There is a lot to consider when it comes to employing a nanny. Not only will you need to conduct a thorough search in order to find someone you and your children feel comfortable with, but there is also a whole lot of admin to tackle when you become an employer.
This can be especially daunting if you’re a busy parent without much free time on your hands, so you will need to find someone who can help you complete the necessary tasks with minimal fuss, well in time for your new employee’s arrival.
Thankfully, there are specialists out there who can help you take care of your payroll obligations. They are also surprisingly affordable, so you don’t need to worry about blowing your budget. Most of these services have been designed for parents, by parents, so you’ll know that you’re in good hands.
Online payroll services are tailor-made to suit your requirements. You can also purchase an employment contract, which is the first thing you should think about when you hire a new employee to work in your home: UK law stipulates that you must provide a legal employment contract within two months of their start date.
However, your obligations don’t end there: you’re also required to pay your nanny’s weekly or monthly salary, including tax and national insurance contributions. In order to keep on top of these responsibilities, it’s a good idea to enlist the help of an expert who can help you meet your obligations quickly and efficiently.
As well as adding tax and national insurance your employee’s pay, you will also need to make Employer’s contributions. In order to manage the payment of income tax and NICs, a Pay As You Earn (PAYE) scheme needs to be set up. This is the system that HMRC uses to collect the contributions from an employee’s pay as they collect their earnings.
A payroll service will cover the set up of your PAYE scheme and register you as an employer with HMRC, so you don’t have to worry about finding time to do these things yourself. In addition, the company you hire to take on your payroll will also provide monthly or weekly pay slips so you know how much to pay your nanny.
Once the service has been set up, if there are ever any changes to your employee’s pay due to sick pay, maternity pay or a change of personal details, you will be able to contact an adviser and they will implement the changes for you.
You will also receive quarterly statements setting out the income tax and national insurance for you (the employer) and your nanny. This is required by HMRC in order to show a summary of every salary amount that you have paid including your tax obligations.
The service will also cover your annual return, which will be sent to HMRC summarizing your payroll figures for the year on your behalf. The company will then prepare a summary for your employee showing the details of their pay and the taxes that have been deducted during that annual period.
The company will also deal with any paperwork if and when your nanny ends their employment, so will keep you covered throughout their whole employment period. It’s good to know you have this kind of security when you have so many other commitments to handle.
Nanny payroll services are usually delivered by professional experts with years of experience in the industry. Many of them are parents themselves, so will have first-hand experience of the challenges of looking for childcare. If you’re yet to find the perfect employee, a recruitment adviser will also be able to help you conduct a successful search.
