Tanpola Articles Directory

After attending an APNA (Alliance of Professional Nanny Agencies) conference in Destin, Florida, it became apparent to me that household payroll taxes are becoming more of a talked-about issue.

Although most people who hire household staff would still prefer not being troubled by the nuisance of figuring out the taxes and paying the extra amounts necessary to hire a nanny our housekeeper, there are a number of converts who understand the importance of doing so.

If you are a household employer who is still unsure about the process, consider the following:

What is a Household Employer? A household employer is defined as someone who pays an individual $1,500 or more in a calendar quarter to perform duties in or around their home on a regular basis.

An example of a household employee would be a nanny, housekeeper, cook, home health aide and a private nurse, to name a few. The other important issue is how much control you as the employer have over the employee from a management standpoint. For example: if you determine the work hours, where the employee works, and what their responsibilities are, you would be considered a household employer.

On the other hand, an employee can be considered an independent contractor if this person has an office elsewhere, comes to work with tools (cleaning equipment, etc.), and works unsupervised for many different people. Now that you have determined that your employee is not an independent contractor and you are a household employer, what does this mean?

As an employer of a household employee, you are responsible for withholding taxes and remitting them to the tax agencies throughout the year. Your employee’s wages fall under the Federal Insurance Contribution Act (FICA), so a portion of the wages you pay must be withheld and paid as Social Security and Medicare taxes. Both you and your employee are required to pay a percentage (7.65%) of the employee’s gross wages. If you want to pay the entire amount yourself, you can do so and list the employee’s share as n additional taxable gross income.

In addition, there are State and Federal Income taxes that may or may not be withheld depending on the agreement between you and the employee. If you do withhold these taxes, you need to refer to your state’s withholding guidelines.

You will also need to pay Federal and State Unemployment Tax. What are the advantages to doing payroll taxes on my household employee aside from the fact that it is a legal requirement by law?

There are a few advantages to doing the right thing.

First of all, you can pay your employee with pre-tax funds through a Dependent Care Assistance Plan (DCAP) that is a tax-exempt fund that your employer would offer as a benefit. This plan allows you to contribute up to $5,000 of your pre-tax earnings to an individual Dependent Care Account. The money in this account is then used to cover dependent care expenses free of taxes.

For those who do not have access to a Dependent Care Account, you may claim a tax credit for Child or Dependent Care on your income tax return at the end of the year.

You can take a tax credit of 20% to 35% of qualifying childcare expenses up to $3,000 for one dependent or up to $6,000 for two or more dependents. (Only one of these tax savings options may be used each year.) Keep in mind that you cannot take advantage of any of this unless you can prove that you have an employee on payroll.

So now that you more or less understand what is required of you as an employer of a household employee, where can you turn to have someone do this tedious task of payroll taxes for you?

There are a number of companies who do this type of payroll tax service, but only a few companies specialize in the “nanny payroll tax”. They make this part of being a household employer – simple and hassle-free.

Marta Perrone, author “Help! How to Find Hire Train and Maintain Household Help!”
Free report: “Top 10 Mistakes Household Employers Make When Recruiting Help.
http://www.domesticpublications.com – http://domestic-connections.com – http://martaperrone.com

What the future holds for “undocumented workers” should interest household employers of domestics – especially if the government decides to crack down on these employers.

When immigration doors opened during the Amnesty Law, many people from Mexico and Central America took advantage. Millions flooded the gates and followed the legal steps to enter this country while taking the jobs no one else wanted. These immigrants and others from around the world struggled to stay in the system and pay their dues.

Today, most of these people hold proper documentation to work here. They are established and are the ones who deserve jobs. Once the immigration doors were shut, people found other ways of coming in. Why not? People planning to enter the country illegally know they can escape poverty and corruption, bring their family to a country where they can make a decent living, pay no taxes and receive free benefits.

Conversely, they might have second thoughts if they came here and discovered there were no jobs because employers were afraid to employ undocumented workers for fear of stiff fines and penalties, or jail time for breaking a federal law. Also, if they found there were no free benefits to help their families survive, they would probably stay in their own country.

Even though there is increased awareness about hiring legal domestics, there has been little concern about doing so. A number of hi-profile individuals who failed to comply with the law damaged their careers as a result.

