Form I-9 for household employers: nannies, housekeepers and caregivers, the casual-work exception, and agency-placed workers

Yes, a family that hires a nanny, housekeeper, caregiver or other household employee to work on a regular basis completes Form I-9 with them, just as a business would: the worker fills in Section 1 by the first day of work, and the family examines the original documents and completes Section 2 within three business days. The exceptions are narrow: casual domestic work in a private home that is "sporadic, irregular or intermittent," a worker employed by an agency that controls the work, and a worker who is genuinely self-employed. The family keeps the form at home; it is not filed with the IRS or USCIS. That is how USCIS and the IRS describe the rule as of November 2026.

The tax and wage side of hiring a nanny, including the 2026 Schedule H thresholds and the federal overtime rules for live-in workers, is in nanny screening questions. This page covers only employment eligibility verification.

Does a family need Form I-9 for a nanny, housekeeper or caregiver?

The M-274 says you must complete Form I-9 "each time you hire any person to perform labor or services in the United States in return for wages or other remuneration," and that remuneration "is anything of value given in exchange for labor or services, including food and lodging." IRS Publication 926 applies that to households directly: "When you hire a household employee to work for you on a regular basis, you and the employee must each complete" Form I-9. Who completes it depends on the arrangement:

What counts as "sporadic, irregular or intermittent"?

The regulation excludes "casual employment by individuals who provide domestic service in a private home that is sporadic, irregular or intermittent" from the definition of employment, and it excludes "those engaged in casual domestic employment" from the definition of employee (8 CFR 274a.1(f) and (h)). Neither the regulation nor the M-274 defines the three words further. Three practical points:

• A schedule points to employment. A sitter every Tuesday and Thursday, or a housekeeper every other week, is regular work, and Publication 926 ties the Form I-9 duty to hiring someone "on a regular basis."
• The exception is for domestic service in your home. Publication 926 lists babysitters, caretakers, cooks, drivers, health aides, housekeepers, nannies, private nurses and yard workers as examples of household work.
• Cash does not change the answer. The test is whether you hire the person for wages or other remuneration, not how you pay them.

When an arrangement starts casual and becomes regular, complete the form from the point it becomes regular work. The form takes little time, and the regulation's definition of knowing hire counts failing to complete it as one way an employer can be found to have constructive knowledge (8 CFR 274a.1(l)(1)(i)).

How does a household complete Form I-9?

1. Make the offer first. The worker may complete Section 1 once they have accepted the job, and must do so by the first day of work. Give them the form's instructions.
2. Section 1 is the worker's. They fill it in and sign it. Anyone who helps or translates completes the preparer and translator certification on Supplement A.
3. Examine original documents in person. Within three business days of the first day, look at one List A document, or one List B and one List C document, that the worker chooses. The instructions say you "cannot specify which documentation an employee may present," and photocopies are not acceptable except certified copies of birth certificates. If the job lasts less than three business days, finish both sections on the first day.
4. Complete Section 2 yourself. M-274 Section 4.0 says the same person who examined the documents must complete the certification block and sign and date it, so if one parent looks at the documents, that parent signs. See Form I-9 Section 2 instructions for each field.
5. Copies are optional. 8 CFR 274a.2(b)(3) lets you copy the documents only to comply with the verification rules; if you do, keep the copies with the form.
6. Reverify if Section 1 shows an expiration date. Do it on Supplement B by the earlier of that date or the expiration of the List A or List C document recorded in Section 2. U.S. citizens and noncitizen nationals are never reverified.
7. Keep it at home. Retain the form for three years after the date of hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later (8 CFR 274a.2(b)(2)(i)(A)), and produce it if a federal agency gives you at least three business days' notice of an inspection (274a.2(b)(2)(ii)). Publication 926 says not to submit it to the IRS, USCIS or any other entity.

A teenager hired to babysit regularly completes the form too. Workers under 18 have extra List B options, and a parent procedure exists for a minor with no List B document; see Form I-9 for minors.

Can a family use E-Verify or check documents over video?

• E-Verify is voluntary for most private employers. Publication 926 mentions it as an option, and E-Verify's enrollment checklist asks for an employer identification number; Publication 926 says a household must include its EIN on the forms it files for a household employee, so many families already have one. A few states require E-Verify of some private employers; see E-Verify requirements by state.
• Video examination requires E-Verify. USCIS lets an employer "participate in E-Verify in good standing" use its remote examination procedure: examine copies of the documents, hold a live video call where the worker shows the same documents, and keep clear copies. Without E-Verify, examination is in person. See I-9 remote verification.
• An authorized representative is the other option. A family hiring a caregiver for a parent in another state can designate someone near the worker, such as a relative or a notary, to examine the documents and sign Section 2. The M-274 says no contract is needed, a notary acting this way should not add a seal, and the family is liable for the representative's mistakes. See I-9 authorized representatives.
• A Social Security number check is not a work authorization check. Publication 926 points to the Social Security Administration's verification service for matching a name to a number, and warns that "a person may have a valid SSN but not be authorized to work in the United States."

What should a family avoid?

• Asking for a particular document, such as a green card or a passport. The Form I-9 anti-discrimination notice says employers "must allow all employees to choose which acceptable documentation to present."
• Turning down a document that expires soon. The same notice says employers "should not reject acceptable documentation due to a future expiration date."
• Assuming small size means no rules. The Justice Department's anti-discrimination provision, 8 U.S.C. 1324b, does not apply to an employer of three or fewer employees (1324b(a)(2)(A)), so many households fall outside it. The Form I-9 instructions still apply in full, and state anti-discrimination laws may reach smaller employers.
• Treating relatives as exempt. Publication 926 has tax exceptions for some family employees, but the M-274's list of people you do not complete Form I-9 for has no exception for relatives.
• Keeping someone you know cannot work. Publication 926 states that it is unlawful "to knowingly hire or continue to employ a person who can't legally work in the United States."

What do nanny and caregiver agencies need to know?

An agency that employs the caregiver, sets the schedule and controls the work is the employer and completes the form; the family does not. A placement agency that only introduces candidates and collects a fee has no Form I-9 duty outside agriculture, so its clients do. Say which model you run in the client agreement and in your onboarding emails, because families often assume the agency "did the paperwork." If you place au pairs, the J-1 program rules come from your State Department sponsor designation rather than this page.

A household Form I-9 checklist

• Decide whether the worker is your employee, an agency's employee or self-employed.
• Section 1 by the first day; Section 2 within three business days, or on day one for jobs under three days.
• Original documents of the worker's choice, examined in person or by video only through E-Verify.
• The person who examined the documents signs Section 2.
• A reverification date in your calendar if Section 1 shows one.
• The form stored at home for three years after hire or one year after the job ends, whichever is later.