Talk to the young kids. You can use Venmo, PayPal or CashApp. They all connect to your bank and all you need is their “code name” for one of those Apps. If you don’t have an iPhone you can use the App via a computer. You can also use Zelle if your bank has it. Those are all electronic formats. They are safe and quick. You may need to issue a 1099 at the end of the year for all those payments.
The payroll service we used only cost us $45 a month. They handled employee withholding and paid quarterly employer contributions to SSA, Medicare, state disability and state and federal taxes. They provided W2s for the employee, and the forms we needed to file. I submitted weekly timesheets; or you can set up a standing weekly, bi-weekly or monthly salary. The caregiver was paid by direct deposit. Gave us great peace of mind. The one thing the service didn't handle was worker's compensation insurance. We found a policy that ran about $500 a year.
I would use your bank's online bill pay feature. You set up the payment info and the bank mails a check to the caregiver. DO NOT USE Zelle! It's a popular scam target and most banks will not cover fraudulent payments, so if you are scammed, your money is gone forever and the bank won't step in. Venmo is only slightly more secure, but not much. If you don't or can't use bill pay, then Paypal would work as long as you use the goods and services feature, not the friends and family (also prone to scams). You want to keep these payments fully transparent for tax reasons, so I'd be leery of using any electronic method except bill pay.
I agree with the bank's bill pay feature being the best option. And yes, keep those records. And whether or not you are responsible for taxes may depend on how the caregivers' jobs are described.
I see a confusion about who is paying for your mother's care. Your funds or your mother's? Your mother's money pays for her care until it's spent down to Medicaid level. Then Medicaid pays.
Definitely do not use Zelle payments as it does not leave a paper trail to save for the Medicaid lookback period besides its fraudulent risks.
I would set it up the same way you pay her other bills. I am also out of state and pay many of my father’s bills out of his accounts. I set it up through on line banking and have some on auto pay so I don’t even have to think about it or worry that I missed something.
I believe you can use a payroll company to pay the aids and it’s not very expensive. That way you know the correct taxes are being taken out and nothing will come back to bite you later.
I think you will need to be your mom’s financial power of attorney to access her funds. A form for you and your mother to sign can be found on the Internet. Then, I would contact her bank and set up bill autopay. I agree with the other answers to hire a payroll service to pay the caregivers.
Definitely do not use Zelle payments as it does not leave a paper trail to save for the Medicaid lookback period besides its fraudulent risks.
I believe you can use a payroll company to pay the aids and it’s not very expensive. That way you know the correct taxes are being taken out and nothing will come back to bite you later.
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