If you employ a nanny you need to know the tax rules

Employing a nanny brings with it the same obligations as any business taking on an employee. By law, therefore, an employer must account for Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions on the salary paid to a nanny or mothers help, whether they are full time, part time or temporary.

A nanny’s salary is normally quoted net of deductions (i.e. the amount she wishes to receive in her hand), and it is therefore the employers responsibility to pay over to PAYE, Employees National Insurance and Employers National Insurance to HM Revenue & Customs in addition to the net salary paid to the nanny. Expenses paid in benefits provided on behalf of a nanny in addition to her salary may be liable to a separate charge to Tax and National Insurance.

Remember that avoiding the taxman is illegal. If HMRC catches up with an employer who has failed to declare their nanny for tax purposes or has tried to maintain that she is self-employed, then they will be liable to pay the correct Tax and National Insurance Contributions and interest and penalties. There is no legal right to seek repayment from the nanny.