Where can I find out how to do payroll taxes on an in-home caregiver?

Mare them a 1099 contractor.

The IRS has an excellent and informative site.
You can type in your question and get great answers.
If you require more, do see any CPA or qualified tax person.
You can call the IRS with questions as well. Long wait time but they're very helpful.

I recommend a company called HomePay. I discovered them during the process of hiring an in-home caregiver for my parents. They did everything once I set up an account and provided the funds. They secured an TIN for me. They handled payroll disbursement giving my employee a checkstub/direct deposit and handled all payroll deductions, state and federal taxes. My employee and I had access to our own, separate sides of their website. Homepay kept me informed each quarter when taxes were due, both state and federally and how much I owed. My bank account was debited for all taxes and fees. At tax time I recieved the completed form needed to file with my federal taxes. The website is easy to navigate. Their fees are reasonable and their staff is wonderfully patient and knowledgeable. It made paying for in-home care and the associated tax record keeping nightmare one less thing for me to think about when it came to navigating through the new and changing world of caring for my parents.

Payroll taxes are complex and the penalties are extreme if you make a mistake. So either hire it done or use quickbooks it’s still a paid service.

eastland2: Pose your question to a CPA.

As others have said, go to a CPA and lawyer to properly set up payroll if you decide to go the independent route. Absolutely include workers Comp for injuries.

Its better to find a caregiver through an agency. The higher cost is worth it.

A Certified Public Accountant.

Go to an accountant or use homepay.com like Bubba1234 suggests in the comments.

Next, ignore everything that Goldstar in the comments is trying to terrify you with.

You need to go to a lawyer and tell them that you want a disclaimer done for a private homecare employee that will protect you and family assets from lawsuits. Any lawyer can get that done in about five minutes. Then you have whatever caregiver you hire sign and agree to the terms of these documents with a public notary present to make it legal.

If you're hiring one or two people you really shouldn't have all that much worry.

See an accountant then see a lawyer and you will be fine.

Home Pay .com.

First, congratulations on wanting to stay "legal and lawful." As the owner of a boutique home healthcare agency in Boca Raton, Florida, I always get these questions.

I am not a CPA or tax lawyer/advisor, so don't take this as professional or qualified advice. Do your own due diligence before you make any decisions.

Regardless of whether you hire your Caregiver as an employee or an Independent Contractor, it's important to understand that you will assume legal responsibilities beyond filing their taxes. These obligations are notably more complex if you hire the person as an employee. You will be required to provide workman's comp and pay your share of FICA and unemployment taxes, potentially increasing costs by more than 10%.

You expose yourself to liability for everything from sexual harassment (In today's world, a judge could decide that cleaning mom is sexual harassment, or the meal delivery guy could make a pass at the Caregiver and then sue you.) You will have to deal with compliance for overtime and holiday pay, blah blah blah. What about vacation pay, family leave, insurance and benefits?

And I know your caregiver is the "sweetest thing in the world," but she also sees ads on television for lawyers who want to sue for any workplace violation. You have deep pockets, so be careful!

If you are using long-term care insurance, you also have to worry about the caregiver's authorization and certification for reimbursement, not to mention the time you'll spend on paperwork and waiting for reimbursement.

You also have to consider that at some point, your caregiver is going to stub their toe, have a doctor's appointment, need to go to a wedding, die, or get married. In other words, they will need time off. Who is going to fill in? How will you find a qualified, licensed, background-checked, legal-to-work Caregiver, maybe at 7 a.m. to start at 8 a.m. the same day?

This is why families turn to an agency like mine. Yes, we charge a few dollars more, but we provide a whole lot of extras, so you don't have to worry about anything - particularly not having coverage when you need it.

I have encountered this so often in my agency that I have a BYOC plan. If the client already has a Caregiver or team they want to keep, they can Bring Your Own Caregivers (BYOC), and I will provide a discounted rate to the client.

I hope I scared you a little bit and informed you a lot! Again, don't take what I say as legal or qualified advice; get qualified legal advice before you act! And at very least, I would suggest you open an LLC and hire the Caregiver from it to provide a shield between her lawyer and your assets!

There is a lot of references on the internet, as the one here:

https://www.care.com/hp/why-caregivers-need-a-w-2-to-file-taxes-not-a-1099

If complicated, seek the professional advice of a tax attorney or a tax preparer. I would say 'call the IRS' although I am not sure how that might go ... I believe the IRS has a FORMS link on their website. Try researching that. Still, this doesn't take the place of a professional who knows what they are doing.

Whatever you do, keep accurate good records.

Gena / Touch Matters

Care dot com has reviews that caused me to avoid them. The fine print of a contract that you cannot revoke and is a 2 year commitment. Also, the inability to get a person on the phone. IRS has good info. Just read all of it. It is clear/not clear/clear/…..

We use Surepay. A little tricky to get someone on the phone. They do our withholdings, (fyi..they charge extra for 1099.) We couldn't figure out how to get an electronic payment to our caregiver, so I keep write paper checks. The other fees are automatically deducted.

Quickbooks offers payroll tax software that will even print out paychecks.

Or you can do what everybody else does, and just pay them under the table. Of course, you didn't hear me say that.

Care.com offers this service specific to caregivers:

https://www.care.com/homepay/senior-care?_qs=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw-r-vBhC-ARIsAGgUO2A9g9drXoF7HB3q2ZGpAqDEQHGIch6ACy-MXfmtOj6s3yPlYPRdFBoaAhvEEALw_wcB&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=HomePay_US_en_SRC_SC_GGC01536&utm_term=caregiver+payroll+service

If I was using a private caregiver, someone not affiliated with an Agency, I probably would have a payroll company do the work. Yes, there would be a fee, but for me it would give me peace of mind knowing all the payroll ducks were in a row, and the 1099 would be done correctly.

Check with a CPA or with the IRS itself who will direct you to the correct forms to give the caregiver regarding payment of salary you make to him/her. It is up to them to do their taxes and report their income.