Paying a housekeeper,on the books, not under it.
A housekeeper or cook you hire and pay directly is usually a household employee — not a 1099 contractor. KinPayroll runs payroll for a housekeeper exactly as it does for a caregiver: the tax rules are the same. Estimates only — confirm your situation with a tax advisor.
Built around IRS Pub 926~10-min setupNo credit card
A cleaner you hire directly usually isn't a 1099 contractor.
It's easy to assume a housekeeper handles their own taxes. If you hired them and control the work, the household-employer rules generally apply.
Employee, not contractor
Hire a house cleaner directly and control how and when the work is done, and they're generally a household employee — even if they clean other homes too. A 1099 usually isn't the right form. Confirm with a tax advisor.
A cleaning company is different
A cleaning company you hire is different — its workers are typically the company's employees, not yours. The direct-hire case is the one the household-employer rules cover.
When taxes kick in
Once you pay a household employee about $3,000 or more in a year, Social Security and Medicare taxes generally apply, with federal unemployment tax possible above a separate amount. The calculator shows where you stand.
The same records protect you
On-the-books payroll — withholding, pay stubs, and a year-end W-2 and Schedule H — protects you if a question ever comes up and gives your housekeeper proof of income.
Not sure what you'll owe — or save?
Estimate the employer taxes and the medical-expense deduction you may qualify for — about two minutes, no account.
Estimates only — confirm with your tax advisor.
It's not just senior care.
Anyone you pay to work in your parent's home is a household employee — and the tax rules are the same. Pick yours and we'll walk you through it.
Senior caregiver
Paying an in-home aide for your aging parent — the case KinPayroll is built around, start to finish.
Family member
A relative you pay to provide care. Some family wages are treated differently — the calculator helps you see your situation.
Learn moreNot sure? The tax calculator works no matter who you employ.
Common questions
Usually not, if you hired them directly and control how the work is done — a privately hired house cleaner is generally a W-2 household employee, even if they clean other homes. A cleaning company's workers are the company's employees. Confirm your situation with a tax advisor.
Pay your housekeeper on the books — start free.
Start free, track every payment, and let the year-end forms take care of themselves.
Free accountNo credit card50-state tax estimates