Do I have to pay nanny taxes if my nanny works part time?

In the United States, part time makes no difference on its own. What matters is how much you pay one household employee in cash wages in a calendar year: once that reaches the IRS threshold, Social Security and Medicare taxes apply to all of it, and a separate quarterly threshold brings in federal unemployment tax. Both figures change, so check IRS Publication 926 for the current year, along with your state’s rules. In the United Kingdom it depends on what the nanny earns against HMRC’s thresholds; once earnings reach the lower one, you register as an employer and run payroll, however few hours they work.

Can my nanny be self-employed or an independent contractor?

Almost never. In the US, the IRS test is control: if you decide not only what work is done but how it is done, the nanny is your household employee, whether they work full time or a few afternoons a week. Calling them a contractor or paying them on a 1099 does not change that. A nanny supplied by an agency that controls the work can be the agency’s employee instead. In the UK, HMRC treats nannies as employees in almost every case, so the family is the employer and is responsible for PAYE, National Insurance, payslips, holiday pay and pension duties.

What background checks can I run on a nanny?

Start with what anyone can do: call previous families by phone, check that identity documents match the name on the CV, and see an original first aid certificate. In the US, if you use a screening company, the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires a stand-alone written disclosure and the candidate’s written permission first; you can also search the National Sex Offender Public Website yourself, and in California TrustLine checks in-home childcare providers. In the UK, an enhanced DBS check goes through a registered body rather than directly from a parent, so ask to see the nanny’s certificate and, if they use the Update Service, check its status online with their permission.

Is it legal to use a nanny cam?

It depends on where you live and what you record, so take the open route: tell the nanny in writing that there are cameras, where they are and whether they record sound. In the US, video in the shared rooms of your own home is generally allowed, but audio recording falls under wiretap laws, and some states require everyone’s consent. Nobody should be filmed in a bathroom or in the room where a live-in nanny sleeps. In the UK, recording someone you employ can bring data protection duties. A camera the nanny knows about also avoids the damage a discovered hidden one does to trust.

Should I pay for a trial day?

Yes. A trial day is work, so pay for it at the rate you are offering and agree the hours in advance. In both countries minimum wage rules apply to time spent working, and unpaid ‘trial shifts’ put off exactly the experienced nannies you want. Be at home for the whole day, let the nanny take the lead with the children for most of it, and watch how the children respond rather than how polished the nanny is with you. Afterwards, ask what they noticed and what they would need from you; the answer shows how they will communicate.

What is the difference between a nanny and an au pair?

A nanny is a childcare employee on terms you agree, usually living out, and you run payroll for them. An au pair is a young person from abroad who lives with your family as part of a cultural exchange and helps with childcare. In the US, au pairs come only through State Department–designated sponsors on a J-1 visa, with limits on hours and a set weekly stipend, and the sponsor runs the program. In the UK there is no au pair visa, and someone called an au pair who is really doing a full-time childcare job can be a worker owed the National Minimum Wage.

How to Hire a Nanny: Interviews, Background Checks and Nanny Taxes

Most parents work out how to hire a nanny under pressure: parental leave ends, a nursery place falls through, or a new shift makes the school run impossible. Within weeks you are choosing someone to care for your children and becoming an employer at the same time. The first part feels harder; the second is the one families most often get wrong.

This guide covers both: first what applies everywhere, from choosing the arrangement to a paid trial day, then the United States and the United Kingdom separately, because the paperwork differs. There are no pay figures or tax thresholds here; they change every year, so the official sources are named instead.

Nanny, babysitter, nanny share or au pair?

The words are used loosely, but they are different arrangements with different rules. Decide which one you need before you advertise.

Arrangement	What it is	Who employs	Key rule
Nanny	Regular care in your home on set days, live-in or live-out	You, the family	Payroll and employer taxes in both countries
Babysitter	Occasional hours, often evenings	You	Tax rules turn on what you pay; US sitters under 18 are generally exempt from Social Security and Medicare
Nanny share	One nanny caring for two families’ children, often in one home	Usually both families, each for its share of the pay	Put in writing who pays what, whose home, and what happens if one family leaves
Au pair	A young person from abroad living with you on a cultural exchange	US: you host via a sponsor. UK: you, if in reality it is a job	US: J-1 visa through a State Department–designated sponsor, with capped hours. UK: there is no au pair visa

If you need care on fixed days every week, you need a nanny, whatever the post is called.

How to hire a nanny: define the job first

Write the job down before you post it. The same notes become the advert, the interview checklist and the contract.

Days and hours, and whether they are guaranteed when you don’t need them.
Number and ages of the children, and any additional needs.
Live-in or live-out: it changes the tax, overtime and privacy questions.
Duties: childcare only, or also the children’s meals, laundry and tidying. General housework is a separate job.
Driving: school runs, whose car, whose insurance.
Start date and how long you expect it to last.

For wording, see how to write a job post: hours, area and start date go in the first lines.

Keep the public post general: your city and area, the number of children and their age range, and the hours. Don’t include your home address, the children’s names, their school or photos of them. Share those details only with the person you choose, in a message or at the interview.

Interviews: what to ask and what to listen for

Start with a short call, then meet in person. Let the children join for part of it; ten minutes on the floor with a toddler tells you more than half an hour of questions.

