Are you the employer if you hire a nanny through an agency?
For a permanent introduction where the family hires and pays the nanny directly, the family is normally the employer. GOV.UK says a person is usually considered the employer of a nanny, housekeeper or other person working in their home when they hire them and the worker is not self-employed or paid through an agency.
Our own permanent-placement Terms and Conditions use the same practical division: Filipino Nanny Agency introduces candidates, while the client is responsible for the employment contract, wages, tax and National Insurance, pension contributions where relevant and other employer obligations.
Temporary arrangements can operate differently depending on who employs and pays the worker, so check the terms for the particular booking.
1. Check the nanny has the right to work before employment begins
The household employer must complete the correct right-to-work check before employing the nanny. Do not infer immigration status from nationality, previous UK employment or agency registration.
The Home Office process depends on the person’s status and may involve an online share-code check, original documents, an identity service provider for eligible British or Irish passport holders, or the Employer Checking Service in specified cases.
Read our nanny right-to-work guide and use the current GOV.UK checking service for the actual check.
2. Do not confuse right to work with visa sponsorship
A person can have a valid right to work without a household sponsoring them, and a household’s ability to sponsor someone is a separate immigration question. Private households cannot simply assume that a standard work-sponsorship route is available for recruiting a nanny from abroad.
Because immigration routes and exceptions are specialised, use current Home Office guidance and qualified immigration advice for sponsorship questions. Our dedicated sponsorship page is being treated as a separately reviewed legal topic rather than folded into this general employer guide.
3. Pay at least the legal minimum
Nannies and other workers are entitled to the applicable National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage unless a specific legal exception applies. The rates change on 1 April each year.
From 1 April 2026, the National Living Wage for workers aged 21 and over is £12.71 per hour. Lower age and apprentice rates apply to eligible younger workers and apprentices.
Use the current GOV.UK minimum-wage rates whenever pay is reviewed.
4. Live-in accommodation does not remove minimum-wage rights
Providing accommodation can affect minimum-wage calculations only under the statutory accommodation-offset rules. It does not allow an employer to deduct the market rent of a room from wages and assume the minimum-wage rules are satisfied.
The accommodation offset also changes periodically. Use GOV.UK accommodation guidance when calculating pay for a live-in role.
5. Give the required written employment particulars
GOV.UK requires the principal written statement of employment particulars on the first day of employment and the wider written statement within two months. The statement covers matters such as the job description, start date, pay, hours and days, holiday, place of work, probation, benefits and training, with additional information on sick pay, leave, notice, pensions and procedures.
For a nanny role, the practical contract should also define childcare duties, any household duties, live-in accommodation where relevant, travel, overtime and expenses.
See our nanny employment contract guide.
6. Register as an employer and run payroll where required
A household employer may need to register with HMRC and operate PAYE. Payroll records the nanny’s gross pay, tax and National Insurance deductions, employer liabilities, pension deductions where relevant and statutory payments.
Employers must provide payslips and meet HMRC reporting requirements. You can run payroll yourself or appoint a payroll provider, but GOV.UK states that the employer remains legally responsible for PAYE tasks.
See our nanny payroll, PAYE and National Insurance guide.
7. Check workplace pension duties
Auto-enrolment duties can apply to a household employing a nanny. GOV.UK currently says an employer must enrol and make contributions for eligible staff who are aged between 22 and State Pension age, earn at least £10,000 a year and normally work in the UK.
Eligibility can change with age and earnings, so check the current workplace pension guidance rather than relying on a one-time assessment.
8. Arrange Employers’ Liability insurance
GOV.UK’s guidance for employing someone in your home says household employers must have Employers’ Liability insurance. The general insurance guidance says cover must normally be for at least £5 million and provided by an authorised insurer.
Check the current Employers’ Liability insurance rules for your circumstances.
9. Provide paid holiday
Almost all workers are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday each year. For a worker on a five-day week, that normally equates to 28 days. Part-time, irregular-hours and part-year arrangements need the appropriate calculation.
Bank holidays can be included within statutory leave if the employer chooses. Use the GOV.UK holiday entitlement guidance and calculator for the working pattern involved.
10. Follow working-time and rest rules
Working hours should be written realistically, particularly for live-in roles, overnight work, travel and weekend care. A live-in arrangement does not mean the nanny is automatically on duty whenever they are in the home.
UK working-time rules cover maximum average weekly hours, rest breaks, daily and weekly rest and night work. Some workers can agree to opt out of the 48-hour average weekly limit, but that does not remove all working-time protections.
See the current GOV.UK working-hours guidance.
11. Deal correctly with sickness and statutory leave
Eligible employees may qualify for Statutory Sick Pay and statutory family-related leave and pay. The rates and eligibility rules can change, so the contract should describe the policy and point to the current statutory position rather than hard-code figures that will become stale.
See GOV.UK Statutory Sick Pay guidance.
12. Recruit fairly and avoid nationality-based assumptions
Filipino Nanny Agency specialises in a Filipino candidate community, but an individual candidate’s competence, communication, reliability or suitability must be assessed from job-relevant evidence. Nationality should not be used as a proxy for those characteristics.
Right-to-work checks should also be carried out consistently. GOV.UK specifically warns employers not to discriminate because of where someone is from, and Acas guidance explains that nationality and national origin are protected within race discrimination law.
13. Be clear about background and DBS checks
A DBS or other criminal-record check is separate from right to work and separate from references. The type of DBS check that can lawfully be requested depends on the role and eligibility rules.
Our current client Terms and Conditions are explicit about the division of responsibility: the agency carries out the interviews and professional checks described in the terms and obtains references, while the client remains responsible for obtaining any background, criminal-record or police checks required for the position and for checking relevant qualifications or driving credentials.
We are keeping that wording precise until the agency’s detailed vetting protocol is documented and verified.
How our placement terms divide responsibilities
This is one area where our own operating documents are more useful than generic recruitment copy. Our Terms and Conditions separate the agency’s role from the household employer’s role instead of promising that an introduction removes every legal task from the family.
The agency introduces candidates, carries out the interviews and professional checks described in the terms and obtains references. The family decides whether the candidate is suitable, enters into the employment contract for a permanent placement and remains responsible for employer-side legal and payroll duties. We keep those responsibilities visible because it reduces the risk that a family assumes “agency screened” means “all employer obligations completed”.
Household employer checklist
- Define the role, hours, duties and working arrangement.
- Complete the right-to-work check before employment begins.
- Verify references, qualifications and any role-specific checks needed.
- Agree gross pay and confirm it meets current minimum-wage rules.
- Provide the written employment particulars and contract.
- Register with HMRC and arrange payroll where required.
- Check workplace pension duties.
- Arrange Employers’ Liability insurance where required.
- Set holiday, working-time, sickness and notice procedures.
- Keep records and update terms when the role changes.
Where to start
If you have not yet selected a candidate, follow our step-by-step hiring guide. If you already have a candidate, the three employer setup pages to work through are right to work, employment contract and payroll and PAYE.
Legal note: This guide is general information for UK household employers, not individual legal, tax or immigration advice. Employment and immigration rules can change and individual circumstances matter. Use the current official guidance linked on this page and obtain qualified professional advice where appropriate.