Self employed 17 year old - tax/NI?

[WoozlesEverywhere]

My 17 yr old dd has been offered a job caring for an individual who gets benefits to pay for the care. The mum who offered my daughter the job has asked that she be self-employed so that she can submit my daughter‘s hours to claim against this benefit. The job is for about 28 hours a month, possibly more in the summer holidays. So she will earn less than the £1048/month threshold for NI. She is a full time student.
What does she need to do (if anything) to make sure she doesn’t fall foul of HMRC, national insurance etc. Does she need to declare anything/tell HMRC? If so, how? Thanks

There is a lot of advice about self employment on the HMRC website, so maybe take a look on there.

Your daughter will still need to register as self employed and do a tax return even though/if she doesn't earn enough to pay tax or national insurance.
I'm self employed and it's really easy to do, so don't worry about it.
The first step is for your daughter to register for an online tax account. The first tax return won't be due until April 2027 (for monies earned from 5/4/2026)

My online tax return for the tax year April 2025/2026 can be submitted anytime between now and 31 January 2027.

Thank you for your reassurance, i have a fear of these official processes, having always been PAYE. I’m glad it’s not too daunting. Should she register straight away or wait until it’s due next year? Is the self assessment form very complicated?

I would be concerned that this would possibly be inside IR35. Hmrc have really cracked down on this stuff because people are trying to circumvent employment costs by asking someone to do an effectively employed job but be responsible for their own tax and ni. I think the rules have been tightened up, so just bear that in mind.

Looking at the rules I suspect she’d be ok - she’s not setting up as a ltd company or anything? In which case she’s probably fine, but worth double checking. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/understanding-off-payroll-working-ir35

Definitely check if she is genuinely self employed. Seems similar to a nanny role who would be an employee.

If she is self employed she would need to register as self-employed when she starts work. Any tax and NI on money earned this tax year would be due in Jan 2028 so if she does go over the personal allowance make sure she saves this money. There is an option to pay NI class 2 if she earns less than a certain amount. If over then she would get NI credits but not need to pay until class 4 is due.

She can claim expenses e.g. mileage or the use £1000 trading allowance.

She should submit invoices as agreed. The form is straightforward as long as she has kept records. Spreadsheet would be fine.

She may want to research whether she needs any insurance cover. If she does need this then her hourly rate should reflect this as well as not receiving holiday pay or sick pay which she would get if she was employed to do similar work e.g. through an agency.

The local council adult social care department might be able to advise but I'm wondering if these is one of those jobs that doesn't really pass the HMRC SE test, after all, its a similar job to a nanny and they're almost always considered to be employed.

I was under the impression that they would be able to employ rather than contract a carer this way and use their benefit money towards payment.

The motivation for the 'employer' in these circumstances is usually to avoid their responsibilities for NMW, employers NI, sick pay etc, so make sure you and your DD are clear of her status and entitlements.

It sounds like it would nto pass the SE criteria for hmrc. Presumably she cannot choose the hours she works for example. The employer is avoiding paying ni, tax, sick leave and holiday pay by requesting this and it is not to your dd’s advantage. Not sure how it meets the benefits criteria, presumably paid from PIP, as you do not have to submit any invoices to receive it.

The insurance part immediately sprang to mind - this is very important for your daughter.

Tbh I would look for another job. They try to take advantage of her.

Thank you everyone for your help. I know what sort of questions to ask now.