Nannies want to be paid under the table, but my spouse is GC holder

[JustAMom 0]

I'm totally flustered by my current situation -- maybe this community can help? My spouse is a green card holder (K1 visa originally, then a successful AOS). We have a new baby. I guess I was totally naive about this, but I've really been surprised to find that nearly every potential nanny we talk to wants to be paid under the table. Many are undocumented and don't want to alert anyone after overstaying. A few are U.S. citizens but just don't want to pay the IRS. But given my spouse's own immigration status, I went into this recruitment process opposed to doing anything illegal. It's too big of a risk, right? Or is everyone hiring nannies this way? Because of Covid we've been pretty isolated from the community of parents in our area -- but I know that there are tons of foreign-born folks here who hire nannies. So are lots of folks just risking their future citizenship by hiring off-the-books childcare? Is this the kind of thing that doesn't actually end up mattering to the U.S. government when it comes time for my spouse to apply for citizenship? Or is it as serious a risk as I think it is?

[HRQX 4,145]

9 minutes ago, JustAMom said:

So are lots of folks just risking their future citizenship by hiring off-the-books childcare? Is this the kind of thing that doesn't actually end up mattering to the U.S. government when it comes time for my spouse to apply for citizenship? Or is it as serious a risk as I think it is?

https://gtm.com/household/form-i-9-audits/

All U.S. employers – including families that hire household help like a nanny – must ensure proper completion of Form I-9 for people they hire to work in the United States. This includes citizens and noncitizens. Form I-9 is used for verifying their identity and employment authorization.

 

Penalties for Hiring Unauthorized Workers and Form I-9 Mistakes

Hiring employees without complying with employment eligibility verification requirements is a violation of the law. If you fail to properly complete or retain Form I-9, you could be subject to civil money penalties.

A first-time offense for knowingly hiring and continuing to employ unauthorized workers will cost you at least $538 and up to $4,133. Subsequent violations can cost you as much as $21,563.

Something as simple as failing to confirm an employee dated their Form I-9, for example, can result in a penalty of up to $2,156.

[millefleur 5,046]

**One post removed fro TOS violation. It is against the TOS to instruct others to break the law.**

 

VJ Moderation

[Ontarkie 14,221]

~~Moved to Taxes and Finances, from US citizenship General Discussion - as a better forum to discussed taxes~~

[US-UK 32]

More than just the I-9, you need to pay the nanny taxes and issue payments properly for both your protection and the protection of your nanny. It’s not just illegal but also exploitative of the nanny(and house cleaners, and other domestic staff) for you not to do so, as it deprives them of legal protections now and critical social benefits like Medicare and Social Security later in life.