Question	What you’re listening for
“Tell me about your last family: ages, hours, why it ended.”	Dates you can check with references, and respect for the previous family.
“Walk me through a day with a child of this age.”	Real routines: naps, meals, outdoor time, limits on screens.
“What do you do when a child hits or has a meltdown?”	A calm approach that fits yours. No physical punishment, ever.
“What would you do if my child choked or had an allergic reaction?”	Emergency services first, then you, and when they last trained in first aid.
“How would you keep us updated during the day?”	A clear habit, and sensible rules on their own phone.
“Can I call two families you’ve worked for?”	A quick yes, with names and numbers.

Before you offer, agree the house rules: discipline, screen time, food, outings and visitors. Settling them now saves a lot of friction later.

References, checks and a paid trial day

Checks protect your children and spare a good nanny later doubt. Say up front that you do them for everyone.

Call references by phone. Ask at least two families how long, what ages, why it ended and whether they would hire again. Check the dates match the CV; a letter alone is easy to fake.
See originals: identity documents and a current paediatric first aid certificate, or agree a course before the start.
Run the background check for your country, covered below.
Pay for a trial day with a parent at home, and watch how the children respond.
Leave an emergency sheet: your numbers, a trusted neighbour, your doctor, allergies and medicines, the first aid kit, your address for an emergency call, and who may collect the children.
Be open about cameras: tell the nanny in writing where they are and whether they record sound. Hidden recording can be unlawful, depending on where you live and what is recorded.

Looking for a nanny near you?

Posting on Hirovo is free. Your post appears in the job listings for your city and area, where people nearby who do childcare work can apply or message you. You choose whom to meet; the checks stay with you.

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Hiring a nanny in the United States: nanny taxes and paperwork

The IRS test is control. If you decide not only what the work is but how it is done, the nanny is your household employee, full time or part time. Calling them a contractor or issuing a 1099 doesn’t change that. Your duties, often called the ‘nanny tax’:

Social Security and Medicare: once cash wages to one household employee reach the IRS annual threshold, withhold their share and pay a matching employer share (see IRS Publication 926).
Federal unemployment tax, from a separate quarterly threshold.
An EIN, Schedule H with your Form 1040, and a W-2 for the nanny, copied to the Social Security Administration.
Form I-9 when they start, to verify identity and work authorization. You keep it on file.
State duties: unemployment insurance, possibly state income tax, and in some states workers’ compensation or disability insurance.

Income tax withholding is optional unless the nanny asks and you agree. Wages paid to your spouse, your child under 21, or a sitter under 18 whose main occupation isn’t household work are generally exempt from Social Security and Medicare. The guide on hiring a house cleaner covers these household-employer rules in more detail.

Overtime, state rules and background checks

Domestic workers are covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act. A live-out nanny is generally owed overtime at time and a half for hours over 40 in a workweek; live-in nannies are exempt from federal overtime, though some states require it. New York, California and Massachusetts, among others, also have domestic workers’ bills of rights.

If a screening company runs the check, the Fair Credit Reporting Act applies: a stand-alone written disclosure and the candidate’s written permission first, and a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report before you turn someone down because of it. Anyone can search the National Sex Offender Public Website; in California, TrustLine checks in-home childcare providers.

Hiring a nanny in the United Kingdom: PAYE, pensions and Ofsted

HMRC treats a nanny who works in your home as your employee in almost every case, so you are the employer:

Register with HMRC and run PAYE once earnings reach the lower threshold: deduct income tax and employee National Insurance, pay employer National Insurance, and report pay on or before each payday. Many families use a nanny payroll service.
Give an itemised payslip each payday and a written statement of terms on or before the first day.
Check their right to work before they start.
Assess them for a workplace pension from day one, enrol them if eligible (aged at least 22 and under State Pension age, earning above the trigger), and complete a declaration of compliance with The Pensions Regulator.
Pay at least the National Minimum Wage for every hour worked and give 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday a year, pro rata for part-time hours. Agree pay as a gross figure.

Parents commonly ask for an enhanced DBS check. It goes through a registered body, not directly from you, so ask to see the certificate and, if the nanny uses the DBS Update Service, check its status online with their permission.

In England, a nanny can join the voluntary part of Ofsted’s Childcare Register. It requires, among other things, an enhanced DBS check and paediatric first aid, and lets parents pay through schemes such as Tax-Free Childcare. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements.

What goes in the nanny contract

Written terms are required in the UK and strongly advisable in the US. Cover:

Hours, guaranteed hours and how extra hours are paid.
Duties, including what is not part of the job.
Gross pay, payday and payment method.
Paid time off, public holidays and sick days.
What happens when you travel: normal pay or agreed unpaid time.
Driving and expenses, a trial period, notice on both sides, and a rule on photos of the children online.

What decides what you pay

No fair figure can be printed here. The rate moves with the hours, the children’s number and ages, live-in or live-out, sole care or a share, qualifications and extra duties. Employer costs come on top: payroll taxes in the US; employer National Insurance, pensions and holiday pay in the UK. The floor is the legal minimum wage; check the official rate when you offer.

Posting a nanny job on Hirovo

Posting a job on Hirovo is free. Choose the job, set the country, city and area, and describe the hours and the children’s age range. The post appears in the job listings for that place, under the United States or United Kingdom pages, where people nearby who do childcare work can apply or message you in the app. You decide whom to meet and hire.

Hirovo does not vet candidates or run background checks, and it is not an agency or the employer. The references, checks, contract, payroll and taxes in this guide stay with you, as does every decision about your children’s safety.

In short

Define the job, keep the public post free of personal details, interview with a list, call references and pay for a trial day with a parent at home. Then do the paperwork as part of hiring: nanny taxes, Schedule H, a W-2 and an I-9 in the US; PAYE, payslips, written terms, a pension and a DBS certificate you have seen in the UK.