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Original poster

Tax/NI, contract - self employed babysitter?

32 replies

drspouse · 22/06/2016 12:12

We have just arranged for our usual babysitter, that our DS loves, to pick him up once a week from school, bring him home, give him tea etc when he starts in September.

We only employ her irregularly at the moment and she has other jobs - she has another school run job (mornings) and some cleaning jobs as well. I doubt her hours add up to full time in any week, given she doesn't work many hours on the other school run job, and she doesn't do cleaning all day every day. As it's irregular we currently pay her cash but I think we will ask about monthly cheque/bank transfer for the school run job.

Do we need to do anything about her tax and NI, given that she has other job(s)? Or is that all up to her?

I've looked up the criteria for self-employment and she meets some of them (she has various clients, she could in an emergency get someone else to pick him up - though if she let us know she had to do that we'd probably just do it ourselves; but she can't decide to pick him up at a different time. If she decided to take him for a walk/to the park instead of straight home that would be fine and we wouldn't ask her to notify us in advance, her decision, but she has to start/finish her work at school/our house).

And if you have this kind of arrangement, do you have a contract?

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PlatoTheGreat · 22/06/2016 15:44

I would have thought this was gone on a self employed basis. In effect, she invoices you and you are paying her.
The best round be to check with her tbh.

Balletgirlmum · 22/06/2016 15:39

I would say she fulfils most of the criteria for self employment. Most of her work sounds ad hoc, she is free to dictate terms etc yes they are regular hours but it's just once a week.

However if hmrc do deem it to be employment as long as she has no other employed (rather than self employed) jobs, then unless you are paying her a fortune she will be earning under the Lower Earnings Level.

Get her to fill in a New Starter Checklist ftom the gov.uk website & tick box A then just keep it on file. As you only employ one person under the LEL you won't have to register for PAYE.

She will need to register for self assessment for her other stuff

Original poster
drspouse · 22/06/2016 15:30

So we'd definitely be paying her less than £160 meaning it should be a simpler admin arrangement according to this

www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/tax/9166942/Paying-tax-for-your-nanny-QandA.html

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Original poster
drspouse · 22/06/2016 15:12

So we need to do the Nanny Tax thing? If we do, we're happy to do so. The requirements say you have to meet MOST not all of the criteria though, to be self-employed - we meet more than half of them.

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Lonecatwithkitten · 22/06/2016 15:02

I would consider this employment as you dictate her hours and she can only substitute in an emergency.

Original poster
drspouse · 22/06/2016 14:12

Anybody?

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Original poster
drspouse · 22/06/2016 12:17

Oh and in general she can decide which jobs to take (i.e. she could decide to switch to all cleaning, or all babysitting, or not to work for one family any more, or that a job was too far to travel after she'd started it).

But we pay her by the hour and if we were late we'd have to pay her extra, though if we said "can you bring him home, give him tea, and hear his reading" but they went to the park and were late back just because that's what she decided to do, I suspect I'd be asking her to finish giving him his tea even if we were already home.

And we'll provide his tea/any equipment but I'd expect her to pay for her bus fare if she decides to get the bus instead of walking.

(referring to the "can she decide which jobs to take" and "does she have to do fixed hours or a fixed job" criteria).

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