Things You Should Know Before Hiring a Home Cleaning Service

Things You Should Know Before Hiring a Home Cleaning Service

Hiring an independent cleaning service for your home is more complicated and even dangerous than people often think. There are numerous laws surrounding employment, worker’s compensation, taxes, and payroll that you would have to research and follow if you didn’t have MaidPro as your home cleaning service.

Below are three legal facts you should know before hiring an independent cleaning service.

FACT 1. If you pay more than $1700 per year to an independent housecleaner, you must sign up for an Employer ID Number with the IRS. You are required to pay Social Security and Medicare (also known as FICA) and Federal Unemployment Tax. You may also be liable for Federal Income Tax withholding, state taxes and disability taxes. These taxes become part of your personal tax liability and must be reported on your Form 1040. Penalties for non-payment include interest penalties and fines.
(For the entire list of forms to be completed, see this page on the IRS website .)

FACT 2. You must verify that the person is legally allowed to work in the United States by having them complete the I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form. Penalties for hiring illegal aliens range from $250 to $10,000. You should keep a signed W-4 form on file for each employee; you may also want to keep a photocopy of each employee’s Social Security card. (For the entire list of forms to be completed, see this page on the IRS website .

FACT 3. Make sure that your homeowners’ insurance includes a liability clause in case your employee gets injured at your home. At least $300,000 in liability protection is recommended, but up to $1 million in an umbrella or excess liability policy may be needed to protect you. You also may be liable for workers’ compensation payments that would not be covered by your homeowner’s insurance. See this page for workers compensation laws in your state.

If you hire a professional home cleaning service, like MaidPro, we will take care of all of those things for you. We are the employer, so you don’t have to worry about filing with the IRS for an employer ID number. We verify that each employee is legally allowed to work in the U.S. and we have all of the insurance that covers any accident that happens in your home. MaidPro’s got you covered.

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