Reply to Paying taxes for undocumented nannies

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I've discovered while interviewing that there are undocumented nannies who actually pay taxes (!!!).  How does this work - in that by applying for a Tax ID number, they are in a way presenting themselves to the gov't as illegal aliens... and then when the employers report the wages paid towards them, they are in a way admitting to hiring an undocumented person.  Why don't we hear of the gov't after them?

Leaving out judgment (and the bandwagons of how we should not hire illegal nannies), please let me know if I have this right.  I'm just trying to understand how it works.[/quote]
Paying taxes and being documented are two unrelated things. Anyone with a SSN can pay taxes.  Whether they are or are not legal to work is a completely different matter.

Example A.  A foreign student in the U.S. on an F-1 visa picks up some nannying hours. She has a SSN but is not allowed to work.  She works anyway. She claims her nannying income and pays taxes on it. Her employer can also report employer taxes paid on the nanny's behalf.

Example B.  A guest worker in the U.S. on an H1-B visa picks up a second job after hours.  She has a SSN but is not allowed to work for any other employer except her sponsor.  She works anyway. She reports all her income and pays taxes on the total amount.  Her employers also withhold and pay taxes on her behalf.

Etc. Etc.

The reason the government doesn't go after them is that IRS and USCIS are two different, unrelated entities. They do not serve as enforcement agents for one another.  The IRS also cares that you pay taxes on what you earn, and that your tax burden matches what your employer(s) have claimed for you.  IRS couldn't care less if you earned that income legally. As long as you paid your taxes, IRS has no problem with you. The USCIS would have to catch you independently of the whole tax issue.

Believe me, I know.  I've done it for years. [/quote]

Your examples are irrelevant , you are citing two cases of LEGAL immigrant (or better legal aliens) who work illegally. The question OP was asking seemed to be how illegal immigrants ( so people who are not in the country legally) can pay taxes[/quote]
My dear, I don't believe you understand the finer points of difference between undocumented, legal, illegal, alien, immigrant, non-immigrant and sundry.  The person who is legal today can be illegal tomorrow.  The answer to OP's question is "as long as you have an SSN or a tax ID, you can pay taxes regardless of whether or not you are in the country legally, and whether or not your current status makes you legal to work or not."[/quote]

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