Moneybox
April 1999
I do a nannyshare for two employers. Should they sort out my tax separately or together?
The tax situation for nannies in a nannyshare situation should not be confused with that of nannies with two separate part-time jobs. A genuine nannyshare exists where a nanny is looking after both parents’ children together on one or (perhaps) both parents’ premises at least part of the time.
If this is the case it is likely that one overall weekly (or monthly) wage has been agreed, although each party may pay their share separately. Then it is more straightforward for only one set of parents to be named as your employer for the purposes of registering for PAYE. There are several advantages to this:
- There is less paperwork for your employers and more likelihood that this will be kept up to date and tax paid on time
- There is no need to split or apportion your tax code between two employments if you are, in effect in only one employment to which they are both party
- It is easier for you to check that your tax and National Insurance Contributions are being correctly deducted and paid where only one PAYE scheme is being used
However, using only one scheme does mean that one employer nominally takes the main responsibility for your employment at least in the eyes of the Inland Revenue. The other must agree to reimburse their share of the tax and NI contributions paid on your behalf. It is possible to have both employers, though only one address, named on one PAYE scheme.
However, where a nannyshare involves two sets of parents who do not know one another, the employer who agrees to be named as your official employer is taking on the risk that the second employers will not keep their part of the bargain. One way to minimise this is for both sets of parents to set up a joint bank account into which they both make regular contributions to cover your wages and the tax and NI payments.
If the first (i.e. official) employer is not happy with this arrangement it would be better for them to insist that your nannyshare is treated as two separate jobs and that each employer set up their own PAYE scheme. This option may also be preferable where each party intends to be the sole employer of a fulltime or part-time nanny at some future date and the nannyshare is understood to be only a temporary arrangement.