Household Workers

Household Workers are.

domestic workers -as a child-care provider, for example, or housekeeper or gardener- for whom federal income tax withholding was not required on payments made to them. Social Security taxes and Medicare taxes, however, must be paid on household workers whether or not the employer withholds the amount from the employee's compensation. Employers of household workers are currently required to pay Social Security taxes and Medicare taxes on any employee whom they pay $50 or more per calendar quarter.

See the entries Income Tax and State Income Tax in the American Encyclopedia of Law.

This requirement was triggered in 2010 if employers pay the employee $1,700 or more during the year. (The trigger did remain at $1,700 for 2011.) This is also sometimes called the “nanny tax.” (If employers pay an employee $1,000 or more in any calendar quarter, you must pay federal unemployment tax.)