It is one of the churches for the Kvenvær og Sandstad parish which is part of the Orkdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros.

According to parish priest Rosing's report to the diocesan leaders, the church was almost completely restored in 1703, when most of the wood including the roof, north wall, and floor were all rotting due to the exposed sea air.

The church established a couple of smaller auxiliary cemeteries on the nearby islands of Rørøya and Gangstøa.

The new church was completed and consecrated on 14 July 1763 by the parish priest Ludvig Frederich Broch, who was said to have been disappointed because the bishop did not show up on this occasion.

The new church was consecrated on 9 December 1909 and it replaced the Old Kvenvær Church which had been located on the island of Hakkebuøya about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the southwest of the village of Kvenvær on the main island of Hitra.