anyone have any experience employing someone who isnt supposed to be working?

[stitch]

that is they dont have a work permit type thing?

ive been looking for someone to do household cleaning, well, actually just hoping that one will magically turn up, but thats splitting hairs.
a cousin has found someone who wants room and board, but i dont want her living with me. but basically shw will spend the day at my hooouse, eat here, and do anyhousework, gardening, cooking i ask her to. ill have to pay her travel expenses obviously.
anyone got any ideas if i should do this? apparently she is in the country legally. but on a visit visa. and how much should i pay her? an aupair would get about 60 a week. if im not giving her a place to stay, then would 125 be ok? or is that slave labour? or should i just steer clear of this and go back to wishful thinking?

[Twiglett]

you want a complete stranger hanging around your house all day every day ??

think you're mad

[uwila]

Think you should perhaps steer clear. If you get caught employing someone who is not eligible to work I think the penalties are pretty steep (though I don't know what they are off hand). Where is she from? Why isn't she eligible for work? And what would it take for her to become eligible for work?

[stitch]

i dont want someone hanging round my house. i want someone to clean it!
apparently she is here on a six month visit visa and has been here a month. although im beginning to wonder about that as you dont get visit visas that easily . she is from bangladesh.
ive been thinking about this, and i dont need somone to do that much work, im a sahm, with no intention of going back to work. what if i got her in one day a week? she could do all the cleaning like the toilets and stuff. do some cooking etc. eat and leave.
any idea if id get into trouble over that? or should i steer clear of this too? please advise.

[uwila]

6 months is possible. I know whe I visited the UK before I had clearance to reside here (I'm American) the passport said said entry for 6 months. That's just a normal tourist entry.

If you did hire her you would need to pay her cash and make sure there was never any record of a financial transaction. But, really for the sake of a cleaner, is this worth the risk and deceit? Why don't you just hire a cleaner for say £6/hour?

[monstersmummy]

i persaonlly wouldn't, i would hire someone u don't need to question!

[pfer]

steer clear. if she's not supposed to be working you'll be the one in trouble not her. anyway would you really want a complete stranger is your home all day?

[expatinscotland]

I agree, you'll be the one who gets in trouble. They'll just deport her and ban her from entry to the UK for x no. of years.

I'd steer clear. A visitor's visa is for just that - if you can't afford to come here to visit w/o working then you shouldn't be here.

[Blu]

How does your cousin know her? She might not be any more of a complte stranger than any other cleaner that you might employ! (although there will be a lack of references, presumably?)

As we discovered on another thread, people mostly employ cleaners cash in hand so they may just be working hard for a few extra pounds, they may be raking it in and on benefits!

If your cousin actaully knows her, I would interview her, just as you would any other person, and pay her cash in hand at the going rate for a certain number of hours.

One thought: I checked the insurance position when i had a nany. Anyone classes as a 'domestic servant' (!) which includes cleaner or nanny, is covered by your household insurance for damage, or if they have an accident. But I don't know what wuld happen if they were actually illegal.

[edgetop]

please think of all the people who are out of work ,its not fair.
you have said you are a sahm so why ?

[uwila]

I don't think the insurance is an issue, as a cleaner need not be an employee (unlike a nanny). I also don't necesarily think you are the one who will be in trouble as you are not offering to be her employer.

If you want and trust her to clean your home make it clear that you are contracting her for a service and not offering her a position as an employee. Then the responsibility to pay taxes is hers not yours.

[expatinscotland]

But uwila, she won't be paying taxes as she has no NI number .

[uwila]

I know expat. I'm demonstrating who is actually behaving as a criminal and hence who will be in trouble if caught. If I employ someone illegally it's my head that will go on a lovely IR platter. But if I pay someone to perform a service and they aren't suppose to be working, it's presumably his/her head. If I say paid someone on the street to cut a set of keys for me and he is then caught by the authorities for working illegally, I'm not responsible, he is.

So, if said cleaner is working illegally (as a contract worker) I expect said worker is the one who has to answer to the IR (or whatever the appropriate authority is).

[uwila]

So, this all has me wondering what other people pay their cleaners.... guess I should go start a thread rather than hijack

[stitch]

hmmm, lots to think about.
and all i want is a clean house.......

i have employed other peoples aupairs before now. and paid £5 an hour. since they only do four or five hours a week, it has never been enough to be taxed on. i just caant seem to find any aupairs who want cleaning jobs. or anyone else for that matter.

yes, i have also been thinking that i should steer clear of this situation, god knows what other people are involved in it.

[izzyrubi]

Message withdrawn

[Freckle]

My understanding is that it is a criminal offence to employ someone who has no right to work in this country. So not only would the employee risk prosecution and deportation if she were caught, but you also run the risk of prosecution.