Curiously, many perspective employers who were aware of the consequences of violating the law simply felt it didn’t matter if they hired an illegal because “they were not running for office.”

Truth be known, the real reason many employers don’t follow the rules is because they prefer hiring cheap labor, and are not interested in putting domestic employees on payroll. The associated cost, along with the paperwork hassle often seems a little too daunting. Translated, money is the driving force when making many of these kinds of decisions.

Think about the possible ramifications of hiring a nanny or housekeeper responsible for taking care of a child and a home in the hands of someone that does not even hold a valid identification card. Imagine the difficulties involved to track such an employee if anything bad were to happen.

It is important for employers to know that domestics are not independent contractors and must be put on payroll. Many employers who hire documented workers continue to pay cash wages. This kind of practice subjects the American people to higher taxes, while allowing those who choose to live here and become legal residents to receive benefits and never pay into the system.

Solving this problem won’t be easy. As long as there are employers willing to pay cash wages to illegal and documented immigrants the flood across our border will continue. The effect will drain our social services to the point where they will become bankrupt and simply shut down.

Employers who hire on this bias are responsible for creating the economic crises in many states around the country. It’s no longer possible to talk out of both sides of our mouths.

Feeling strongly about hiring documented workers and wanting to see an end to the flood of illegal immigrants entering the country is something most Americans support. In order to stop the flood, it’s important to limit medical and welfare benefits to undocumented workers who never pay taxes to support such programs.

America is a nation of laws and does not have to suffer to save the world at the expense of its own economy. If countries in Central America and Mexico were less corrupt and more interested in the well being of their people, not so many people would be fleeing. It is not the responsibility of American taxpayers to care for every individual who wants to live here.

Our focus should be on those who came here legally and who are part of the system. There’s no reason why being a gardener, factory worker, nanny, housekeeper, or field worker should be considered denigrating, low paying work reserved for “illegal immigrants”.

There is high unemployment all over the country. Why not elevate these jobs, pay decent wages and insist that only those who are legal to work and willing to pay into our system be the ones employed as we all do in order to receive the benefits that this great country has to offer?

Marta Perrone, author “Help! How to Find Hire Train and Maintain Household Help!”
Free report: “Top 10 Mistakes Household Employers Make When Recruiting Help.
http://www.domesticpublications.com – http://domestic-connections.com – http://martaperrone.com

You are out there looking in a store for the next big thing to buy your son or daughter and you begin to wonder, what should I really get them? Do they need another action figure or doll? Is buying them another video game really a good idea?

There are many options to look at when you want to get a gift for your kid that isn’t the usual toy or video game. It is better if you can think creatively and find something that will really help your children, now and later in life.

Education Gifts

We all want our child to be the next Albert Einstein, but unless we assist them at an early age, that may never happen. There are several gifts available that cater to a child’s inner thinker — and video games are not one of them. You should find a gift, like a puzzle, that requires the child to think and solve problems to get a desired result. You can get this out of a video game, but a puzzle is much cheaper. You can also buy your child a book. It can be difficult to tell in advance if your gift will really make a difference to his or her life, but if you think it might, then give it a shot.

Athletic Gifts

Encouraging your son or daughter to take part in sports is an important lesson that can lead them to a rewarding life. Playing on teams teaches them the importance of cooperation at the same time as good health and fitness. Buy your son or daughter something that gets them out of the house, whether it is a bike, baseball bat or basketball. A healthy body means a healthy mind, and athletic activity can change a persons life and future as a result. Just think how important that is in the long run when compared to simple video games. That is, except for really good video games that might also benefit your child.

Creative Gifts

Want your child to be the next Rembrandt? Then buy them a paint set that allows them to test their creative side. You don’t have to leave it at painting, give them a book to write in, clay to mold into something amazing, or a model that they can build with you. Getting your child to test their creative side will reap many rewards later in life, including the ability to think outside the box, a rewarding skill to have in the world of business.

When at the store, don’t try and fight everyone for that big toy, but instead find a quiet aisle where they keep the toys that will really make your child succeed later in life. It will totally be worth it.

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for flowers and gifts. When shopping for flowers and gifts, we recommend you shop only at these best online stores: http://www.sendflowersgift.info , http://www.sendflowers4.info , and http://www.usedjewelrysell.com .

Welcome To Tanpola Articles Directory