Employing someone to work in your home

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Overview

You鈥檙e usually considered the employer of a nanny, housekeeper, gardener or anyone else who works in your home if both:

  • you hire them
  • they鈥檙e not self-employed or paid through an agency

This means you have certain responsibilities, like meeting the employee鈥檚 rights and deducting the right tax.

Carers and personal assistants

You鈥檙e classed as an employer if you pay a carer or personal assistant directly, even if you get money from your local council (鈥�direct payments鈥�) or the NHS to pay for them.

Ask your local council about organisations that can help with your employer responsibilities, such as recruiting and paying your carer.

Employees鈥� rights

Anyone you employ must:

If they meet the eligibility requirements, they鈥檙e also entitled to things like:

Tax and employing people at home

You must:

If you employ a nanny and you鈥檙e eligible for Tax-Free Childcare, you can use your childcare account to pay their Income Tax and National Insurance contributions.

You cannot ask your employee to become self-employed.

Your employee鈥檚 car

There are also rules around: