise in managing the full annual audit cycle and preparing financial statements in accordance with HKFRS.

• Experience in implementing systematic, automated financial processes in place of manual processes is highly desirable.

• Familiarity with Hong Kong tax laws, particularly Section 88 tax-exempt charitable organizations, and an appreciation of the distinction between exempt and taxable activities.

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.

• A vibrant, mature Christian faith with a heart for ministry and stewardship.

• A strong team player and people leader with a collaborative mindset.

• A sharp eye for detail and strong organizational skills.

• High proficiency in accounting software and Microsoft Excel.

HOW to APPLY:

Please apply, with a covering letter and your CV, to ••••@unionchurchhk.org with "Full-Time Senior Accountant" as the subject. We offer a competitive package to the right candidate.