The decision to hire a nanny requires plenty of interviewing and research. There are many wonderful nannies out there that are looking for the right family to work with and it’s exciting to think of the many possibilities that you have in finding the right one that fits just perfectly with your children. Nannies are not babysitters, but they are instead nurturing professionals that are committed to helping influence your children’s growth and overall development. Nannies that are young and are looking to gain experience often have energy and unique ideas to bring to a family, but there is also something to be said about hiring a seasoned nanny that has years of experience. Here are some reason why you should consider hiring an experienced nanny.

Employers must exert a certain amount of time and resources to properly retain their income tax records. But these aren’t the only documents you need to maintain. Retention of your organization’s payroll records is also important. This goes for both corporate and household employment.

Unless you’re a tax expert, you likely have some questions about what your responsibility is when it comes to paying taxes on your household employee. If you have a nanny and you have paid this person $2,100 or more in wages, you’re officially considered a household employer and you’re required to pay Medicare and Social Security taxes. You will also need to report your nanny’s income and taxes that are paid for the year, as well as pay Federal employment taxes with your federal income tax return. Most states require filings every quarter and the state and federal thresholds are often different, based on quarterly or annual wages. Although you file a schedule H annually, be aware you may be required to pay quarterly estimated tax payments.

Many employers use background checks as a regular part of their hiring processes. But “many” does not mean “all.” In fact, recent research conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management indicates smaller businesses tend to skip this important hiring step. Among companies with fewer than 100 employees, fewer than half conduct criminal background checks on job candidates vs. 83% for employers with at least 2,500 employees. Background checks can be particularly helpful in the household employment world too. After all, if you hire a nanny don’t you want to know about the person caring for your child(ren)?

Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), individual income tax rates generally go down for 2018 through 2025. But that doesn’t necessarily mean your income tax liability will go down. The TCJA also makes a lot of changes to tax breaks for individuals, reducing or eliminating some while expanding others. The total impact of all of these changes is what will ultimately determine whether you see reduced taxes. One interrelated group of changes affecting many taxpayers are those to personal exemptions, standard deductions and the child credit.

You’ve had a baby and your maternity leave has probably gone faster than you thought it would! The clock is ticking and soon, you’ll have to start thinking about heading back to work. Many new moms worry about how the transition will go when you leave your baby with a nanny during the day. You may be struggling with how the transition will go, not just for you, but your baby. Leaving your baby with someone new for the first several times is definitely hard at first, but both you and your baby will adjust quickly if you follow some of these helpful steps.

If you itemize your deductions when you’re filing taxes, you may be able to deduct certain expenses that were paid to your in-home caregiver. If you are trying to determine what portion of in-home caregiver expenses can be deducted, there are several stipulations that you should know about. As always, do consult a qualified personal income tax preparer to help with the details, but here is a quick guide to some caregiver tax deductions.

If you’re considering hiring a nanny and you’re determining how much you want to pay, you should also factor in the cost of hiring a nanny payroll service that will have your back. A partner to help make sure you have everything covered in terms of payroll, taxes, and benefits. By hiring a nanny payroll service that you can trust, you’ll have peace of mind that hardworking payroll specialists are working to make sure you have everything in order the first time, so there are no surprises when it comes to tax time.

When you’re away at work, you want someone that can take care of your kids with love, attention to detail, and the utmost care. Finding the right person for this job can be quite a task and many times, it can be expensive. Have you considered a nanny share? A nanny share allows you to hire the nanny you want, for the price you can afford, because you are sharing the nanny and costs with another family.

Every year there are a host of changes to labor law and reimbursement rates that impact nanny household payroll. Below please find a quick overview of the significant changes that go into effect for nanny taxes 2018.