19:11 again. See this document for more on the above-noted law: http://www.4nannies.com/blog/12-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-1800-wage-threshold/ .

IRS Pub 926 is also helpful.

Babysitters over the age of 18 who work out of the parents' home, using the parents' equipment, food, and supplies, during hours set by the parents and subject to the parents' direction as to things like naptimes, bedtimes, what to feed the kids, etc. are employees as a matter of common law, even if they only work on an occasional basis and earn less than $1800 per year from a particular employer. Occasional babysitters who work under those circumstances but call themselves independent contractors don't understand the relevant law. The exception is babysitters who are actually employees of a service or agency that gets paid by the family and then redirects part of that pay to the sitter.

The parents' obligation to withhold taxes and pay employer payroll taxes on top of that doesn't kick in unless the $1800 annual threshold is met, but that doesn't change the fact that the nanny is an employee. Also, occasional babysitters are required to track and pay federal and state income tax on all their babysitting earnings, whether they meet the $1800 threshold or not. The only tax that an occasional babysitter can lawfully avoid by getting paid less than $1800 per family is FICA.

So, 17:34, your criticism of the parents' desire to pay you on the books is misplaced here, because your tax obligations are the same either way. What you are really saying is that tax-evading babysitters keep more of their income than babysitters who don't evade their tax obligations. That's true as long as you don't get caught, but you may want to avoid calling others "rigid, complicated, and cheap" for not wanting to assist you in tax evasion.

Anonymous wrote:I get what you are saying. The flip side of the coin is I am not going to jeopardize my financial situation to help someone evade taxes. Someone who wont agree to payment over the table isn't even a back up option for me.

Two sides to it (like everything else).

That's absolutely your right. I'm simply pointing out that you'd have more difficulty securing a sitter because of it, and a higher rate would help. Most sitters will pass on you since sitting jobs are as plentiful as sitters, and the ones who will consider it will likely ask for a higher rate.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That being said, I have always been paid cash by the families I sit for on an occasional basis. If a family that I sit for occasionally wanted to pay taxes on the wages they paid me, I'd expect a higher hourly rate to compensate for the money I'd lose to taxes.

You don't lose money to taxes. You pay what you owe like everybody else. And odds are your income from occasional sitting isn't going to be enough that wouldn't get it back from the govt anyway.

Occasional once in a while babysitters I wouldn't take out taxes bc to do so implies a lot of other accountability (hiring as an employee, ss, etc.). But for an occasional but consistent long term sitter where i would hit the caps I would.

What I meant was more so if you're paying me $15/hour to sit for your family, but you want us to pay taxes on it, I'm taking home less than I would if I worked for another family that night. If this is the route you decide to go, it would be in your best interests to up the rate some to offset the taxes, otherwise your job is no longer competitive. The majority of families pay sitters in cash and don't bother with the taxes.your family would come across as rigid, complicated, and cheap. If the rate wasn't worth it, your family would simply be my backup family, and you'd get last call on my availability.

+1

I get what you are saying. The flip side of the coin is I am not going to jeopardize my financial situation to help someone evade taxes. Someone who wont agree to payment over the table isn't even a back up option for me.

Two sides to it (like everything else).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That being said, I have always been paid cash by the families I sit for on an occasional basis. If a family that I sit for occasionally wanted to pay taxes on the wages they paid me, I'd expect a higher hourly rate to compensate for the money I'd lose to taxes.

You don't lose money to taxes. You pay what you owe like everybody else. And odds are your income from occasional sitting isn't going to be enough that wouldn't get it back from the govt anyway.

Occasional once in a while babysitters I wouldn't take out taxes bc to do so implies a lot of other accountability (hiring as an employee, ss, etc.). But for an occasional but consistent long term sitter where i would hit the caps I would.

What I meant was more so if you're paying me $15/hour to sit for your family, but you want us to pay taxes on it, I'm taking home less than I would if I worked for another family that night. If this is the route you decide to go, it would be in your best interests to up the rate some to offset the taxes, otherwise your job is no longer competitive. The majority of families pay sitters in cash and don't bother with the taxes.your family would come across as rigid, complicated, and cheap. If the rate wasn't worth it, your family would simply be my backup family, and you'd get last call on my availability.

Anonymous wrote:
That being said, I have always been paid cash by the families I sit for on an occasional basis. If a family that I sit for occasionally wanted to pay taxes on the wages they paid me, I'd expect a higher hourly rate to compensate for the money I'd lose to taxes.

You don't lose money to taxes. You pay what you owe like everybody else. And odds are your income from occasional sitting isn't going to be enough that wouldn't get it back from the govt anyway.

Occasional once in a while babysitters I wouldn't take out taxes bc to do so implies a lot of other accountability (hiring as an employee, ss, etc.). But for an occasional but consistent long term sitter where i would hit the caps I would.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's determined annually not quarterly and I believe the cap is something like $1700 per year.

The cap is quarterly.

Well, there is a quarterly cap but if you don't exceed that, then there is an annual cap as well. The annual one is $1800/yr. I don't remember offhand what the quarterly one is.

PP here again, if you use that link above and go further up on the page, it shows the cap as being $1,000 for each calendar quarter.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's determined annually not quarterly and I believe the cap is something like $1700 per year.

The cap is quarterly.

Well, there is a quarterly cap but if you don't exceed that, then there is an annual cap as well. The annual one is $1800/yr. I don't remember offhand what the quarterly one is.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's determined annually not quarterly and I believe the cap is something like $1700 per year.

The cap is quarterly.

I know it is for nannies, but is that true for babysitters as well? Everything I have seen for occasional babysitters says it's an annual cap.

I don't believe the IRS makes the distinction between babysitter and nanny. However I was mistaken. The cap for 2013 is $1800 and is an annual cap. http://www.irs.gov/publications/p926/ar02.html#en_US_2013_publink100086752

That being said, I have always been paid cash by the families I sit for on an occasional basis. If a family that I sit for occasionally wanted to pay taxes on the wages they paid me, I'd expect a higher hourly rate to compensate for the money I'd lose to taxes.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's determined annually not quarterly and I believe the cap is something like $1700 per year.

The cap is quarterly.

I know it is for nannies, but is that true for babysitters as well? Everything I have seen for occasional babysitters says it's an annual cap.

Anonymous wrote:I think it's determined annually not quarterly and I believe the cap is something like $1700 per year.

The cap is quarterly.

Do people really take taxes out on occasional babysitting? As a nanny I understand paying taxes for a full time position but I've never had a family ask to take out taxes for a Saturday evening when I only babysit 12-15 times a year for them.

I think it's determined annually not quarterly and I believe the cap is something like $1700 per year.

Do you use a service for taxes? I'd rather pay her cash but don't know the cap per quarter.